About Me

My photo
Joy Serves G*d in Joy as a passionate performing percussionist, poet, publisher, photographer, publicist, sound healer, spiritual guide, artist, gardener and Gemini. "Ivdu Et Hashem B'Simcha" -Psalm 100:2 ....... Joy Krauthammer, active in the Jewish Renewal, Feminist, and neo-Chasidic worlds for over three decades, kabbalistically leads Jewish women's life-cycle rituals. ... Workshops, and Bands are available for all Shuls, Sisterhoods, Rosh Chodeshes, Retreats, Concerts, Conferences & Festivals. ... My kavanah/intention is that my creative expressive gifts are inspirational, uplifting and joyous. In gratitude, I love doing mitzvot/good deeds, and connecting people in joy. In the zechut/merit of Reb Shlomo Carlebach, zt'l, I mamash love to help make our universe a smaller world, one REVEALING more spiritual consciousness, connection, compassion, and chesed/lovingkindness; to make visible the Face of the Divine... VIEW MY COMPLETE PROFILE and enjoy all offerings.... For BOOKINGS write: joyofwisdom1 at gmail.com, leave a COMMENT below, or call me. ... "Don't Postpone Joy" bear photo montage by Joy. Click to enlarge. BlesSings, Joy

Click "Older Posts" on lower right of each post page for MORE earlier posted stories and art.

Joy's Art

ART

MY SOUL'S SYMBOLIC EXPRESSION OF JOY


Mask of Joy


Ceci n'est pas une Joy.
Not enough purple! (I'm a purple person; not a primary colors person.)

Joy's first digitally altered photo, self-portrait, communicating.

 © Joy Krauthammer


Consciously with my spirit, mind and heart, I shoot all the joy, wonder and sacred moments I ‘see', and 'dance with my soul’ as I experience Hod / beauty that inspires awe and gratitude. Art/Photography (along with clay, fiber and many other mediums), is a language of the soul, that for me expresses meaning and ineffable joy. 

Mindfully I breathe in deeply and smile as I gaze upon The Creator’s gifts, grasping essence of splendor that can’t be understood. I recognize and honor the Divine Presence, the radiance of energy we are, and is reflected back to us.

CERAMIC MASKS
by Joy Krauthammer

I loved making ceramic masks, duplicating those I'd enjoyed from African and American Indian tribes. I tried to be authentic in my copying; I wrote on the back of each mask the name of the tribe. I loved seeing tribal masks in museums, in galleries, in festivals, in books and in videos of live rituals. I feel the life and soul, the spirit, of the ritual objects in the museums.

After I made these masks, I became a performing African djembe drummer. I studied with my first djembe teacher, Nigerian Yoruba priest, Ayo Adeyemi, and then with his master, my drummer idol since I was a teenager, Babatunde Olatunji. (Drums of Passion was the very first LP album that I purchased with my baby-sitting money). There are stories I can tell you about how I met them. I met Baba's Nigerian nephew in Jerusalem. Some day I'll get to Africa.  My past lives have been as a drummer in both African and Indian cultures. For healing ritual, I also do some American Indian drumming.

On my own, I figured out how to make these clay masks. It was not easy as I was not a lover of 'slab' ceramic work, nor adept at it.

My thrill in finishing the masks was the decorating with objects. Cowrie shells were used on authentic masks. The cowries I used on my masks had belonged to my mother, Libby, z'l, which she used in her art collage work. Mom died only six months after I began to learn ceramics. She never saw my work as she entered the hospital within days of my beginning to work in clay. This was very sad for me. In retrospect, I think the passion I had for clay helped me survive through the medical trauma and my mourning from death of my mother at age 49 from cancer with those horrific six months in ICU. One of my best artist friends still today, Suzanne, I met that first potting week in 1968. We have shared each others' life passages.

The hair on one Iroquois mask is from years of collecting flax which safely and protectively enveloped etrogim / citron fruit for Sukkot. You can see the flax also in my "Orange" weaving.

I think the mostly iron oxide stained masks are scary looking and my husband, z'l, couldn't stand them, so they are hanging behind a door for the last three decades. What do you think?

JOY'S 5 CLAY MASKS



CERAMIC AFRICAN and INDIAN MASKS 
by Joy Krauthammer © 


Dogon of Andumboulou, West Africa
(rattan hair)
Haidi
(ceramic beads earring)








Bamileke Tribe, Cameroon
(cowrie shells)
Ibibio, Nigeria, Ekpo Secret Society
honor ancestors, maintain social & political status










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Native American Iroquois, Seneca Indians
False Face Spoon Mouth (curing rituals)
(flax hair)

My JUDAICA
by Joy Krauthammer

My Judaica before I knew the halacha / laws of Chanukiyot / menorahs:
This ceramic menorah may have been my first piece of ceramic Judaica. I like challenges. Later I made ceramic mezuzah covers, honey pots for Rosh Hashanah, hamentashen shaped groggers for Purim, a yad (hand for reading Torah) and hundreds of Jewish symbol themed glazed ceramic magnets for party favors for my daughter's bat mitzvah, i.e. Torahs, and Magen Dovids, etc.

I made many bleSings for my menorah to safely come out of both kiln firings (bisque and glaze) in one piece, and it did. The menorah is composed of16 hand-thrown pieces joined together. The gematria / numerology of 16 is 7, G*d's holiest number and at the time I did not consciously know that. This thrills me that my pot is a seven. (See my web-site on 7 G*D's HOLIEST # 7.)

The pickle-looking curved diagonal hollow piece was supposed to have been a shofar (ram's horn) shape; It was my intention. Hollow closed pieces of pottery are really difficult to form. (One master I studied this skill with in N.J. was Toshiko Takaezu. Toshiko was one of my teachers while I was a graduate student at the Brooklyn Museum. I'm still in awe of her artistry and recently saw her one woman show at LA's Japanese Museum.) Each of the nine little individually styled candle holders on the shofar is hand-thrown. I wish I'd known the halacha / law three decades ago that no menorah light could be higher or lower than the other lights, not including the shamash / the working flame. I learned that halacha when I opened and ran a Jewish gift shop for six years for the Jewish community, also three decades ago, same year, 1980. My menorah survived the Northridge 1994 earthquake where I lived. Thank you, G*d.

That's me, Joy, below in the glaze spray booth. Because of the menorah's awkward configuration, it was easier to spray the glaze, so I could swivel the bulky art instead of holding it and trying to drop glaze onto it.

It was the very first time I had 'printed' Hebrew letters. (I only knew how to write Hebrew 'script'.) I engraved them into the clay (a double challenge). I wrote in Hebrew, "These lights are Holy"/ "Hanerot Hallalu Kodesh Hem." I felt proud of my Hebrew first-time writing.  This menorah has graced many Chanukah celebrations because my creating  kavannah / intention in making it was pure, like the oil of the Holy Temple. My finished glazed menorah graced the font cover of the Jewish Calendar Magazine in 1984. See photo.
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CERAMIC MENORAH 
by Joy Krauthammer

Joy Krauthammer and ceramic menorah 
readying for second glaze firing.
18 inches tall

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Joy's Menorah on cover of The Jewish Calendar magazine

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These lights are holy. "Hanerot Hallalu Kodesh Hem."
Glaze fired ceramic chanukiah by Joy Krauthammer ©, used in celebrations.
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HOW I WAS A POTTER

I needed to center totally, completely, to a place of stillness, and ONEness, and then I could freely alter to an altar because I was grounded in my foundation of centering.
A few onces or 25 pounds of clay, I centered before I began to play, explore, expand and create. - Joy
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Ceramic MEZZAH covers (oxide stained) 
by Joy Krauthammer

Ceramic Mezuzot 
© Joy Krauthammer

The Shin letter which I have added to most of the mezuzahs, stands for Shaddai, one of G*d's names. Shaddai is also Hebrew word for "breast", and I think of this as G*d's milk flowing down to us as we yearn for the Source of All BlesSing.
I see a Magen Dovid, as well as an engraved Shin which reflects my inspiration from Indian culture and looks to me like a bear foot print. Center lower row. I gave most mezuzot covers away as house warming presents.

