Revisiting

This past weekend I taught "Forever Blowing Bubbles" at the inaugural Metal Clay Artist Symposium (MCAS). I had a great time, and I think my students did too. They learned how to turn a tube into a closed canister to be used as a vessel, and how to make a friction fit lid. Unfortunately we didn't have time to design and create the paper/sheet clay decoration (I was afraid that would happen), but they promise me they'll take photos when they finish their work at home. (insert pouty face here)

The Symposium was held in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The hotel was right down the street, and many fantastic restaurants were within walking distance. I can hardly wait until the next one. I live in Richmond Virginia, so it was super easy to get to, and in fact a number of my local students also made the 3 hour trek. All in all, I think there were about 90 artists there. Which seems like a low count - but it *was* the first one.

Being able to take classes from instructors you might not otherwise have access to is a wonderful thing! At this particular conference, a super talented artist came from Russia, and I'm so sad I didn't have the time to drop in on her class!

Understandably, going to Symposiums and conferences and other types of learning venues is expensive. In addition to the class and materials fees one may have to travel, pay for a hotel, and you always seem to spend more on food that you would if you were home (did I mention how yummy all my dinners were?) - and you can learn online, from books, ask friends in cyber/social groups you may belong to... there are many excuses why a person wouldn't want to go to one of these things. But the benefits far outweigh the potential costs.

I've already mentioned being able to learn with top notch instructors, but just meeting your fellow metal clay artists, spending time, being able to concentrate fully on your work for days in a row, listening to entertaining and enlightening discussions, and having a good reason to go to a part of the country that you would have no other reason to visit are just a few of the reasons why you should try to keep an eye out, and try to attend national conferences. I wish I had scheduled an additional day to visit the colonial town of Old Salem while I was there.

I was able to visit with a friend from England and many from all across the US that I hadn't seen in over 4 years! And that was all the excuse I needed. Back in the day the national PMC Guild had a bi-yearly conference that attracted between 300-400 attendees from all over the world. It's a shame that that opportunity has faded, but we can all try to keep the small regional get togethers happening if we plan and save our pennies. The very next conference I know of is Metal Clay Mojo next summer, and I really hope I hear that MCAS will be back in 2018. In between there is the fabulous Bead and Button show, a variety of BeadFest's around the country, Art and Soul retreats, and more. Some people try to get to a few of these every year - but even if you only go to one a year, or even every other year - You horizons will be expanded in unimaginable ways.