how do i fit in? how do you?

Lately I've been thinking.  (I know....god, thinking.. please be careful, things happen when one thinks.  Ideas?  Oh god..watch out!)

Just this morning I watched a dvd about Val Cushing.  It was released through NCECA back in 2005.  Its about his..."life of clay".  his history, the reasons, his practice.  I watched it and was reminded just how lucky I am to have the life I do.  It's great.  I get to make pots and meet lots of amazing people.  The pay is totally shitty..so horrible....  I have student loans that I wont be able to pay off for a long time...and speaking of a long time - owning a house?  Maybe never.  Health insurance?  yah,  you guessed it.. I don't ski!...  Maybe if I get lucky I can have some of these things one day....  and yet I do feel lucky.

....to think of art.  to live it.  to look at line and form in a way most people can't possibly imagine.  if i'm going to read a book..chances are I'm going to read something about my own field.  Who does that?  Do you think the janitor or dish washer goes home to brush up on his history of janitory skills or the greats that impacted the dish-washing scene?  I would guess not many professions go home and leisurely brush up on their professions history.

so I find myself trying to understand my place in this clay world and my way of working.  as potters and workers of clay we are engaged in a living tradition.  It is soooo important to grasp that concept.  How will we shape the future of our medium?  How do I fit in it?  How do you?

This is my third residency, here at the Clay Studio of Missoula.  I've been to Redlodge for a few months, Sonoma, Ca for half a year...  How different, as a young clay artist's life is compared to the greats, like Val or any other artist that I look up to that did it 40 or 50 years ago.  It's a new game with new cards.  How fun.  American Ceramics is so young.  It's so brand-spankin new that I get worked up about all the possibilities.

 There is so much information out there that I think a lot of what's coming out is total crap.  Yet, like most things... the cream will rise to the top.  You can fool the audience, but never the players.