Wetwork Again

After the firing(and all the random distractions) knocked me out of my groove, I think I lost my nerve a bit. I made the first seventy-five, boom-boom-boom, one idea suggesting the next; but when I came back to the wet end of the cycle, I found I was having trouble coming up with different mugs. I put it off for a little while, but finally decided the only way to do it was to do it, and risk making a few redundant or bad mugs, in order to get back in the groove. I also decided it was time to get (funnily enough) way out of my comfort zone, and make some mugs which were plain, with no alteration, stamping, carving, or slip-trailing. These I will plan to do some brushwork on, with glazes; not my forte. My hero in that skill is Carl Erikson, of North Main Studios in Stillwater, Minnesota. Here are a few of Carl's pots:

I have no illusions of creating anything quite so impressive, but again, this excercise is pushing me into territories where I wouldn'nt normally stray.

Couple of quick, unrelated notes:

• I have largely been successful at re-ordering my priorities so that I can spend more time in the studio; I now spend at least five hours a week more making stuff. Having a goal and a deadline really motivates me. 
• In a hopefully unrelated development, I now find I have a constant slight pain in my lower back. This started a month or more ago; I noticed I was being very careful when I bent down to feed the cats first thing in the morning. I attributed it to my winter inertia, and figured it would clear itself when the weather improved and I became more active again. That still could be the cause, I don't know, but unfortunately it's no longer just in the morning, but all day, and it's a constant tweak threatening to turn into a sharp pain. Like a lot of artists, I don't have health insurance, so I plan to address it with some half-assed and homemade yoga and stretching, and prayer.