Ceramic Purim Megillat Esther 
grogger (noise maker), clay beads inside
ceramic by © Joy Krauthammer

Apples 'N Honey
Shana Tova U'Metuka
שנה טובה ומתוקה
A good sweet year 
ceramics by Joy Krauthammer ©


Ceramic Yad / hand 
for Torah reading 
ceramic by Joy Krauthammer ©



Birth Simcha ceramic plaque
gift to Ariel Alexandra Edwards Levy
on her birth.
ceramic by Joy Krauthammer ©
I made several ceramic plaques at the time for friends' babies being born.


Button Kipah formed on balloon with glue
by © Joy Krauthammer 



Button Kipah
held by glue
by © Joy Krauthammer 


Joy Loves Being Jewish
metal necklace by Joy Krauthammer © 

Hamsa, metal etching on copper
with design and textures by Joy 2012
taught by Ruth Shapiro with pre-cut hamsa
& Ruth curled wires.

I loved making the Hamsa pendant after I was initially frustrated working with difficult tools.
Process became meditative.
When I was young, I loved doing copper hammering and then cloisonne' on copper.


Beading Joy
First necklace
© Joy Krauthammer  1.25.2015


Beading Joy
2nd necklace
© Joy Krauthammer  1.2017


Beading Joy
2nd necklace
© Joy Krauthammer  1.2017

Beading Joy
2nd necklace
© Joy Krauthammer  1.2017


My first ever Adult Coloring Book page from a swirly set called "CALM" (meant to be relaxing). When viewed in B/W lines I thought the paper design looked like underseas life that I love. Somehow I ruined 'calm' with color. 
 I found that coloring within the lines was like making a beaded necklace, choosing what bead shapes and colors to string together, and where to leave 'white' spaces with 'spacers'.. 
Recently at a Lev Eisha of Los Angeles-A Joyous Community of Jewish Women​’s retreat I made a beaded necklace and I realized that beading was like drumming... where I put my colorful percussive 
sounds and where I leave empty spaces for silence (like knots between pearls). So now I understand that coloring is like drumming!!!  :) 
And like flowers in my garden! 
Hmm, coloring, beading, drumming--maybe like garden flowers...
Highly recommend them all.  - Joy


Coloring Book page
colored by © Joy Krauthammer  8.30.2017
same as drumming, beading, gardening
feels like a percussion orchestration with sounds and silence.

Coloring Book purple page SHALOM
colored in contemplation by © Joy Krauthammer  1.2018
more subdued, not wild as prior page above.


Serve G*d With Joy
"Ivdu Et Hashem B'Simcha"
timeless clock
A Shabbat special.
by Joy Krauthammer ©

Serve G*d With Joy
"Ivdu Et Hashem B'Simcha"
timeless Sephirat HaOmer clock
by Joy Krauthammer ©
An Omer special


Serve G*d With Joy
© Joy Krauthammer 



Serve G*d With Joy
© Joy Krauthammer 



 Ivdu Et HaShem B'Simcha
Joy Krauthammer ©




G*d Loves You
© Joy Krauthammer 



Mogen Dovid and photos 
Digital art by Joy Krauthammer ©






Digital rainbow and Mogen Dovids 
© Joy Krauthammer 


JUDAIC Painted Textile
(Silk Paintings later)

Miriyahm Pesach Pillow
timbrels
by Joy Krauthammer ©

Miriyahm Pesach Pillow
Exodus waves, timbrel
by Joy Krauthammer ©


Miriyahm HaNeviah Exodus 
Pesach greeting card
art, photos and collage © Joy Krauthammer 


Pesach Matzah Plate
by Joy Krauthammer ©


Seder Plate Haggadah cover
redesigned by Joy Krauthammer for 1981/5741 Pesach Workshop
organized by Joy for North Valley Jewish Community Center
Contemporary includes: Four Children, Kos Miriyahm, Orange.
Ari Ke'arah/Seder Plate design. 
~ ~ ~


SHOFAR (to blast open to the Heavens) mouthpiece is designed narrow – like The Holy Temple windows– narrow inside and wide to the outside, for the light of Torah wisdom needs to be spread far and wide to the often darkened world– more than the Temple needed light of the sun to enter.


The intimate connection makes me feel good that I have with light of Shofar, from narrow opening end to wide end that for me compares to Holy Temple windows also opening wider outward sending forth the Light.
 A sounding Selfie © Joy Krauthammer  9.2015  Elul


Crafted MY OWN SHOFAR
Chose raw horn out of Rabbi's car trunk at the Shofar Factory. 
That's me holding my shofar in the collage below while I was sanding it
and
That's me holding my finished shofar up to the sunny southern California sky next to my friend's palm trees.
Does my finished shofar look like a giant sushi 'hand roll'? Where's the wasabi?

and


Shofar photos and collage 
 Joy Krauthammer ©


More JUDAICA
Talleisim on next post.:
~ ~ ~

LICENSE PLATES PHOTOS
by Joy Krauthammer

JOY's photos of Jewish themed auto License plates
published in Los Angeles Jewish Times  1997.
Truly fun for me to be creating this License plate series for many years/decades. 
Stories were published about my passion for recording Jewish culture
in shooting these Jewish themed personalized vanity auto plates.
I have hundreds of similar photos.   Anyone want a Jewish museum show?

~ ~ ~

CERAMIC
SLAB POT

This is a rare 'slab' piece I made during the same era. I've only made a few slab pieces because I LOVE WHEEL THROWING.  This slab pot was a prize winner in a gallery show.

The best thing about this piece is that on the show's closing day, I removed the piece, had it in my arms heading toward the parking lot and a woman whom I did not know, Evelyn Swain, of blessed memory, came up to me, and told me how much she had liked this piece in the show.  This meant the world to me when we introduced ourselves.  After I had moved to California six years earlier, I had gone into the best LA craft gallery and asked what ceramic artist I should meet and they told me, and now I was in awe meeting her, Evelyn. We became friends, and studied Raku together with a Japanese potter at Glendale College, and car-pooled there. Evelyn gave me her husband's wooden percussion instruments and wooden flutes when he died. I have some of her pottery and hold it dearly in my heart, as I do her. Evelyn was the most clay sensitive person I ever met with her really little intricate organic dark pots and her lovely hi-fire colors. She laughed alot. With sadness, I regret that I did not visit Evelyn in her later years. I miss Evelyn.

This slab pot has clay posts poking through the upper two joined sides because I loved the look of the architecture in the south-west. The '94 earthquake busted some of the posts (and pots).

This pot is also important to me because I glazed it with a brush. I had not used a brush to paint since I was in undergraduate college, over a decade earlier. When the Queens College painting professor wrote me a recommendation for ceramic graduate school, at the Brooklyn Museum (and I received the full Max Beckmann Scholarship), I promised him at his order, that I would never again pick up a paintbrush. I was finally able to transcend that promise with this piece. Some vows need to be overturned.

I may have had themes in mind for my creations, i.e. tea pots, lidded vessels, masks or Judaica, but I never sketched out my pots ahead of time. I didn't design them on paper.  They grew from their own expressions in my hands. I think that my spiritual percussion playing is the same way. I am played. I guess I was potted. I realize this only now as I write here, and remember the feeling I had in Oneness with my clay. Amayn. Baruch HaShem, thank you G*d.
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Two sided POT 
by Joy Krauthammer ©
First place
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SLAB pot 
by Joy Krauthammer ©
Exhibited at Jewish Federation Gallery, LA

I love the shiny red glaze peeking out from vertical edge of pot.
I had rolled/pressed dead saguaro cactus into clay body, oxide stained on outside.
Dried agapanthus, Lily of the Nile, with seed pods (and no longer with periwinkle purple flowers), are inside the pot.
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RAKU PLATTER

Raku is my favorite pottery. I LOVE RAKU. I'll write more about this later. I remember that the blue glaze was over a wet clay imprint I made with a wire sceen. This is one of my less wild pieces from when I was lovingly referred to as "Mrs. (Peter) Voulkos" and I took that as the greatest compliment. I loved the outrageous altered work of Voulkos, obm.

