Homeport Pottery & Artisans Gallery

This past year I embarked on a journey to make a long time dream of mine a reality.  I've been opening my studio to the public on weekends during the summer but I've  always wanted to have a year round retail gallery space attached to my studio.  Planning for this has been in the works for years (at least in my head)  and finally I was able to get my husband Dave on board with the idea. Soooo back in October we applied for  & got the building permit needed to begin the project.

And so it began.  The foundation was poured & the addition very quickly went up.  Thanks to Dave I was able to open the door to Homeport Pottery & Artisans Gallery just in time for Christmas Prelude here in Kennebunkport Maine. 

It is so wonderful to have people come in and see my work and be able to take a peek in the the daily goings on of a pottery studio.  I also feel honored to be able to showcase the amazing work of other Maine artisans.

There's still a couple of days left to do your Christmas shopping so if you're in the area and want to find that perfect handmade in Maine gift stop on by. I'd love to meet you!

Homeport Pottery's Annual Christmas Prelude Open Studio December 6th - 8th

This event coincides with the first weekend of Kennebunkport's Christmas Prelude. We'll be open Friday from 4 pm to 7 pm and Saturday & Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm - so shop local and enjoy a lovely selection of handcrafted pottery, pewter tableware, oil lamps & accessories and also a wonderful collection of jewelry created from recycled bicycle parts. For directions & more information, please visit our website http://www.homeportpotterystudio.com/

The Maine Pottery Tour

The Maine Pottery Tour Takes place this weekend May 3rd & 4th! With over 17 studios participating across the state, this is a must on the to do list for any pottery enthusiast!!! 

Homeport Pottery will be open with pots hot from the kiln! Guest Artists Anne Thompson & Paula Roberts will also be here with their beautiful Metal work & Handwovens.

 AND while you're on Beachwood Ave, be sure to stop by fellow potter Wendy Twitchell's Studio!

For more info & a complete list of participating studios please visit the Pottery Tour's Blog:      http://mainepotterytour.blogspot.com/

Best Wishes for the Coming New Year!

To Everyone who has purchased a piece of our pottery or stopped by the studio this year, our heartfelt thanks for your continued support! May you and yours have a healthy, prosperous & very happy 2014!!

~*~*~*Namaste*~ *~*~

Homeport Pottery's Christmas Prelude Open Studio

Homeport Pottery's Annual Christmas Prelude Open Studio is this weekend.  This event coincides with the first weekend of Kennebunkport's Christmas Prelude.  We'll be open Saturday & Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm - so shop local and enjoy a lovely selection of handcrafted pottery, pewter tableware, oil lamps & accessories and also a wonderful selection of jewelry created from recycled bicycle parts.

A light snow last night has left the studio looking ready for the holidays!

Guest Artist Ann Thompson's beautiful pewter boxes and bracelets.

And a sampling of our pottery.

Homeport Pottery Studio

131 Beachwood Ave.

Kennebunkport, ME

for directions or more info call Cathie (207) 590-7659

The Sixteen Miserere Mei Deus

Heard this on MPBN this morning - what beautiful music for such a beautiful Spring day.

April Break Metal and Clayworks Camp at Firehouse Arts

Join Ann Thompson and me for a fun filled Spring Break Workshop Series at  Firehouse Arts in Yarmouth Maine April 15th - 18th.
Ann will be teaching various metal techniques and here's what I'll be covering in my classes:

Monday: Button and beads - participants will use various techniques and learn about texture and sculpting to create buttons and beads that they can later use to create their own unique jewelry. (NOTE-- students participating in this activity will also have to come on Thursday to glaze their work)

Tuesday: Animal Ornaments usding Slabs and Texture - Using fun foam to create templates and stamps and everyday objects to add  texture participants will create their own Animal Ornaments. Students are encouraged to bring drawings of the animals they would like to make to class. (NOTE-- students participating in this activity will also have to come on Thursday to glaze their work)

Wenesday: Learn how to use a slab roller and explore surface decoration using colored slips to create beautiful soft slab plates.  Each participant will make 3 to 4 dessert size plates using a paper plate “mold” .They then will learn about surface decoration by using colored slips to paint designs on  their plates and ceramic loop tools for carving.  

