The International Sculpture Center is having its 25th Conference here in Phoenix this week. On Wednesday I participated in a special opportunity to work at Mission Clay. It was a small group of us. Bryan Vansell gave a tour, which I missed because I got there late. Then we drew numbers, and each of us was given a huge section of leather hard clay pipe to work on. There was an array of tools to carve, mark, drill, saw, and a wide selection of underglazes. We worked in the factory, next to all the noisy equipment, each of us immersed in our own little world.

Break for lunch and BBQ, generously hosted by Mission Clay. We sat outside on long tables, surrounded by all sizes of pipe—stacked high—and shared the meal with the people who work there; it was totally great.  Then we were back to work, trying to finish up before the whistle blew. Many thanks to Bryan Vansell, Pat Siler, John Toki and others for their generous support and guidance. Thanks to Ree Kaneko for the photos. The pipe next to mine is the work of Anne Chase Martin of St. Louis.