Some of my same era pieces, but also of Anagama ware, are found on my site.  Take a look. 


RAKU platter, thrown 1983 by Joy Krauthammer ©
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 I LOVE RAKU 


CERAMIC RAKU FIRING: Fire, Reduction, Water, 1981
with Joy Krauthammer

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Joy Krauthammer, and my assistant, RAKU firing

That's me, Joy, firing a few of my tiny 'pinch pots', into the kiln until about 1500* or 2000* for maybe half an hour, wearing gloves and tongs taking out the pot, with fast fire, and reduction in the metal covered pail, starving oxygen and smothering pot in combustible materials (sawdust, papers), and then into the bucket of water to cool off without cracking pot. Ash cleansed away reveals the absolute beauty of glazes on smoked pot appearing black on bottom and glazeless areas.
No photo of the step where I put newspaper or my asbestos glove on hot pot to assist the creation of enhanced crack lines in the glaze named 2001.
 It's always good to keep aloe plant around for the burns.

Ceramic Raku pinch pot 2" x 2" 1980
 
© Joy Krauthammer

RAKU fired pot 8" tall with low fire details
by
© Joy Krauthammer


ANAGAMA kiln fired pot
I am in awe of the attributes of this small pot.  See the subtle pink.
When I was a potter and beyond, until today, these characteristics would draw me into the finished pot and mesmerize me. Can you see where my fingers had laid imprints? And with that the magic of how the glaze would melt into the depressions and pull away from the more external forms?
by © Joy Krauthammer
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Stoneware DINNER SET
Wedding present for Joy's sister and her husband. 1980
by Joy Krauthammer

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CERAMIC DINNER SET
dinner plates, bowl, perfectly made lidded tea pot with bamboo handle
 and 5 tea cups with pulled handles,
each piece lovingly, individually hand-thrown and meticulously crafted and spray glazed
by Joy Krauthammer ©

Given as wedding gift to sister 1980,
Dinner set was demolished in the Northridge 1994 earthquake.
One tea cup survived, and this photo.
(My sister lived in the Northridge building next to the building that collapsed.)



Happy Face Teapot
1969 undergraduate before graduate school
by  Joy Krauthammer ©

Teapot and Lid
7" wide x 4.5 tall w/o lid, w/o handle
7" wide x 7" tall w/handle
by Joy Krauthammer ©

Teapot from Below
by Joy Krauthammer ©
Teapot with two handles
ceramic 10" wide x 7"tall
by Joy Krauthammer ©

Ceramic Teapot 
10" wide x 7"tall
by Joy Krauthammer ©
Teapot from Above
ceramic 10" wide x 7"tall
by Joy Krauthammer ©


Orange Squeezer
ceramic Award winner NY
Yeshiva University
by Joy Krauthammer
Orange Squeezer
ceramic Award winner
Yeshiva University, NY
by Joy Krauthammer



Salt Shakers, red clay
2" wide w/o worm
worm series, Brooklyn Museum Mix 1970

by Joy Krauthammer ©
Salt and Pepper Shakers, red clay
2" wide w/o worm
worm series, Brooklyn Museum 
1970
by Joy Krauthammer ©









Ceramic thrown knobs pot and Stained Glass
  11" tall x 8" wide
Mixed Media by Joy Krauthammer ©
Joy's garden filled with freesias
1971 (graduate student at Brooklyn Museum School of Art)
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Ceramic Shin Cup
by Joy Krauthammer ©

Ceramic pot
by Joy Krauthammer ©
Ceramic Carved Pot
by Joy Krauthammer ©




LIDDED Pot series
by Joy Krauthammer
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LIDDED Pot series
by Joy Krauthammer
LIDDED Pot series
by Joy Krauthammer

LIDDED Pot series
by Joy Krauthammer
Cylindrical Lidded Pots series, CSULB 1974, 
by Joy Krauthammer ©
plus pinch pots, slab and bowl.
It is a challenge to get the lids to fit properly and mine did.
My little pinch pots were some of my favorites; they had great raku colors and were cute to hold in my palm.
(To enter the graduate ceramics program at CSULB, my project was Lidded Pots.)


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Joy Krauthammer and altered 'wet' wheel thrown pot.
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RAKU POTS 
by Joy Krauthammer ©
pots almost a foot tall
Created at ISOMATA, 1983.
These vessels were some of my very favorites, filled with subtlties of form and color and texture.
See Joy's art stories under www.joys-artist-statement.blogspot.com

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SALT GLAZED pot  20" tall x 9" wide
by Joy Krauthammer ©


Joy Krauthammer
Love my mud.
ISOMATA 1982
My little pots on shelf


Joy Krauthammer
Wood Chopper
for the Anagama Kiln
ISOMATA July 1983
Idyllwild School of Music and the Arts


INVITATION to SOLO EXHIBITION



ANAGAMA ware 
ANAGAMA kiln fired pot 3"tall x 4"wide
by Joy Krauthammer 
©

3 OCARINAS
by Aviva and Joy Krauthammer ©
Aviva made the tiniest bisque ocarina in perfect pitch.

Six teeny holes are for her fingers from when she was 5 years old.
We had help from a woman with a tuner at ISOMATA in the San Jacinto mountains, and we made the holes accordingly. My blackened ocarina was fired in the pit created by visiting famous Indian potters with Lucy Lewis and watched over by renowned art historian and instructor, Susan Peterson, obm. 
It felt very rewarding for us to create these musical instruments and special to be with Indian potters.


Joy Krauthammer At One with the Earth
potting in woods of Idyllwild, San Jacinto Mountains, CA
Wheel and hand-build slabs stretched on the rocks and tree trunks
visible in mountain photo.
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Joy's ceramic vessels. 1969
© Joy Krauthammer

The three ceramic pots pictured above, I happily re-discovered in Maryland over four decades after leaving them behind.

I had made these vessels around 1969, over forty years ago. Moving to California, I had left them behind in NY in a mostly hidden storage space behind a small opening in a wall behind a bed in a tiny attic bedroom. The space was filled with many boxes of my ceramics, and my own family heirlooms from the fifties. These vessels were discovered when my husband's, z'l, family's Long Island home was sold a few years ago. When I recently visited my daughter in her Maryland home, I found these pots sitting with a serene feeling on display in various locations. One I am happy to say, with the narrow lip opening, I found in the current home of my mother-in-law in Maryland. It was sitting on a cart shelf with photos of family.  I have no recollection of what else was in the many boxes of clay pots from my undergraduate art days.  Imagine potting pratically 24/7, how many pots I had endlessly made.

Just before leaving for my East Coast trip, I called Michael Boyer, a student also in my Queens College (QC) 1960's clay classes. I remember his slim fingers creating exquisite pots. Michael went on to become the professor of ceramics at QC, and also taught at a Greenwich Village pottery. I, too, had taught at an East Village pottery--Cooper Square Art School. It was good making contact again with Michael, who did remember me from 42 years ago. We had both loved our teacher, James Crumrine.


Joy's ceramic vessel 1982
© Joy Krauthammer

I was happy to discover this pot of my in a cousin's home during Chanukah 5772. It was my wedding gift to them two decades ago.
My intention has been to gift one of my ceramics to every cousin who marries.
I always enjoyed altering the pot interior, pushing out with my fingers, and then re centering the vessel to a place of balance.
I love the thin vertical/diagonal incision filled with white glaze peeking out,  in contrast to the heavy stained body.

