Rocky Hill Arts in Galena, Illinois and other news!

It has been a year since I’ve written an update, so there is a lot to update!

Since the amazing ICEX event in San Francisco and LA area with the 6 ceramic artists from South Korea, I have launched a full website with their works, scheduled and hosted another ceramics tour to Korea, bought a house, scheduled and hosted a ceramics tour to China, got to see my two boys graduate in IL and CA, a family vacation to Korea and finally, I am home in Galena, Illinois writing this update.

This move has been full of emotions. Someday I will write about that, but for now, let’s talk about all the amazing plans in action!

I am building a studio with 15 wheels to host workshops by artists local and international! We will be building a raku kiln, a wood fire kiln, hosting workshops to fire both of these kilns… not quite at the same time, and coming this Fall, I will be hosting MoonDoBang at my own studio!

The big selling point? Beautiful and serene atmosphere. Dedicated workshop space to work freely. lunch will be provided with each workshop. Only thing missing is lodging. You will have to find a bed&breakfast or a hotel in town, 10 minutes away.

Also, in addition to the workshops at Rocky Hill Arts, I will be returning to Korea with another ceramics tour, presenting at Clay Carnival hosted by Orchard Valley Ceramic Arts Guild. And!!! Super excited to be doing another Teapot and Wine Tasting in Sonoma with Quail Run Winery (registration in the Shop)

And if that isn’t enough, in 2026, January/February, I will be teaching a bootcamp and teapot intensive with Common Clay Space in Cupertino. End of March/April will be another ceramics tour to China, and April will be a new Spring ceramics tour to Korea. I do have July scheduled… but you will have to wait for that info. These will be presented through the ICEXconnect.org website. So be sure to follow along there as well as the instagram account: @icex.connect

Vsit the ICEX website to get all the details.

Rocky Hill Arts, Galena, Illinois

icexconnect.org/workshops-rocky-hill-arts

Visiting Artist : MoonDoBang : US Tour

Moon throwing large bowl.

Moon Jar

Stacking bowls with lid

Facetted series

Instagram sensation, MoonDoBang creator Mr. Moon, Byung Sik, will make his first visit to the US with a tour of California and a stopover in Helena, Montana.

At the age of 16, Moon Byung Sik fell in love with clay. He had passion, but the skills didn’t come easily. It took him 10 times longer to finish a pot than some of his peers, but with perseverance and practice, he began to win skills competitions.

Post college, at 26, Moon started a studio practice inside his father’s barn with the idea that he would make pots he likes to make and—he reasoned—people would buy them. He soon discovered that what he wanted to make was not what customers wanted to buy. Competing for buyers with other potters who had 20, 30, or 40 years of experience was challenging.

As he reflects on his path today, starting at a young age was his best decision. He made mistakes and had failures due to his lack of experience, but he says that he was able to put aside his failures more easily and continue moving forward because he had less to lose.

17 years after he first sat at a pottery wheel, Moon operates a professional workshop where he produces his porcelain products and sells them from his gallery and shop in Yeoju, South Korea. He ships worldwide from his website www.moondobang.com Follow him on Instagram @moondobang

MoonDoBang: US Tour: How it all started

In November 2022, I had a chance to take a virtual pottery class with the Korean artist, Moon Byung Sik of MoonDoBang, hosted by Kala Stein. I casually mentioned that I would like to host a workshop for him in San Francisco. 

Start: November 2022

Kala Stein and Joanne Lee, host and translator for Moon for the virtual workshop, set up a meeting to explore the possibility of Moon visiting the US, more specifically San Francisco and the Bay Area. He agreed to 10 days, which grew to 14 days. Then we decided to visit his friend, Adam Field in Helena, Montana,… who mentioned that he had contacts in LA and that if we were to extend and expand the tour, wouldn’t that be wonderful? 

Plan: MoonDoBang US Tour: 2023

By mid December, I had commitments from 11 venues and most days were filled, with workshops scheduled from Petaluma down to San Diego, and Helena, Montana. Round-trip air from Seoul, Korea was purchased.

By the second week in January, scheduling was completed for Moon on his first visit to the US with a 24-day, 14-venue, 13-city, 2-state, west coast tour that includes demos, workshops, and an Instagram live feed.

In February, the last venue committed and a brainstorm led to the Virtual Demo with Moon and Adam Field from Helena, Montana, to be hosted by Kala Stein.

Show Time: MoonDoBang US Tour: 2023 

Moon lands in 6 days. 10 boxes of MoonDoBang porcelain pots have arrived. 150 Posters have been printed. 100 T-shirts have been ordered. His room is made.

Most venues have sold out all the seats, some within 5 minutes of opening registration publicly—some selling out only to members. Success can be attributed to Moon’s 97K Instagram followers, help from Adam Field with his 117K followers and mailing list, and the Instagram following of the 15 participating venues. Yes, the power of social media can be measured.

