As I scramble to pack my bags for my 2-week workshop at Anderson Ranch, I can’t help but sneak away from my suitcase to write a little bit about my incredible trip to Greece last month! I mean, how much longer can I procrastinate? I’ve just been so busy trying to get things rolling here in Berkeley at my new studio, and FAST, seeing as American Craft came by to do a little photo shoot there with me the other week and so I just HAD to kick it into high gear…
Anyway - my dear friend and fellow potter, Vicki Snyder, lured me out the gorgeous little island of Kea (first in line of the Cyclades) to help her set up HER brand-new studio - she is, incidentally, the only potter on the island!! Once we got past our initial hang-up of no electricity installed (i.e. no kiln), we breezed through the next hurdle of locating all the raw materials we needed and found plenty of time to get to the beach!
Vicki and our friend Stavros (the electrician!) in front of her new pottery studio
Getting to the beach involved some off-road driving, and Vicki proved to be one tough cookie behind the wheel of an unfamiliar Japanese-made car…with Bella (her Great Pyrenees) in back, we ventured to an average of two different beaches a day, making our way around the coast slowly but surely!
Bella, Vicki and the Aegean Sea!
I fell in love with the maze of steps that wound their way up the hill of Kea Village. I took a long walk every night that would get me good and lost…best way to get to know your way around a place!
My last two days were the first days I laid eyes on any pots, believe it or not! Like I mentioned - there were no contemporary potters on the island of Kea before Vicki planted her wheel there, and I wasn’t planning to visit Athens this visit…that is, until I missed my plane home! Lucky me!
Ancient scoops, at the Kea Museum of Culture
Full Moon over Athens Ruins
The best thing about traveling, though, is meeting people. My favorite local character was definitely Rolando, a jovial, flirtatious Greek chef of his namesake cafe…Roloando’s!