JOY'S POT POEM:
http://joys-poems.blogspot.com/2010/04/blog-post.html

Joy wrote TODAY I AM A POT, because her soul still yearns to play in the mud, and her heart is touched by all the memories deeply shared for the last four decades with wonderful creative and talented pottery friends and teachers.

TODAY I AM A POT published in:
"The Deronda Review" Vol. III. No. I Fall-Winter 2009-2010
a journal of poetry and thought. http://www.pointandcircumference.com/

American Ceramic Society Design Chapter, ACS-DC Newsletter,
March 2013, Vol. 14, Issue 22, page 12.

The Jewish Woman 2010

TODAY I AM A POT read at Aleph's KALLAH 2011, Univ. of Redlands, CA (by Joy Krauthammer)
TODAY I AM A POT read at Makom Ohr Shalom, Encino, CA (by Joy Krauthammer)
Read at opening of Sound and Light studio, Sherman Oaks, CA



Room view of pots and weavings 
created by Joy Krauthammer ©

Look up high for my blue weaving from 8 harness loom 1975, LA.
Far right wall holds a collage of my small pinched together ceramic pots in rattan baskets with sticks.
My large floor ceramic stained outside vessel holds hanging sea shell and dried grass.
Narrow weaving on right far wall was my second weaving and I learned on a table loom. 1972, NY.
This piece also includes circular weaving, stuffings on the loom, and different patterns on each side.
I had to complicate my learning with my own explorations, and could not be satisfied with making a lovely and smooth, skilled piece of art.
Weavings were not damaged in the Northridge '94 earthquake.
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JOY'S WEAVING

"Joseph's Coat of Many Colors"
woven by Joy Krauthammer 1975
© Joy Krauthammer

I stopped weaving when pre-maturely I delivered twins, z'l, Dec. 1975, during the time that I was using a heavy 8 harness foot powered hand loom. I mistakenly felt guilty that I may have caused the early births (and deaths).  Here's a photo of my 27 foot-long weaving of burgundy, blue, gold and white, on the floor loom from Nov. 1975. Weaving had a striped warp. The weaving was supposed to have been sewn into a "Joseph's Coat of many colors," which had been my plan. The yardage sits alone in a box.  I no longer had the harmony to work with the finished textile and create any further.

 I did make one baby blanket from the last yard (visible on the loom) with plaid design for my daughter born in 1977.  For the weft, I changed colors to create the striped plaind.  See photos below.

Joseph's Coat Baby Blanket
both sides
© Joy Krauthammer

Joseph's Coat Baby Blanket
detail
© Joy Krauthammer

Joseph's Coat full Baby Blanket
finished sides
© Joy Krauthammer
gift to my granddaughters


I also made a woven multi-colored baby blanket, something I felt was more suitable for a new born child. The colors are powerful, not pastel. See photos below of details, folded and full. 
The blanket has been gifted to Aviva's daughter, Maya.




Baby Blanket
full 
© Joy Krauthammer
gift to my granddaughters

During my ongoing 'recovery' from loss, a few months later, I did weave a rya rug based on the inspirational sun sets and desert saguaro and barrel cactus that I saw with my husband, z'l, (of blessed memory) in Arizona following my hospitalization due to complications from medical error (in delivery) and my near death.  We had driven to Arizona to escape the pain. Here below I include a double photo of me with my rug weaving that was featured in an art exhibit. It was important to me to return to the loom at that time.

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DESERT SUNSET RYA RUG 
woven by Joy Krauthammer

Joy Krauthammer standing beside her Sunset Cactus weaving on the loom
 and same rug on the ground, 1976 ©
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Orange WALL WEAVING 
by Joy Krauthammer 1975

© Joy Krauthammer

"Orange" is a complex weaving because I always needed to figure out the most complicated, expansive and intricate way of creating; it was a challenge for me. Orange hangs in my foyer.  The threads hanging out from the top are flax which had been used to wrap etrogim (citrons) for Sukkot, and keep them individually and safely protected from bruising, and thus to keep it kosher. Today, only the artificial, non organic plastic stryofoam is used to protect the valuable fruit being shipped from Israel or Morocco for the holiday's 'four species.' (There is an etrog tree with fruit growing in the Getty Villa's garden, and I told the docents what the etrog is used for.)

Can you see the way Orange is stuffed? I circle wove, stuffed and wove shut sections while still on the loom.  (This is not normal smooth and easy meditative weaving.) There are double layers and circular weaving. I would alternate the layers of color from top to bottom along the warp and simultaneously weave them into the 'weft'. You can see with my weaving layer reversals, that at times there are either on the top layer, orange, yellow or white. There are multiple types of sections woven at the same time. I wove Mexican lace. Do you see the yellow vertical circular and stuffed woven columns? They are more difficult than the horizontal sections of stuffed yellow.  This is an insane piece. There are seashells, coral and rocks which had been integrated into the weaving. Sadly, moths also integrated themselves into it; I think they liked the expensive goat hair I had woven.

Surrounding the tall ceiling height orange weaving in the photo, are some of my more recent photo collages from Bali, Tibet, and opening first day of the Getty Center Museum. The Christo "Umbrella" collage to the left of Orange, I made after visiting the on-site yellow umbrellas by Gorman Pass. On the wall are also embroideries I purchased in Morocco in a cemetery shul and school that was located at the far end in a cemetery.  I had travelled to Morocco for the World Sacred Music Festival (I'm a percussionist), and also rented a camel during very hot days to celebrate my 50th birthday in the desert. That's another story...

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PILLOWS HAND-WOVEN 
by © Joy Krauthammer 1975


At the time, orange was a popular color and one that somehow I liked. I'd lovingly woven 'normal' deeply textured pillows with the orange yarn, stuffed them, and skillfully braided the side edges, attaching them, and gave them as treasured gifts to my in-laws. I don't know that they appreciated my artistry because to them I was a "khippie artist." The pillows disappeared from their Long Beach, Long Island, NY couch. I wish I still had them to enjoy.

I created similar woven and stuffed pillows for my father, z'l, and his wife in Florida colors. It's nice for me to see my pillows in photos from Long Beach, L.I.

Today, I only deal with 'burnt' not bright orange, if at all. I am a purple person.

© Joy Krauthammer

PILLOWS HAND-WOVEN
by Joy Krauthammer ©

PILLOWS HAND-WOVEN
by Joy Krauthammer ©

It was a fun challenge to do circular weavings and stuff the pillow
while still on the loom.
One side was striped and one side was a plaid.


FIRST LOOM WEAVING 
by © Joy Krauthammer
WEIRD HANGING WITH STICK ON STICK
Brooklyn Museum, 1973


My life is a weaving. My very very first approach to weaving was also contrived and complex. As soon as I warped the narrow table loom, I had to try to figure out the most complicated way of weaving. I wove circles and protrusions in 3D, with a little double weaving.

Why should I smoothly and evenly toss a lovely wooden shuttle to fly quickly back and forth from selvedge edge to selvedge edge, if I can stop and start and slowly finger weave simultaneously eight separate parallel sections along the way, and also weave in found materials like curved wooden sticks to make it more complex? I also wove designs of animals and little men with sombreros, which must be why I moved to southern California the next year, where I continued my weaving weirdness.


THIS is my FIRST weaving.
© Joy Krauthammer  






Weaving by © Joy Krauthammer     
      


Weaving by © Joy Krauthammer   


Weaving by © Joy Krauthammer   


Weaving created by me at the Brooklyn Museum after I finished my graduate ceramics work, and while I was working as a medical social worker in Brooklyn.