If you haven’t reserved seats yet, try Laney College: https://laney.edu/art/

Additional information is on the tour page on my website, mikisr.com: http://www.mikisr.com/moondobangtour, 

Registration for the Virtual Demo with Adam Field is open. Registration can be found at KalaStein.com:  https://kalastein.thinkific.com/

When asked about what he would like to see and do while on his first visit to the US, he said, “eat a hot dog, see the Golden Gate Bridge, and go to a baseball game.” We have tickets to the Oakland A’s opener on March 30th, where Shohei Ohtani will be starting for the Angels. Kala is hosting a dinner and hot dogs are on the menu. And I’m sure we will cross the Golden Gate Bridge at least once.

Follow me on Instagram for more stories. @mikisr_ceramics

Things That Bind Us

Fremont Art Association (FAA), based in Fremont, CA., hold their monthly meetings where they discuss general member business and also invite guest artists.

On March 02, 2022, Lance and I have been invited to talk about our Binding Birds and also demonstrate how it is made from chunk of clay to the ceramic piece. We will form, carve, burnish, show the complete firing process, polishing after the firing and finally packaging.

Many have asked about how they are made, this is your opportunity to see it (almost) live!

It’s is a free event, but you will have to register to get the link to join us. Please use this link to sign-up.

….. And the article below published 02/22/2022 on Tri-City Voice, Fremont, CA

Tri-City Voice

February 22, 2022
Page 18

The Fremont Art Association is thrilled to feature Miki Shim and Lance Rutter as the guest artists at its virtual General Meeting and Art Demo for March. 

Life partners, Shim and Rutter are a creative powerhouse. While each has a unique and distinct background, when they unite in producing their exquisite ceramic works, magic happens. In their demo, The Things that Bind Us, they will share with us their quarantine survival project, The Binding Bird. It’s the story of how a small bird strengthened their own bond, as well as brought them closer to loved ones near and far. Through live demonstration and photos, they will share their origin story and present details of their creative process—from forming, carving, and burnishing to pit-firing, finishing, and packaging.

Shim is an internationally recognized ceramic artist. Her decorative functional pottery is marked by elegant surface textures and designs, sensitivity to lightness and proportion, and respect for the Earth and materials drawn from it. Most recently Shim has gained attention for her work exploring the culture of tea. In 2017 and 2019, Shim was one of four American potters invited to participate in the “Hong Guang Zi Qi” International Ceramic Art Cultural Exchange Week in Yixing, China. Her teapots, tea bowls, jars and trays, which have been juried into many local and international exhibitions, showcase both a mastery of individual form as well as a holistic approach to the human experience of drinking tea.

​Shim studied fine arts in ceramics and Visual Communications at Northern Illinois University and received her BA in Advertising Design from Ray College of Design, Chicago, IL. In 2009, following a 20-year professional career in integrative marketing and graphic design, she returned to her roots in ceramics. Today she balances her time between her studio work with teaching at Clayroom SF, Wilson Park Ceramics Studio, and the Palo Alto Art Center where she also serves as the Adult Studios Program Coordinator. Shim is an exhibiting member of the Association of Clay and Glass Artists of California (ACGA) and a member of the Orchard Valley Ceramics Arts Guild. She is represented at Abrahms Claghorn Gallery in Albany, CA.

​Rutter is currently the Senior Vice President of Design at Quantifind. His non-traditional career path as a graphic designer has been shaped by his belief that designers should be at the table in tackling the hard problems and in promoting design’s significant benefits to society. Rutter has had myriad experiences throughout his 40-year career as a designer and artist. Among these was as founder and creative director of his own agency.

Rutter holds a BFA in Graphic design from the University of Illinois. He has taught senior and graduate level design at the University of Illinois and at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He has served on the Board of Directors of multiple non-profits, including Design for Democracy, which he helped establish, and the American Institute of Graphic Arts. His work has been published and won numerous awards, and his posters have been exhibited as part of international biennial exhibitions in a dozen countries. Today, among Rutter’s various artistic endeavors include getting his hands dirty in the studio with his wife and exploring the relationship between clay and fire.

https://tricityvoice.com/02-22-22/

Heaven&Earth

Another series in the works.
These are the Earth oval platters. 13” x 6”.
Mugs and large vases are in the works, going through glaze testing.

More to come.

#collaboratingartists #partnersinclay #bayareaceramics

2020 Virtual Chuseok Festival

Fall is harvest time everywhere and to celebrate the bounty, every culture has its own version of the celebration. In its second year, the Bay Area Chuseok Festival will be virtual with music, arts, cuisine and local artists and artisans coming together. Celebration starts September 30 and continues through October 10th. I will be participating as a vendor and also offer a 10% discount through the Chuseok website links. https://koreancentersf.org/chuseok2020/

Sign-up and use the app to participate in all the events.

The Bay Area Chuseok Festival…

Celebrates the rich cultural diversity of the SF Bay Area by showcasing Korean traditions, music, arts, cuisine, and community. Our mission is to inspire exploration and discovery of Korean culture across communities and generations, while offering the area’s Korean Americans a way to celebrate together an important traditional holiday.

This year, in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Festival is going virtual and is dedicated to supporting local businesses, organizations and individuals working hard to overcome difficulties during these challenging times.