Thursday:  Glaze Day - Participants from Monday & Tuesday's class will return to glaze their bisqued creations.

The plates will then be fired off site and sealed with a clear glaze.  This makes the plates food and dishwasher safe……perfect for your favorite snack or  to use as a pet dish.

Visit the Firehouse Arts website for more information and to sign up!

Jumping into 2013 - Extruders

Monday Mud Musings

For those of you who don't know what an extruder is....think Play Doh Fun Factory on steroids.  This is a picture of the one I have mounted on a wall in my studio.

Just like the Play Doh Fun Factory you can use all sorts of dies that will give any number of really cool shapes.  Here's one of my favorites an octagon :)

I find the easiest way to use my extruder is with two people - one person to pull the handle down and another to guide the extrusion as it comes out of the extruder.  My husband, Dave, usually is the one who helps me.......anywho.......Dave & I spent part of our New Year's Day creating these quirky octagons.

Which I turned into Olive Oil Bottles, Syrup Pitchers and Funky Little Bud Vases (Gotta luv pottery with attitude)

(I'll post pics of the finished pcs in the near future)

This Week's Potter Who Inspires Me

 Hayne Bayless - Master of the Extruder!  You can see examples of his incredible work at Sideways Studio

Common Ground Country Fair Sept 21st - 23rd

It's that time of year again!  I'll be unloading the kiln latter today and packing up some new work to bring with us to Common Ground. 

For those of you who have never been to the fair, it is well worth the trip.  From delicious food, great music, wonderful crafts & demonstrations of all sorts - the fair has something to offer everybody.  

If you come, stop by and say hi to Dave & me.  We'll be in the big tent in the craft area.

Summer Shows and Such

A week to go and then off to the Berkshires for the Berkshires Art Festival This is my second year doing this one.  Hopefully the weather will be better this time around (last year it poured).   I have a couple of days to finish glazing and fire the kiln and tie all the rest of the loose ends together..........and so it starts.....eha.....show season.

Getting Ready

This time of year it seems like there are so many loose ends to tie together!  I'll be in the Berkshires the second week in July and I have a bunch of projects that need to be completed before that show.  Bisque, Glaze, Fire, Pit Fire, Raku Fire.................

I was mixing glazes yesterday and ran less than a 100 grams short of one of the ingredients I needed to complete a recipe.......dang!!! Luckily Dave was working near Portland Pottery and picked up what I needed on the way home (thank you honey!!!!!!).......soooo today I can finish mixing things up :)

I'm looking forward to tomorrow when I'll be doing a pit firing with friends and fellow potters from Southern Maine Clay Guild.  It will be nice to get out of the studio, share a meal and be social!!!

Maine Pottery Tour

Mother's Day Weekend is Pottery Weekend in Maine! Homeport Pottery Studio is pleased to be a part of this state wide event! Meet the artist, Cathie Cantara, see pottery making demos, tour the studio and shop for beautiful handmade pottery made in Maine.  We will be open to the public on May 12th & 13th from 10a.m. to 4p.m. with pottery making demos every hour on the hour.  


Other participants in Southern Maine include Elaine Fuller at Red Door Pottery Studio in Kittery and Kathleen King, Roger Dearborn & Ann Smith at The Gallery on the Green in Alfred.  Just click on the map pins below for more information.  


For a list of participants in the central Maine  area visit the Maine Pottery Tour Blog. 

Last Day of My Spring Sale!!!!!!!!!

Today is the last day of my Spring Sale - to see what's available visit my Etsy Store

Cathie Cantara Pottery  Enter SPRING2012 at checkout and receive 15% off your purchase!

Source: PromotionalCodes.net

ARTS & CRAFTS DEMO DAY

I'll be in Biddeford at the Engine this coming Saturday doing throwing demos.  If you're in the area.....stop by and say hi!

ARTS & CRAFTS DEMO DAY

SATURDAY MARCH 24 • 9AM - 1PM

ARDUINO 101 with Tim Karu

CLAY with Cathie Cantara

SCULPTURE with Cheryl Lichwell

BOOKBINDING with Kate Gerwig and Justine Bald

PRINTMAKING with Nora Tryon

ENAMELING with Kate Cathey

CROCHETING with Jen Cragen

PLUS MORE!

Come see artists demonstrating

their art or craft form.

