Iffy The Cat and Portland's, The Joggers

NOTE: Justin's new designs are now up for sale on our website!











I finally finished "Iffy The Cat", a custom clock I've been working on for a friend of Jonah's (our six year old son). It's very bright and design-y, with a swinging tail and I'm really happy with how it turned out!


On Saturday, Justin dragged me out to a live show at BERBATI'S PAN. I mean dragged, not in the sense that I don't enjoy live music, but in the sense that I firmly believe if I'm out past midnight, I'll turn into a pumpkin (a referendum on my thirty-something-mom status perhaps).

Anyway, Justin and I are going to do a joint blog about THE JOGGERS, a local indie band that, I must say, ROCKS! I'm soo glad I went! I managed to snap a few shots from the left of the stage and I even got a few good ones of the drummer way in the back - once the lady with the blonde ponytail and camera left, that is. But, I'm not really a music critic, so I will leave the rest to Justin.

Justin: I love synchronicity, and the fact that Portland's The Joggers were playing a show minutes from our house just as my obsession over their album "With a Cape and a Cane" was peaking, made me very happy! I don't get out to shows as much as I would like these days, but this one made up for that in a "quality over quantity" kind of way. Their sound reminds me of a long-ago favorite band of mine called Polvo from Chapel Hill, NC- but updated and chanelled through their own strange and wonderful prism. Cheers, Joggers!

Mary: One more thing - my personal favorite of the evening was drummer, Jake Morris, who was a pleasure to watch. He's an incredible drummer, and whether he knows it or not, a great performer as well. I apologize for the less than flattering photo, but I'm attempting to convey this guy's awesome energy and intensity!

Fun, fun!

Unveiling New Art Clocks!

Here are some images of the Monster Block Clock that Jonah and I collaborated on, as well as some of Justin's new clock designs. I hope to complete the cat clock that I'm working on for Jonah's friend soon so I can put it up, too!

The Block Clocks are my latest group of art clock designs. I use 3x3" painted squares and then build my clock design on a larger foundation. I am going to be making some more large ones like the Monster Clock (which measures 15" x 33.5") soon!

"Flow" by Justin Potts (I just love how this one turned out!)

"Magician" by Justin Potts

"Delta" by Justin Potts (with a hammered copper pendulum)

"Ornament" by Justin Potts (another of my favorites)

And, just for fun, here's an abstract shot of Justin's drum brushes (sorry, I'm not up on music instrument lingo) that I took last night - who knew an 70s orange countertop could be so cool!

I may be back sometime this weekend with the cat clock. Either way, happy weekend!

New Clocks - Clocks in Progress - Legend of Zelda Project

As usual, the three of us have many things going on. Among them are a new group of Justin's clocks, a custom cat clock I'm designing and Jonah's Legend of Zelda / Ocarina of Time project...and, I am sneaking in two more photos of the snow fort, which fell at the end of last week, may the "shawl lady" rest in peace.

.......

Here are the finished Block Clocks (most of them, I'm still not ready to unveil the BIG one yet).


Flow Wall Clock in progress:

Wow!

Jonah is deep into Nintendo's Legend of Zelda/Ocarina of Time and is currently working to recreate some of the important equipment in this dimension. This is his latest completed project - the fairy hero's shield and sword (with some help from dad and mom). Now, he's on to the bow and arrow. I'll post the slingshot next time, too, which he and Justin made several months ago.

Finally, this is the cat clock design that I'm working on for one of Jonah's friends for her birthday (it's a present from her parents, not me, just to clarify!). The tale will swing and I'll post a photo of the finished piece, too!

And, that's how the Potts Family is shaping up on a Tuesday. We've had a bit of wholesale activity lately, so we've got to get going and make more clocks!!!