I drove about 90 minutes each direction to work at a hospital. Doing some art work after 9-5 work made rush hour driving a little less miserable. Sometimes it was two hours on the longest parking lot in the world, the Long Island Expressway. The drive was so slow, I read the large pages NY Times in my old teal colored '67 Chevy while I was driving/sitting behind the wheel. (No cells phones then.) I took buses and subways when my car was snowed in and I didn't call in "sick".  I carried an umbrella with me for protection in the subways, and for safety turned my finger rings around so no one could see what stone I may have been wearing. Parked in the hospital lot, I had my tires stolen and then added tire locks. At the Brooklyn Museum on Eastern Parkway, I had my car battery stolen and it was after 10 pm when I realized it, a long ways from home. In LA, only my home was broken into. 
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WALL HANGINGS and PILLOW WEAVING
by Joy Krauthammer © 1975

I made these weavings in 1975. I think the upper right hangings are simple weaves, but still I had to potchkee with them and add fluffy yarn into the weaving.. I think the upper left weaving is the same pattern as the lower left weaving (Costanza) but on the lower left weaving I had been more creative. It took me 13 different steps on every line of weft where there is color to hand weave in the separate colors.  I changed the bobbins of colored yarn that many times to finish only one row of weft. I like making it difficult for myself.

I think I made a pillow out of the upper left weaving and gifted it. I gave away the lower right weaving as a gift. The other three weavings are hanging on my walls in bedroom and hallway, waiting for me to make pillows out of them...


WALL HANGINGS and PILLOW WEAVINGS 
woven by Joy Krauthammer © 1975

4 photos
© Joy Krauthammer



Weaving on my Wall 
woven four decades ago
lots of finger weaving, stop and go every other inch.
© Joy Krauthammer 

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WALL HANGING and PILLOW WEAVING
by Joy Krauthammer





upper
Woven wall hanging, blue, large 3x6 feet woven 
by Joy Krauthammer
hanging high at home.
lower
Weavings, green and orange
by Joy Krauthammer
These 2 colorful weavings I made and stuffed to be pillows and gifted to my parents to match their Florida home decor.
both mid 1970's era.
Similar to pillows I created for my in-laws.
© Joy Krauthammer
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FINGER WEAVING
Frame finger weaving (unfinished)
 by Joy Krauthammer ©

Weaving holds sterling silver heart and locket with my daughter's photograph. (late 1970's)
The strawberry blond hair is flax that had protected Sukkot 
etrogim in transit.


Detail - Frame finger weaving (unfinished)
 by Joy Krauthammer ©


Needlepoint pincushion 
by © Joy Krauthammer  1976

Needlepoint pincushion 
by © Joy Krauthammer  1976

SEWING
Weaving required that I learn how to sew, in order to practically use my weavings. Around 1975 in CA, I once again began to sew (not since 1960, NY), designed my own garments (especially pregnancy wardrobe) with fun materials, and embellished them with crochet work. It is now 2012 and I discovered one of my original tops. see photo.  I loved matching patterned seams, including the pockets matching inside to outside!  I'd given wardrobe away.



Joy's pregnancy dress designed and sewn by Joy
(felt like raspberry sherbet)
© Joy Krauthammer



TEACHING A HAPPY STUDENT
Aviva Krauthammer
Precious ceramics student on wheel for first time at ISOMATA

Precious ceramics student on pottery wheel for first time
ISOMATA, 1983
Idylwild School of Music and the Arts, San Jacinto Mountain
Aviva Krauthammer
 Joy Krauthammer ©


JOY TEACHING CERAMICS
 A. J. Heschel Day School, and NVJCC
photos & collage by Joy Krauthammer ©

(I stopped teaching my daughter's classmates when the boys reached about 12 years and enjoyed throwing clay, not on the wheel, but on the ceiling. I did continue to teach in the art school I founded for LA.)
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JOY TEACHING CERAMICS
NVJCC
Joy Krauthammer showing her own hand-made Indian pot replicas with South Western influence
 and ceramic pots 
to inspired pre-schoolers at North Valley Jewish Community Center (NVJCC) 1982.
Photo LA Daily News

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ABOUT THE ARTIST


Joy Krauthammer, MBA, following Queens College, and before becoming a medical social worker, a weaver, sound healer, performing percussionist, publisher, poet, etc., received a Max Beckmann full scholarship for her graduate ceramics work at the Brooklyn Museum School of Art. She continued her ceramics studies and exploration in California.

In the early 1970's, Joy taught ceramics at Cooper Square Art School, NY; opened an ARTS school for the City of Los Angeles in the late 1980's; and taught ceramics for LA City, and other schools. Favorite ceramic memories include 24/7 chopped-wood stoking the firing for her pots in the Anagama mountain kiln at ISOMATA, Idyllwild, San Jacinto Mountains, and belonging to the American Ceramics Society, and travelling with 63 other divine potters to New Mexico to visit Indians on their sacred lands.

Joy's award winning art has been exhibited in many shows.

Before the 1994 Northridge earthquake struck her town, Joy thought that her beautiful pottery took up too much space and decided that if she became a drummer, the music would be "ethereal", taking up NO space. Joy has spent the last couple decades travelling around the world collecting drums for her performing as a spiritual percussonist. 


JOY'S ART PHOTOS by Joy Krauthammer (c) 1970's
scanned and uploaded into http://www.joys-art.blogspot.com/

Your COMMENTS are welcome.
..
More CERAMICS photos are visible with poem, TODAY I AM A POT at
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Thanks for visiting my site.  More below...
BlesSings, Joy
~


MORE MASKS

by Joy Krauthammer

Panim al Panim / Face to Face
by Joy Krauthammer ©



MASK and I

7/27/2003
- Joy Krauthammer
B"H
Dear Jane, 

Thoughts to share with you re: my mask, Panim al Panim.
Thank you, Jane, for your Panim al Panim / Face to Face workshop with Sarah's Tent this last Sunday in Savina's delicious garden.

What fun I had creating the mask. 
Was surprised at the intimate prior verbal somewhat difficult process. My partner made it accessible.

I look at my mask: so wild, colorful in my colors, scrappy, potchkied, layered, moving, emotional, appearing so different to me from ALL the others: which were so neat, clean, clearly defined, attractive, stark, dramatic, and painted flat.

Immediately, I went out beyond the borders creating large loopy kinetic star filled wire earrings, and then gently fan brushed in light blue color to more forced thicker blue paint, filling in after sparkles were used. 

Even today, days later, the two heart eyes speak to me of my compassion, loving-kindness / chesed, given over in caring ways with words and actions in so many ways. The blue heart bead--one with sadness, the fuscia--with more joy. 
I do see with my heart. Interesting comparison when both are shaped identically.

I found myself here and in my other lives in the mask with the sparkle glitter ‘scarations’, as found on ethnic African and Indian masks.
 Lips not defined by natural outlines but color wildly coming forth from around outside the lips, red curled ribbon from inside mouth, alive in the twisting speaking of words, pointing toward heart eye and leaning downward on other side.

Spontaneously, first curling up happy star sprouting wires for earrings, authentically me, hoops of shiny scarlet, and turquoise and purple shiny bead hearts on lobes. Happy, kinetic swings, dancing ribboned tambourine / timbrel spirited player I am on my mask.

Mask bordered by turquoise leather thong with paint and glue extending as far out to edge as possible, going beyond the face and "outside of box".
Without it in front of me as I write, I clearly see my soul in this mask.

Interestingly, when presented with the fun artsy craftsy tools, I quickly forgot the entire time spent about the preceding lengthy intimate communication pairings. I forgot I was working on the image of what I saw in the guided visionary mirror. What I had envisioned creating at the ending moment of verbal process, was a cleaving of G*d and I, twisted like a Havdalah candle.

Interesting that I forgot that thought, totally, consciously, and instead spontaneously twisted red ribbon words out of mouth, twisted earrings and twisted blue ribbon for hair. I twisted the gluey sparkles everywhere.

So, I am with the Holy One. Did I not know that?

I love feathers, but I did not have the need to add feathers.
Aha, neither did I put any Judaic symbols on my mask.