265 Main St

Biddeford

(207) 229 3560

FeedtheEngine.org

Tues-Fri Noon-6p

Sat 9a-12p

Finally!!! My Etsy Store is Open for Business

I've had an Etsy Storefront for I little over 2 years now but up to today I hadn't listed any items for sale.  I guess I've been a little overwelmed, etsyphobic you could say, about  some of the finer point of Etsy such as setting up my store policies.  But anyway I had a break though  today and finished writing up my store policies and listed my first items!!!!!
You can now purchase my work on Etsy here's a link to my store:
Cathie Cantara Pottery

Mystery - Looking for Info - Would Love Some Help :)

This potter's wheel was purchased used in the mid 1970's.  I've never seen another one quite like it.  If anyone can give me any information about it's history, I would really appreciate it!!

Wheel in the foreground is the one in question

New Year New Work & Paper Work Uuuuugh

Why is it that every December I think that once I get past the last of the year's shows and celebrate the holidays with family and friends that I'll have a couple of weeks come January to just be a kid and play in my studio.....Reality usually sets in fairly quickly the first week in January when I realize I have at least a half a dozen show applications that are due before the end of the month (paperwork my favorite thing uuuughhhhh ;( ) and I think to myself "you should really clean up your space a little before you go out and make a mess on top of a mess".

Anyway, I've cleaned a little, played a little and filled out more paperwork than I like.  Here's something new for 2012 - Dream Keepers: 

My dream......Peace

Sumi Brush

Here's my first attempt at making a brush.........I'm kind of pleased with it and can't wait to see what sort of marks I'll be able to make on my pots with it.

Deer hair with a copper ferule, driftwood handle & leather hanger.

Engine's grand opening "In Nature" & Handmade on Main

(L. to R.) Deborah Randall, Andy Rosen, and Stephen Burt

Engine's grand opening
In Nature : Deborah Randall, Andy Rosen, and Stephen Burt
Friday, December 16 • 5-8pm
265 Main Street, Biddeford, Maine

Engine is thrilled to open its Main Street gallery space with the exhibition In Nature, featuring the paintings, sculptures, and drawings of Deborah Randall, Andy Rosen and Stephen Burt.

The work of Randall, Rosen, and Burt—all Maine artists who teach at the University of New England-Biddeford—shares a common thread of nature, but not in a traditional representative style. Randall’s paintings predominantly feature abstracted human forms in natural environments, while Andy Rosen’s sculptural creatures blend the familiar with the fantastical, and Stephen Burt’s meticulous landscape drawings feel imbued with a previous centuries’ motifs, yet crisply modern at the same time. 

Engine is proud to host these three talented Maine artists for its first "official" exhibition.

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Handmade on Main
On opening night, Engine will also introduce Handmade on Main, a small retail shop within the gallery that will offer original work by local artisans. Friday night’s opening reception with feature four artists from Maine Craft Association: Cathie Cantara (pottery), Ann Thompson (metal), Karen Gola (glass), and Hope Murphy (glass).

Please remember to buy local this holiday season and support Maine artists and crafters!

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The $50,000 Marble Block Challenge
Engine has accepted the generous gift of the former Renys building at 129 Main Street in Biddeford. Known as the Marble Block, the building was donated by the R.H. Reny family. Engine will immediately make necessary structural repairs, winterize the building, and host a collaborative community design session for input on the building’s future.

And then comes the challenge:

Engine is currently raising $50,000 to cover acquisition costs, legal fees, insurance, winterization, maintenance, and urgent structural repairs to the circa-1880s building. These funds will allow Engine to develop and execute a major redevelopment plan. Read more about our initial vision and how you can donate here.

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Regards,
Tammy Ackerman
Executive Director

FeedTheEngine.org
[207] 229 3560
Follow us on Twitter

Engine’s hours beginning December 16:
Tuesday-Friday : 12pm-6pm
Saturdays : 9am-12pm
and by special appointment

50 States Fire Up: American Clay Invitational

This piece will be hitting the road tomorrow!  It's off to the Margaret Harwell Art Museum in Poplar Bluff, MO where I've been asked to represent the state of Maine in a national exhibit.  "50 States Fire Up: American Clay Invitational" opens December 3rd and runs through January 29th 2012.