Earlier this month, I had the great privilege of attending the Metal Clay Mojo Conference in Chester, CT. Organized by the fearless Lis-el Crowley, Mojo brought together a magical, inspiring group of metal clay artists who gathered in the most lovely of places. I can’t say enough good things about this conference.
At 55 total attendees and presenters, Mojo was smaller than the PMC Guild or Metal Clay World Conferences that I’ve mourned since the announcements that they would no longer take place. That smaller size concerned me, and I certainly missed all of you who were not there. But the result was a more intimate feel that encouraged more mingling and less of the moving in packs that tends to happen at a large gathering. I was able to connect more deeply with more people, and the laid back schedule meant that I rarely felt the need to rush from one thing to the next. It was truly a restorative experience, and I’m forever grateful to all of you who made it so special.
Mojo included a fantastic panel of presenters, including Linda Kaye-Moses, Jackie Truty, Robert Dancik, Terry Kovalcik, Pauline Warg, Wanaree Tanner, Kim Paige, Sue McNenly and Lis-el Crowley. Below, clockwise from upper left are Robert Dancik, Wanaree Tanner, Pauline Warg and Terry Kovalcik.
When I first learned of this conference, and saw the call for presenters, I gathered my courage and submitted my proposal for Wholesaling To Grow Your Business. Now, I’m no expert on wholesaling, but I’ve been at it for about 18 months now, and I’ve learned a great deal in this short time. I know that many metal clay artists are interested in the topic, and I wanted to share my knowledge. Click below to see my presentation slides.
I made my one-hour presentation three times during the conference, and people showed up, which was quite a relief. A few of them even came back for a second shot at the information, which was a great confidence builder! I learned so much from the questions that were asked, and I picked up some great tips from other artists that have worked with galleries as well. The feedback was all really positive, and I don’t think it was just because people were being nice. I was really proud of the contribution I made to the conference, and I appreciate Lis-el giving me the opportunity.
In a post-conference class, I was finally able to take Terry Kovalcik’s Hinged Keepsake Locket workshop. I swear, I’ve been trying to work it out to take this class for about two years now. Well, I can tell you it was worth the wait. Terry, as always, was a generous teacher and the group in the class was really fun. It was nice to be able to stretch out my conference experience just a little bit longer. Here’s the locket and dangly bits still in greenware, all ready for the kiln.
Metal Clay Mojo was just exactly what I needed after a particularly difficult spring and summer. I felt so safe and supported inside the cocoon of my metal clay family and my creative engine got all revved up. There’s already talk of another Mojo conference in 2015. I’ll be there and I hope I’ll see all of you there, too!