One love, shalom and abundant blessings of health and joy to you,
Joy Krauthammer
"Serve G*d With Joy"


 MIRROR OF MY SOUL
by Joy Krauthammer
Mirror of My Soul by Joy Krauthammer ©
Mixed media montage


Mirror of My Soul
collage details
Art & Photo collage by Joy Krauthammer ©


Happy Retreat NAME TAG 18 Months Later (after death of husband, z'l) 
by Joy Krauthammer (c)
I was able to play easily with colorful baubles and markers, creating this at midnight, 
and be sociable in joy, having travelled to the light


Tzadakah Joy Box
Fave images
created by © Joy Krauthammer 

~ ~ ~



CREATING MIRROR OF MY SOUL
- Joy Krauthammer


              Six months after the death of my husband, and I was still mourning and sad, although on the path through a tunnel of darkness, and clearly into "the light at the end of the tunnel" (said the grief minister), I was in an art workshop at week-long spiritual retreat, Ruach HaAretz. (I was supposed to be in another class but didn't attend.) There was no art teaching, but we had a creative space to explore and be with myself. With a table full of tiny trinkets, I didn't need to socialize, to feign friendliness at that time, no mask needed-- in a Santa Cruz Redwoods forest. I could sit and pick out little beads, and not have to shmooze with anyone. I sat quietly and connected to my own soul, to "Return to the Land of My Soul".

            In the art room, I was glad that I was able to play with alphabet letters beads, turquoise and amethyst stones, glass beads, metal beads, ribbon, feathers, 2D cloth, paper Hebrew words, pen, small round metal container and mirror. I placed the amethyst gems and turquoise stones, as if they were pebbles in a stream, over fuscia colored ribbon. I glued all the trinkets down on a contained framed mirror. I was grateful to have boundaries and freedom. I played the same way with two clear glass bowls, decorating them. Lots of hearts and little beads spelling out Ahavah, YKVK, Joy, G*D, Mayim Chayim, Shalom, Makom, Shadai, YAH, and Happy. The craft process and result were healing.

               It was a very difficult time for me, especially because I had no friends at the retreat; no one to know what I was going through. Normally I reach out to others who appear alone. A person who caught my ear at a meal was describing his experience working on an ambulance, with which I was all too familiar, and the words tugged at my heart. Another person commented on my spontaneous poem. In the forest, I would take a walk alone, crunch on the dry leaves, and cry.  Silently I kept in my tears: during activities, meals, and in the cold Shambhala cabin filled with six other women whom I never got to know. I'm writing this five years later and I can feel the heaviness in my heart that I held at that time. Baruch Hashem, I have transcended that grieving state in space and time and have returned to JOY. Welcome to my world. I write this in double Adar: here comes JOY

             After my husband died a few months earlier, and prior to this art workshop, a class I was able to take the previous six weeks was "Death and Dying". (It was near my home when I was willing to go 'out'.) I felt like I was already a master in that topic, and added important information to the class. It was comfortable for me to be present in the Death class. Class was in a church, and I was the only non-member church person, and clearly the only Jew. It was where I could go while I was in a vulnerable state of being.  For years I had been a Caregiver Angel Warrior, blogged on caregiving, knew about hospitals, medical directives, life support, funerals and cemeteries. This is where I felt at home; in a class to prepare for Death... 

          It makes sense that I now teach a workshop (Simchat Chochmah ~ Joy of Wisdom) that touches on the topic of death and eternal soul. My workshop is about celebrating life, thus it prepares us for death in examining our past, present, and potential-- all that we can be. 
~


Joy's MIRIYAHM

MIRIYAHM, timbrel player, corn maiden
husk & hair and courage
 by Joy Krauthammer 
©


PAPER

HOPE COLLAGE
by Joy Krauthammer
HOPE Collage & Quilt Square
by Joy Krauthammer ©




HOPE is in memory of my husband, Marcel Krauthammer, z'l.  Marcel had faith, trust & HOPE / emunah, bitachon & tikvah, never giving up, for the 18 years he suffered with metastatic brain cancer, paralysis and then life-support, until G*D, Giver of Life, reclaimed his shining soul on 17 Tevet.
We never gave up HOPE.

During Marcel's last years I slowly created HOPE collages from found HOPE words, and gave them to others and continue to do so. 
HOPE collage is for my dear friends and family who hold HOPE, and in memory of loved ones, z'l who have held HOPE.
HOPE collage is in memory of the victims z'l of the Holocaust who did not give up HOPE.
HOPE is what we all need to continue to do our work in our world; to have peace/shalom, love, compassion, connection, healing, wholeness and harmony in Kabbalistic Four Worlds of spirit, mind, heart and body.

HOPE is a collage of HOPE words cut out from newspapers while serving as Caregiver Angel Warrior for my husband, of blessed memory. 
- Joy Krauthammer

HOPE quilt square is a photo transfer of my original HOPE colored paper art collage onto an 8”x8" white suede cloth, with added 2D hand embellishments of stickers, gold paint pen and colored markers.

HOPE collage is a quilt square in the Mount Sinai Shoah Quilt. (on far right)
The large finished quilt in memory of Shoah victims was dedicated on Yom HaShoah 2008 at Mt. Sinai Memorial Park, Simi Valley.

Mount Sinai Shoah Quilt
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HOPE COLLAGE has been used by:


Unity-and-Diversity World Council
Leland P. Stewart, B.S.E., B.T., Founder 
published on web site: www.udcworld.org
310-391-5735

AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY
published on their web site.
Gifted to many other organizations and individuals in need of HOPE.

VISION OF PROCESS

Alice Campbell, a poet (and therapist) at the Poetry Therapy Day conference on "Healing and Transformation", during a session break asked me a question about my weaving as we talked about colors. I'm glad she asked the thoughtful question. The next day, today, I sent Alice e-photos of my weavings to illustrate what I had told her.

I see her question coming out of a process of poetry writing that was given over to us during the day by Jack Grapes, poet, in teaching "creative process". (I attended because he is my mentor's mentor.) What is the "structure of process" or "process behind the formula?" It has to do with talent, and genius, and taking risks or not.  Can a poem include ingredients randomly, like a soup? "Cowboy soup", an aide of mine used to say. Is my weaving like a soup? I ask myself. Sometimes, yes!

Alice wrote back to me, "I asked you first if the most tedious part of weaving would be setting up the loom.
Because I wondered if the loom would be set up at the start for the whole piece, and if the piece is envisioned in its entirety before you set out, or whether it grows/develops/takes form as you weave.  And you gave me two examples, opposites. 
More later about my reactions to each.  They are powerful." 

My further thinking.
The tediousness of setting up the loom, to 'dress it', depends on the woven pattern itself, and how specific in location, the warp threads need be, with the threading of the long thin metal needle/heedle with an eye opening, from each harness.
I had given to Alice, two opposite answers each with an example. For me, there is absolute joy in the creation of each example. My woven 'sunset' rya rug was planned out as a rug, following a particular desert sunset scene sketch of mine as it's design, and based on my desert experience. Even in that design, the colors and size were spontaneous as I could see the rug develop and unfold from the loom. The sunset colors are subtle in their shades of hues. I worked the yarn as if it was paint. The one weaving style stayed constant. Non-knotted short threads, each a few inches long, were woven when I raised the harnesses with my feet. There was no 'shuttle' being thrown on this rug. I felt that this rug fit the question of "a piece is envisioned in its entirety."

My "opposite example" was that for my "Orange" weird weaving. That piece started with nothing-- no intended design, nor expectations-- only yards of my orange and white colored warp yarns on a loom, and began, "grows/develops/takes form as you weave", as it flowed and then ended, finished as I saw the yards of warp were coming to an end, and slowly and precisely I designed the curve-shaped weave as completion, with long fringe for the bottom. This was opposite of "a piece is envisioned in its entirety.

I love it all. I love the process, pliability, the discovery, the moments, the exploration, surprise, components, colors, textures, fibers, feeling, form, shape, sometimes sound, the joy of it, and having an end result to gift or display or use.

My response to Alice is in letter below.