One Possible Scenario Resulting From 4 Inches of Snowfall In Portland (OR)

Snow Fort

We woke up Tuesday morning to the unusual sight of a snowy blanket covering everything and lighting up our usually cavernous house with the whitest of light. (Unusual because in Portland the thermometer hovers around 42 degrees from November - March/April.) It was going to be our first and possibly only snow day of the winter. Jonah had been talking for so long about how when it finally did snow, he was going to build a "snow fort". At first, the snow was so powdery that it would not be packed into a brick or even a proper snowball. Jonah waited patiently and impatiently for a while longer...

A few hours later, Jonah and Justin had several rows of trash can bricks going around an imperfectly elliptical fort (my design - Justin would have never made an imperfect ellipse). They worked until it was almost dark and then came in to build a fire and make dinner. All while I worked on clocks, watching them through the studio windows.

On Wednesday, it was my turn. I painted and worked on clocks in the morning and then after lunch, I was out there. We worked until past dark and past time for me to be preparing dinner. This photo was taken early in the afternoon. We still had a long way to go!
It was only by sheer determination of will overcoming such challenges as hunger, fatigue and darkness that the fort has anything resembling a roof.

Here's the bizarro snow sculpture from one angle looking like a lady in a large dress with a shawl covering her head. That's Benjamin our Border Collie, thrashing with a rock he's found. He feels no pain now - being a Flagstaff dog, the snow is euphoric - but later he'll be limping.

I wanted to put up one more photo from the front of the fort, but I can't get it to upload - perhaps I've reached my limit. So, that's it for now - Happy Weekend!

Introducing the Block Clocks

We have had a few flurries in Portland over the past few days. A true novelty experience in a city where the thermometer is mostly stuck on 42 degrees F from November through March/April. But, the sky has also been amazingly blue and the sunshine bright enough to make you cry. For these things and so much more, I am grateful!
I've had a bit of a creative surge and purge this week - a welcome feeling after the holiday blur. My latest family of clocks (12, I think) are the Block Clocks. I've made one before with the idea of making more. And, now, after looking around my studio at all the unused 3" painted squares in a variety of designs, the Block Clocks have been born. The Block Clock family is made using 3" painted squares to build a usually bright, always contemporary clock. Here are a few shots of the Block Clocks in progress...

And, here is a glimpse of one Block Clock that I'm making using Jonah's monster blocks. He wasn't interested in designing the rest of the clock, but he did paint the monsters and tell me I could do whatever I wanted with them. Naturally, I'm making a clock! We are still discussing what his cut will be when the clock sells....Any suggestions?

Happy Weekend!

Holiday Highlights

Happy New Year Everyone!
We had a great holiday this year. We worked hard and then took a nice long vacation to enjoy Jonah's new toys, games and building sets; we spent time reflecting and creating by ourselves; and we had a great time socializing with friends (our families are far away).
Just to highlight a few exciting things from our holidays...

We are very proud of and excited for Jonah, our six-year-old son, who sold two pieces of his art this holiday season - one painting and one wall clock. Congratulations, Jonah! Here they are...

1) "Numbers 1" - acrylic on board 2) "Numbers 1" close-up 3) "Rainbow of Green" wall clock

Justin, as you may know, is also a prolific musician, creating songs out of thin air in his home studio. One of my favorites - "Keys to the Kingdom" - will debut in a movie from actor/writer/director Michael Knowles called ONE NIGHT. You can view a trailer for the movie here: http://www.onenightthemovie.org/

Here's Justin at work/play in his music studio...

Lastly, one of my favorite highlights was a trip to OMSI to see the Star Wars exhibit. I was thrilled and amazed to be in the same room with all of those Star Wars relics. Star Wars is the epic of my childhood and, as Jonah has come to love it as well (obsession may be a proper word here), the impact has grown even larger. Anyway, here are a few shots of our day spent within the fantasy of George Lucas's masterpiece!

We would like to take this opportunity to be grateful for the many blessings in our lives, for the work/art that helps us grow and thrive, for each other, and for our health. We wish everyone a happy and healthy 2007!

Until next time...