[Clayart] Gail/Colleen/long story

[robert hackert]

Great story Mel. What a shame the colleges that could be training budding artists are instead training protesters instead. 
Rob Hackert
North Port , Fl

Sent from my iPhone

> On Feb 4, 2023, at 10:37 PM, mel jacobson <melpots at mail.com> wrote:
> 
> Colleen came to me 11 years ago.  She was a drop out of college
> and almost ready to do herself in.
> Her family was dear friends, all from Hopkins and her grandpa
> taught with me.  She refused to do vagina pots and obscene art with metaphore.
> they would not let her do wheel work as it was vo-tech. A painting teacher
> was not appropriate. She was pissed.
> 
> She packed up and went home. went to her room and would not come out.
> they took her to a psychiatrist and they were all worried.
> Grandpa said. "Just give her to Mel, he will find a way."
> they came to my living room Colleen, and her Dad.
> 
> I finally said in a loud voice. "Colleen, what do you want?"
> She looked at me and said. "I wanna make pots on a wheel, paint and draw
> like you do!"
> 
> I wanted an 18 year old girl in my studio esp with `issues` like the plague.
> So I tested her after showing her some simple problems on the wheel.
> her pots were as good as mine. She was a natural, and the best student I have
> ever had. I kept her.  My wife monitored us in the studio. And Colleen bonded
> with Sharlene. She found what she was seeking. Honest hard work, a place to be herself
> and people around her that thought they way she did. She is a person of value.
> 
> She became a lovely, talented, ideal craftswomen. As I live here in the woods in Wisconsin
> she runs our pottery in Minnetonka. Her presence is perfect.
> You will have to read the book, at least the first 25 pages. It is her story and then I use
> the theme of her story and her life next to me, and that is a vehicle for me to write my own
> story of my life as a potter, telling all the stories that Colleen lived with.
> 
> I dedicated the book to my new great great grandson, Melvin Richards, age 1
> I hope he reads this book at 35, and will have comparisons to his own life. good or bad.
> A thumb drive with the book on it, will be placed in a water proof container and be buried at
> the bottom of my fire proof safe. I tell people that at 88 I want all issues taken care of.
> I want to leave things to my grandchildren..good pots, paintings and an attitude of hard work, dedication
> to helping others and find contentment in their own life. If you do not write the stories in your own
> hand, they will never know what value came from our being.
> 
> It is poetic that Colleen's college was the UofM, Duluth. The board of regents dropped the entire art
> curriculum, fired all the profs and kept three on hand to teach "recreational art."  At the time
> I was quoted as saying "they committed suicide and were to dumb to know why." As tenured professors
> they had the right to demand obscene "smart" art. And the board of regents had the right to drop the program.
> 
> Collen and I went back to college. The U of M, main campus/ She majored in art, with a clay specialty.
> We used the "British Method".  Making fun of them without them knowing. She was armed with a great many tools
> and confidence. She was the star of the art department. She went to school with no tatoos, no piercing, wore
> good make-up and made the best stuff you ever saw.  She made a family portrait. Hand built and she asked the
> prof what clay to use for hand building and he said. "clay is clay, use whatever we have in boxes".  Her print teacher'
> told the kids to go to u-tube and they would find out how to print. He never gave a demo.
> Her Portrait was a group of slab pots 4 feet tall. And we came up with the idea of cheo.pets. Grass and plant
> life coming out of their heads. Colleen and her mom wrote the most hilarous paper I have ever read. Then she told
> the prof she wanted to "salt fire her family".  He said the kiln was broken and did work. So, without direction
> or professional guidance she fired the salt kiln to perfection. I talked to through the firing with phones. She
> added about 15 lbs of salt. The used one cup. She fired to cone 11, they fired to cone 9. It was said that she fixed
> the salt kiln. Her family went on boxes into the main lobby of the Warren MacKenzie memorial building, and not teachers throwing.
> mel  I will put a picture on the clayart website, Colleen's family, salt glaze, cone 11.
> 
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