Dear Alice, 

I love the question you asked me about my creative work. Please restate it for me.
As promised, my link to some of my art is www.joys-art.blogspot.com

You and I were talking about the colors of the 'Monet-like' painting scarf I wore, and somehow weaving came up.
The weavings I told you about are near the bottom of my joys-art site. Just scroll down. Thanks for looking. You'll see for starters, a large long strange ORANGE weaving, very 3 D. A weaver would understand the complexity of what I was playing with, still within the constraints/boundaries of warp width, yet with lots of reversals and intertwinings and tricky circular weaving.  And then there is also the rug on and also off the loom with the sunset colors and cactus.  On the loom I had pictures to remind me of color inspiration as I created the colors and design only inch by inch. 
(This is the rug that I made during my healing from death of twins, and after escape trip to Arizona. So much in life is connected like the corners of a room. Only weeks ago, 35 years later, I finally had a fine headstone with hearts engraved on the grave of the twins, may their souls soar. I finally had healing.)

I have continued to think about the preparation and the loom heddles (like needles, which held each thread in place in order) and why I don't like that part of the process, and especially alone, is no fun. While weaving, if I would notice a thread of yarn showing up in the pattern as out of place, I had to undo all, and 'reheddle' the threads, and that needed repair upset me because of the time and work being wasted. (Much more tedious than pulling out finished crochet yarn.)

Yet the process of weaving allowed me to 'finish' a project easily, under my own control. (Then, why do I have so much yardage still unfinished?) Of course, "finishing" is entirely another skill. Thank goodness, I learned from the best and my best friend, 'Grandma Shirley.'

As a potter, which I was, I never thought out the project, just let it flow, like a fine poem. As a potter, the process involved many serious steps over time-- drying and glazing and kiln firings, not at all in my control following the creation of the wet clay form, of which I did have much control (or did the clay control me?). My heart and soul was in my pottery.

Thanks for asking me about the process, and having me look at and examine my art from another perspective.  


BlesSings for creativity, health, wholeness, peace and joy,
JOY
Krauthammer
"Serve G*d With Joy" 

(P.S. Sorry, this letter, like my weavings, got much longer than "I had planned.")
October 25, 2010
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My ARTIST STATEMENT is at:



CARDS
Word Art

Percussion Shaker Art
Shakers
© Joy Krauthammer


Holiday Cards
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Happy Chanukah
© Joy Krauthammer 



Cards I made with stamps that I created from erasers or potatoes, or purchased.
Miriyahm stamp I purchased at the Jewish Museum, NY.
There are wood block stamps and stickers along with soul. - Joy

Chag Purim Sameach

Decorated futher with photos, enjoy my Purim card

Reveal Joy
Purim collage
Queen Vashti and Queen Esther Costumes to Peform at Home for Aged and Senior homes
© Joy Krauthammer 



DIGITAL 
Word Art Montage by Joy Krauthammer  (and Wordl)

Sound Healing Poem


Word Art Montage by Joy Krauthammer  (and Wordl)

~


Happy Birthday 
Word Art Montage by Joy Krauthammer  (and Wordl)
Fish reflects Adar

~
50 Shades of JOY
Rina Word Art Montage by Joy Krauthammer  (and Wordl)
~

Tribute to Apple
Apple Store
Word Art Montage by Joy Krauthammer


For Happy Hearts Day (Valentines) I presented the APPLE art card to my Apple team who guide me.
The Northridge store posted the art card.
Word Art Montage by Joy Krauthammer  (and Wordl)

 Every time an Apple trainer helped me remember name of another Apple person, I had to redo the card!
I was trying to be truly inclusive so that an Apple employee, even though I don't know him/her, won't feel left out, but included in this card sent to all by a store manager.
Strangely, names ending in 'm' wouldn't appear so I actually had to fool the program to include them!!!
The larger names are the Trainers who have worked with me the most time.
"Cheer" and "bar stools" are included because I feel like I am in the Cheers Bar when I enter and everyone knows my name and I sit on a stool at the table for training.
For the holiday, in "gratitude" I also gave individual cards, and chocolate cookies too to every Apple person I know because I love them and they help me.
When I publish my iMovies on You Tube I acknowledge the trainers by name in Credits.
(Thank Stephie, Casey and Raffi for helping me names.)
(Sometimes I even get to teach them something like how to create these word cards.)
How can I use this 'cloud' word technique to express the soul of a person?
The shape of the word art card to Apple looks like a foot print. What is the print that I/you leave in our world?



Happy Counting of the Omer card
Sephirat HaOmer
Word Art Montage by Joy Krauthammer





Joy's business card
Creating my own business cards in favorite colors & fonts
with an image of one of my Remo timbrels was fun!
I've designed a few.
by Joy Krauthammer ©


MEMORY FLAME
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Based on my sadness from loss which all of Reb David Zeller's, z'l, chevre share, I designed a memorial card, MEMORY FLAME. As soon as Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi shared the saddest news with chevre who were with him last year on Shavuot, I realized I needed to have this card for those of us in need. In the center of the Ohr, flame painting I made following a meditation on the Holy Temple, is a Mogen Dovid shaped lotus flower a water lily. I thought Reb Dovid would appreciate this flower from his India days. The lily/ sosannim is found in Old Testament in Psalms and sometimes translated by musicologists as "testimony."  Do you see inside the other blue Mogen Dovid, is a heart?

Grateful that graphic designer, Joe Rudy, helped me with layout and fonts for Memory Flame.

Here is a photo of my Memory Flame card of both sides. 


MEMORY FLAME
Condolence card
by Joy Krauthammer ©
The Yiskor teaching was given to us on Shavuot by Reb Zalman. "In memory of loved ones", in each direction, to and from your loved one, z'l, giving and receiving, "feel Forgiveness, Gratitude, Compassion and Love." Hold your beloved's hand in your hand.

In locations where candles may not be lit for safety reasons, and in ritual, I and others have used the little Memorial Flame card with my Ohr, flame painting. In all these colors of Ohr "do I see the light" of Reb Zeller. Maybe Reb Zeller's, widow now has the circular double-sided engraved, bronze medallion pendant that I gave to Reb Zeller with these words in Hebrew and English, "
In Your Light Do We See Light" (surrounding a Menorah) that he loved to teach and sing. At the Jung Institute Reb Zeller saw it on my neck, liked it, and I immediately removed it and gifted it to him, feeling so good that I could give my Rebbe something he appreciated. On the other side of the pendant, surrounding a Tree of Life, is written, "The Compassionate One Seeks the Heart..."
May Reb Zeller's neshama be blessed and have a speedy and high aliyah to Shmayim.
- Joy Krauthammer


See more ART ASSORTED in next post.

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MAKE JOY NOT WAR
CD by ALULA  1999 Shalom Express Productions 
cover photo 
Tashlich with Alula and Gayle Gale
by Joy Krauthammer © 1988

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DIGITAL
Joy's Photoshop art

May you be blessed with many miracles.
The Holy One is in the field.
Snowy Shtetle Chanukah
Joy Krauthammer © 2010


© Joy Krauthammer


Peace Pole composite
© Joy Krauthammer 


Every Day Is Gratitude Day
Tofu Turkey
1st digital art
Joy Krauthammer © 2010

Non-Digital-Hand-Painted
Every Day Is Gratitude Day
dinner plate for Ahavat Torah
Joy Krauthammer © 2010


Bountiful BlesSings

Gila, Ahavah, Tikvah, Chesed, Nedavah, Bitachon, Emunah, 
Tiferet, Zemirah, LaBriut and Shalom
Joy Krauthammer © 2010


Bountiful BlesSings
© Joy Krauthammer   Nov. 2015
focus family  friends  JOY  laugh  fun  kindness  giving  sharing  success  truth  wisdom  love  health  
Torah peace hope gratitude abunDance connection 
song  dance  play  strength  faith  courage  vision  harmony  patience  serenity  trust  freedom




Bountiful BlesSings
© Joy Krauthammer   Nov. 2018
May you be blessed with 
Joy, hope, focus, connection, abunDance, laughter, courage, passion, strength, time, faith, gratitude, harmony, trust, serenity, sharing, giving, miracles, song, connection, family, friends, focus, light, health, play, vitality, peace, dance, song, love, truth, wisdom, freedom, patience, compassion, vision, kindness, safety, creativity Torah, balance, beauty, silence, 

generosity, forgiveness, understanding, honesty, empathy, justice, awe, Comfort, support



design by © Joy Krauthammer 
My very first CS5 Illustrator drawing: The Room
transformed into Photoshop Fantasy Room and Sukkah.



