contact info kjelsty@gmail.com

Sunday, April 30, 2006

Clay and Ireland

Play in mud was my mission while Glenn was in Ireland.

I did lots of it the first week with the sculpture workshop by Brent Sumner. Brent is from Kaitaia, which is in the far North of the North Island here in New Zealand. Darjit was the medium that we used it was a great sculpture medium I enjoyed getting dirty and working in a larger scale again. The medium had a similar feel to clay and was pretty easily shaped and textured. The other wonderful thing about Darjit is that it is made of recycled material old newspapers and magazines you can read more about Darjit at http://www.alchymia.co.nz/darjit.htm I was just so impressed. Of course I told Brent I would be moving up to Kaitaia to work with him and make more sculptures—te he!

Me with my finished sculpture. Around the base I painted "A seed of hope can grow a garden of dreams."--Kjelsty Hanson

During the week my friend Marija brought over some plants that we was trying to get rid of from lavender to aloe Vera. She helped me get them planted and do some weeding our yard looks so much happier. I still have trouble believing that Aloe plants can be planted outside and you should see how big they can get!

The following weekend my friend Fay and I went up to Taupo for the Crater Clay Convention. This was a weekend full of clay demos and slide shows from a variety of clay artists from all over the New Zealand, one from Australia and another from Taiwan. It was a great weekend. Fay and I enjoyed the workshops I was fascinated and so inspired by Ah Leon the Taiwanese potter that I spent most of the two days watching him work. He demonstrated much about making teapots that was his craft but he was also a sculptor and he now makes trompe l’oeil teapot sculptures that look like they are made out of wood.

Ah Leon's T-Pot


For his sculptures he did not use glazes or stains the color comes from the Taiwan’s clays that he uses. Some of his work has been shown in the US and one of his largest works called The Bridge was shown at the Smithsonian. This piece is about 60 feet long and is completely made out of clay. You will have to look at the following to link to see it for yourself amazing! http://www.plasm.com/ceramics/Friends/AhLeon/AhLeon03.html

Glenn got back on the 27th he was so happy and full of stories from his trip. It sounds like he had a wonderful time traveling around and playing music with Kathryn. Here are a few pictures of their travels. Glenn of course played tunes in all the towns they visited. He said, “The music and the crack was great.”

Glenn playing tunes with some of the locals.


Ireland was a hoot. The bar above was in a little town in county Offaly and it was an indescribable night of music. The man singing was the owner of the bar and the pianist was as unique as they come. What was also intriguing was that the bar was full of beautiful paintings of people in an impressionist style on really big canvases. As I played I realized that all the paintings were of the people in the bar. Very cool. Kathryn and I began at her school in Maynooth, which was as pretty a campus as you will ever see. Very old stone buildings and a chapel that could compare with anything in the world. The ceiling was beautifully painted and the stained glass was out of this world. We then went to Dingle and had three days and two great nights there. I played Wsome incredible kerry musicians while Kathryn got to know the locals. She met two postmen from Cork who offered to show us the dingle penninsula and that turned into quite the day. We even helped a family put their curragh (old style irish boat) into the water and sail for the blasket islands. Part of the family was the grandpa who was a master craftsman and made the boat they were putting to sea. Quite the adventure. Then we headed for County Clare where the music is rich. We stayed with Mike and Kathleen Obrien for two nights and had a couple great sessions. The first night was in a pub that you could shake hands across and it was pure magic. Concertina, fiddle, box, whistle and flute and there were two great singers who shared songs in the sean nos style. Very beautiful stuff. The evening ended up with a story teller spinning yarns and hilarious stories.
We reluctantly left Clare through a great traditional area called Doolin and we toured the Burren and headed for the small town of Loughrea where I learned the music. I was shocked at how fast and busy the town had gotten. Last time I was there the most you would see was a donkey cart on the road but now it was a bubbling metropolis. I did find out that most the musicians I used to play with are now playing in another world somewhere. Kind of sad,but the place will always be a sleepy town in my mind. We then decided to head up to Westport in Mayo, a place where Kathryn and I heard about but never have been too. It turned out to be a great move. Matt Malloy's pub is world renowned for its traditional music. We weren't to be disappointed. We stayed at a wonderful B and B with a really funny woman running the place. She was quite the spunky gal and had Kathryn and I in stitches. When we went to Malloy's, we saw that Charlie Lennon, a virtual legend on the fiddle was playing that night. We went and were not disappointed. The next day we walked around the town which was really beautiful. Then we headed for Connemara, which is about as pretty as it gets. There we hiked up a mountain that St. Patrick climbed in bare feet, and it was a very spiritual place. We also came across numerous castles and an Abbey that was striking. We ended up staying at a hostel in Clifden, and were excited because several of the bars said there was traditional music that night. it was the only bad night for music as the musicians were playing irish tourist music rather than the real thing. We then stopped in Galway the next day, and had a good time, but boy, how that town has grown. It is a major city now with suburbs all around it. I must say that Ireland joining the European union is a mixed blessing. It certainly has helped its economy, but there has been a lot lost because of its economic growth, which is pretty sad. After an afternoon there we headed back through the mainland of Ireland and I was very impressed with its beauty. Kathryn and I especially loved Offaly for its green farmland and neat towns. Upon our return to Maynooth, Kathryn and I enjoyed each other's company and played a few tunes together. She will some day become a great tin whistler. It was super spending some time with her in beautiful Ireland.


Glenn and Kathryn on a scenic hike in Connemara.