I’m super picky about what I like. I can appreciate the technical work that goes into all sorts of different art mediums, but that doesn’t mean I enjoy them all equally, from an aesthetic perspective. I adore Mitchell Spain’s work on every level. It is both technically and visually wonderful. He has written a book on his ceramic threading process for the flasks. These are fully functional. Photos do not do them justice.

Here is a nice article talking about ceramic deception. Even though a bit dated, I also enjoyed this article about Spain’s pieces. All of his work shown below is available at Eutectic Gallery in Portland, Oregon.

I give my three kids ceramics as gifts quite often. They are good sports, but I also think they really like what I pick for them. What makes it more fun is that they begin to recognize pieces I have in our collection at home.

My middle child received the Ranier tumbler below at the start of law school this Fall, as a kind of fun thing to receive in the mail. He loves it. Rainer beer is what all the kids in Seattle drink. He says he uses it for a pen holder on his desk….

My other two kids are receiving the pieces below for the upcoming holidays. I’m sure none of them read my blog, so the secret should be safe. The Krylon paint tumbler is for my daughter, and the Ranier cone top bottle is for my youngest son. I’m pretty confident they will both like them.

I’m thinking I should be getting my recently retired father one of Spain’s pieces He ends every text he sends me with a cocktail emoji. Maybe he needs a flask?