Joy's under WATER Fantasy Room & Sukkah according to the Wizard of Oz
composite by © Joy Krauthammer 




Joy's under earth STONE Fantasy Room & Sukkah according to the Wizard of Oz
Joy Krauthammer © 2011

Artist commentary:

Omer
http://sephirathaomer.blogspot.com/2011/06/disipline-dissipates-day-13-yesod-sh.html


Joy's Fantasy Room
"There's No Place Like Home"
composite detail by  Joy Krauthammer © 2011
Can you even guess how I totally created this image?


"There's No Place Like Home"
Wizard of Oz ushpizin visit Joy's Sukkah
detail by  Joy Krauthammer © 2011


L'SHANA TOVA
by Joy Krauthammer © 2011
Blessed to have friends and family travel a path of truth.
4th version


L'SHANA TOVA
More international with water boy nourishing the
joggers for truth
2nd version
by Joy Krauthammer © 2011


NOAH'S ARK Lands In Africa
or
The Wizard Of Oz Visits
View this art in 
Joy's Fantasy Room & Sukkah.
 Photoshop collage by Joy Krauthammer © 2011


AVIVA & BRETT
Mazal Tov
Sweet As Wine
 by Joy Krauthammer © 2011


AVIVA & BRETT
LOVE
 by Joy Krauthammer © 2011

LOVE & HEARTS
 by Joy Krauthammer © 2011


 Tiferet Heart Art 
by Joy Krauthammer © 2011


Celebrating Shayna
Lead Chaplain Volunteer Honoree, Prison Seder
photos and collage by Joy Krauthammer © 2013


Happy 1st Birthday Maya
by  Joy Krauthammer © 
First Pages art project with Apple trainers' guidance.
Rainbow and mountain (background) seen from my garden. 
Maya (6 months) was in my garden and enjoying the roses.
Maya is two weeks in lower inset '4 generations' photo (by Paul).
Maya (6 months) and I in upper inset photo (by Brett). 



Let Go   Let Art
 Joy Krauthammer © 



Rainbow Plane
from my garden facing East at Sunset
International Women's Day 2013
 © Joy Krauthammer 



GETTY TRACKS
 by Joy Krauthammer © 2011

Photo Collages


MOCA Graffiti
Joy Krauthammer © 2011


Pool Ripples and Me
Joy Krauthammer © 2011
.

DOZENS of Picasa photo collages:
http://joys-photos.blogspot.com/
and FAVORITE PHOTOS
http://joys-favorite-fotos.blogspot.com


PAINTINGS

Watercolor

Trees, Woodland Hills
watercolor by Joy Krauthammer
Joy Krauthammer © 




Trees, Water
watercolor by Joy Krauthammer
Joy Krauthammer © 

These are my first two of 3 watercolors painted around 1980.
You can see my own shadow in the Trees. Non-reflective glass is better.



"Shechina dwelling within myself.
A Sacred Space from which Creation emerges."
Poem and colored marker on watercolor hand-dyed marbled paper. 
created by Joy Krauthammer © 
PSALMS OF MY SOUL
Kabbalistic Sephirat HaOmer day 42, Rainbow Day*
Malchut sh b'Yesod
http://sephirathaomer.blogspot.com/2011/05/co-creation-emerges-malchut-sh-byesod.html


CHARCOAL


Joy Krauthammer © 

My only 2 charcoal paintings


Joy Krauthammer © 




Discipline Dissipates During Creation
markers and crayons
Joy Krauthammer © 
PSALMS OF MY SOUL
Kabbalistic Sephirat HaOmer - day 37 
Gevurah sh b'Yesod
painting story:

~
WOOD


WOOD PADDLES
 by Joy Krauthammer ©
Around 1970 I loved working in wood. Using machinery was a challenge for me.
I made these wood ball paddles for Marcel because he loved playing ping pong.
I made wood art frames out of one piece, and spice shelves, and tiled hot plates.



Wood and Tiles Trivet
 by Joy Krauthammer ©

My father, Joseph, obm, made tables with Tile decor.
He worked in many mediums, especially leather, and clay.
My mother, obm, loved burning designs into leather and wood.


Spice Box crafted by © Joy Krauthammer  1969

Spice Box crafted by © Joy Krauthammer  1969

Spice Box crafted by © Joy Krauthammer  1969
~

My art includes PHOTOGRAPHS and they are visible in all my websites.
Here's a favorite from the back yard.


Burning Bush
Joy Krauthammer ©


MY COLLECTIONS as an Art Form

http://joys-art.blogspot.com/2009/12/collected-collections.html


JOY cards, Joy gifts, needlepoint, towels, pillows, art, etc. 
Side of my bookcase attached to Joy weaving
© Joy Krauthammer 


JOY cards, Joy gifts, needlepoint, towels, pillows, art, etc. 
Side of my bookcase attached to Joy weaving
© Joy Krauthammer 


See LICENSES

My art since the 1980's includes taking photographs of personalized vanity auto license plates with specific themes; Jewish and artistic. I have several hundred. Over the decades, stories have been published about my passion and collection.
See last post.


CREATIVE
Joy Krauthammer ©


See more ART ASSORTED, click next OLDER POST.
~


11 comments:

  1. Hi,
    I love sharing my arts with you and look forward to hearing from you. I invite you to leave a COMMENT.
    BlesSings,
    Joy

    ReplyDelete
  2. thank you so much for the work that you do, i received your lovely email today! i just thought i'd say that your photo of you and the joy pots with the children is amazing and has provided a nice amount of inspiration for a lot of folk! also, this blog is quite wonderful and a beautiful resource of knowledge, art in action and encouragement.
    thanks so much,

    v. samp (old lawrence)

    ReplyDelete
  3. GRATITUDE DAY turkey

    deLightful
    Love, GalorYa

    ReplyDelete
  4. UTTERLY FANTASTIC website!
    Faye

    ReplyDelete
  5. Joy, This pot, image, resplendent w/color and texture.

    Love, Faye

    ReplyDelete
  6. Joy - this is so YOU, it's fantabulous!!!
    You are helping to bring that peace and joy into the world.
    Thank you for all you are and do.

    Love, Aviva R

    ReplyDelete
  7. I love your artwork!
    Blessings to you too!
    Reisa

    ReplyDelete
  8. We looked at your photos and art on the internet.
    My goodness, Joy, you’re quite an artist.
    I especially liked your ceramic masks.
    Jean

    ReplyDelete
  9. JOY, YOUR BEST WORK SO FAR. (the Star of David)
    IN MY ESTIMATION, THAT IS......
    I THINK THAT MANY WOULD AGREE
    LOVE, EDITH....

    ReplyDelete
  10. (Joy's Fantasy Room)
    GET YOURSELF INTO A GALLERY!!!!!
    Love, Faye

    ReplyDelete
  11. (11.27.2012 Ripple Reflections)
    My dear Joy,
    It is absolutely superb - I don’t know how you did it but it is the true meaning of peace, calm, relaxation, beauty both visual and sound.
    You are amazingly creative and original -I can't imagine how you came to invent something so different -
    I really loved it - for me it was the right thing at the right time. Your video relaxed me when I came home.
    Love... Lilian

    ReplyDelete

Hi,
Thanks for visiting.
I look forward to hearing from you.
BlesSings, Joy