Our Story
Hi there, my name is Megan Jones and I am a member of the Kestrel Clay dynamic duo, along with my fiance, Chad Collins. I just completed the MFA in Illustration Practice at MICA, while Chad has an MAT from the University of Central Missouri. We are both teachers and ceramic artists based in Baltimore, MD looking to develop our business and teaching practice. We are both dedicated artists who have recently begun expanding from private sales and limited gallery representation to small markets and festivals.
The Kestrel Clay Throw-Down is our way of having fun and reaching out to the wider online community. I was especially excited at how well my home town teams did this year, and Chad came up with a brilliant idea: Our own competition! We will each run an independent campaign to see who can raise the most funds toward getting us to the NCECA conference this year in Kansas City, MO. In the end, we will pool our funds together, but the winner gets bragging rights and the loser gets a bucket of muddy clay dumped on their head (with a video of course so that you can enjoy it as much as we do! Hopefully i'll be the one dumping clay on Chad's head, since again it was his ever so brilliant idea).
What We Need & What You Get From Us!
We need $1300 bare minimum to travel to Kansas City March 16-23 to participate in NCECA's annual conference. NCECA (The National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts) is a massive gathering of the minds, with a city full of galleries and venues filled with amazing ceramic work. This venue will give us access to international artists, organizations, residency opportunities, and vendors that will help guide us along the path of successful art entrepreneurs. It is THE conference for those in the ceramic arts to learn, share, and make new contacts.
To get there, we will need:
$600- Round Trip Flights for two
$700- 4 day Conference Passes for two
We are fortunate enough to have family in the area, who are graciously letting us crash in our (Megan's) old bedroom. So housing for the event is free! Lucky us!
Any additional monies raised beyond these needs will go toward the development of Kestrel Clay as a solvent business. This would include but not be limited to advertising, and building toward studio materials such as a raku kiln and decal printer for examples.
- What do you get out of this? - Based on the level of your support to either of our campaigns you will receive a unique one of a kind reward made by the artist you choose to support.
- For Supporting Team Megan you will receive:
$1- A thank you email from both Chad and I!
$10- A hand-drawn doodle postcard that will be sent to you in the mail!
$25- A small painted tile approximately 3"x4"
(I choose the animal! You tell me Anthropomorphic or Not! Then sit back and let the magic happen. Will it be a Victorian Chameleon? Or a chubby Koalo chomping on some leaves??)
$35- A Black Deer Planter (Limited to 5!)
$40- Illustrated Hanging Planter (You choose the image: Daisy, cactus, or lily pads!)
$50 - A small illustrated bottle (Your choice of animal!) Approximately 5-6" tall
$80 - A Large illustrated bottle (Your choice of animal!) Approximately 8-9" tall
$100- A low-relief illustrated tile, hand sculpted and painted by me! You can request a character or animal, or leave it up to my creative devices! Approximate size will be around 5"x7" to 6"x8" by 1/2"-1" thick.
$250- Custom Pet Sculpture. Sized for Table top, roughly around 8" tall.
$250- [Baltimore Area Only] Come work in the Potters Guild with me! I'll teach you how to hand-build animals and figures in clay. This will be 6 sessions, with a finished piece at the end! Wowza!
To See what Chad is offering (hiss) go here!
The Impact
Your contribution will make is possible for us gain access to a larger world of artists and craftsmen. Many who have already made their mark on the world and are willing to show us the way. This research trip will make us better artists and better teachers.
Risks & Challenges
We are both incredibly devoted artists, whose passion for making drives us in the studio all hours of the day and night. reaching our goal as well as sharing our gifts is a joy and a privilege. Any support you can spare will help us reach our goal. With ceramics, there is always risk, such as a piece cracking or glaze failures, but rest assured, we will work through the night if it means giving you a great product. Even if the campaign isn't funded, we will still create all of the artwork owed.
Other Ways You Can Help
Some people just can't contribute, (and we totally understand) but that doesn't mean that you can't help:
- Make some noise, spread the word about The Kestrel Clay Throw-Down share with your friends and decide who will get the bucket of mud.
- Don't forget to share us on Facebook, twitter and the rest of the internets.
Thank you so much for your time!