Jinah China

Pete Pinnell Picks Porcelain Platter - April 2010

2010-04-04T17:40:00.003-06:00

Jinah China was selected by juror Pete Pinnell to be in the Contemporary Clay Biennial 2010! The show is up at The Art Center in Grand Junction, Colorado from May 14th - June 26th. Jinah and friends will be attending the June 4th opening and juror's talk. Come check it out!!

Here's the platter that was chosen

"Simple Pleasures"

White and Dyed Porcelain, Hand Carved

Cone 4 Oxidation, Gold Luster

16" x 12"

www.JinahChina.com

Porcelain Portraits - March/April 2010

2010-03-27T22:04:00.000-06:00

Jinah China Studios - March 2010

Jinah China's Jonah Skurky-Thomas (left) and Micah Bell take a breather in their Durango studio on Tuesday. The studio's name is a blend of the ceramicists' first names, but its semblance to a piece of the female anatomy is no coincidence. Jinah China's works are often covered with caricatures of the human form./Photo by Stephen Eginoire

Porcelain Portraits - The Durango Telegraph

On March 27th, Jinah was interviewed by Kinsee Morlan for the April 1st edition of The Durango Telegraph. In addition to being an awesome journalist, Kinsee is also a volunteer radio announcer at KDUR. So she was able to use the interview for the paper and also for a segment in her weekly radio show This Small Town Life, which was awesome! Hooray! Thanks again, Kinsee!

www.JinahChina.com

Furniture As Art - February/March 2010

2010-02-25T21:04:00.000-07:00

In February, we were invited to participate in Furniture as Art, a charity event put on every year to raise money for KDUR, the Fort Lewis College community radio station. Local artists are asked to donate a piece that is then auctioned off to art loving Durangotangs with the proceeds going to KDUR. With spring fast approaching, we had been inspired to plant small succulents in some of our coffee mugs, which gave us the idea for our piece. While most participants submit furniture, it isn't a requirement and seeing as how we don't make furniture we opted to make decorative, wall mounted flower vessels.

Our Inspiration

We started by casting 5 mason jars. Then they were decorated with a cyclical, regenerative (also Spring inspired) motif. Each was glazed and fired and affixed with a magnet. Then they were mounted to a metal bar that could be hung in a window or on a wall. We planted a small succulent in each jar.

A trial run in the studio.

The piece on display at Yarn, before being auctioned off at The Durango Art Center.

www.JinahChina.com

Carver's Brewing Company - November/December 2009

2009-11-29T19:32:00.000-07:00

In December, Jinah China had a mega Christmas blow out! It was a huge success! We sold most of the work, clearing out almost all of our inventory from 2009. The brewery (owned by family friends, The Carvers) is an awesome venue, with tons of tourists and locals coming through everyday. With nearly half our sales going to out-of-towners, it was great way to gain some exposure outside of Durango. We made several pieces for the show and designed a couple of new forms, stacking espresso cups and a large beer stein. Our friends John and Paul helped us build and install custom shelving for the space. We'll be showing at Carver's again in Spring 2011.

Jinah China Studios - November 2009

Handimals!

The twins

Stacking Espresso Cups

Jinah Stein

Assembling shelves outside the studio.

Carver's Brewing Co. - December 2009

Jonah and Paul installing shelves.

Jinah China o Nine-ah

Goofing around

www.JinahChina.com

New Baby Kiln!!

2009-11-05T15:30:00.001-07:00

In October, Jinah China Studios reaped the benefits of a successful sale with the addition of a brand new baby kiln! The new kiln is a Paragon Xpress 66-3 and can fire as high as cone 6 (2270 degrees Fahreheit)! We've already run several tests and she works like a charm. Test kilns are a super efficient way to fire small pieces and also experiment with clay and glazes without wasting precious time and energy.

Jinah China Studios - November 2009

So proud of his new baby!

www.JinahChina.com

David Hunt Ceramic Invitational

2009-10-16T15:02:00.000-06:00

On October 16th, we participated in the annual David Hunt Ceramic Invitational at Fort Lewis College Art Gallery. Jinah China was on display alongside the work of ten other Durango artists including Lorna Meaden and Lisa Pedolsky. We submitted several platters, coffee mugs, and cups and also made one new piece for the show, a large cylindrical vessel. We had a fantastic time meeting other local ceramicists and learning more about the art department at Fort Lewis. Hoping for another invitation next year!

Jinah China Studios - October 2009

Jonah's old man glasses

After free handing the image, the carving begins.

Fresh out of the bisque.

Fort Lewis College Art Gallery

Problem solving with other potters.

John and Grandma Jill checking out the work.

www.JinahChina.com

Durango Open Studios - September 2009

2009-09-25T20:01:00.000-06:00

The weekend of September 25th and 26th Jinah China Studio was opened to the public for our town's local studio walk. Durango Open Studios (an event organized by our friend and artist extraordinaire Crystal Hartman) was a great success, with over 25 artists participating in the event and tons of fellow artists and art lovers coming out to show their support. The studio walk also coincided with "Open Doors" an exhibition at The Durango Arts Center where Jinah China was awarded Best In Show. We had a great time sharing our work and our studio and hearing all the great feedback from members of our own community.

Inside Jinah China Studios - September 2009

Our work on display

Outside of the studio.

Crystal enjoying the weekend after all her hard work.

Chatting with other local artists.

www.JinahChina.com

Celadon and Celery - Custom Flower Vases

2009-08-30T15:05:00.000-06:00

This past August, John and his friend Felicity introduced us to a fabulous New York florist whose arrangements are both chic and eco-friendly. Bess Wyrick, the owner of Celadon and Celery, expressed an interest in collaborating on several pieces for some of her upcoming events. After sending off several sets of our coffee cups for use in smaller arrangements, we started work on two custom flower vases. With the dimensions as guidelines, we began designing the largest pieces we had ever made.

Jinah China Studios - September 2009

A bit overwhelmed...

All our pieces are hand carved using a pin tool. The background is scratched away and then sanded to create a bas relief.

Finished!

www.JinahChina.com

Two Artists, One Cup - July 2009

2009-07-03T14:25:00.000-06:00

On July 3rd, 2009 Jinah China had our first solo exhibition at K. Saari Gallery in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. The show, "Two Artists, One Cup" allowed us to showcase our full array of work and also to customize the gallery space in a way we had never been able to before. The exhibition included our signature stacking coffee cups, 99 cylindrical cup forms, cup top canisters, and a variety of different sized platters. July 4th weekend did not disappoint! We had a blast talking to locals and visitors in town for the holiday weekend.

K. Saari Gallery - Two Artists, One Cup - July 2009

D & D man the gallery. Our friends Paul, Chris, Randy, and John helped design and build our display.

Jonah individually places each flower with tweezers.
An assortment of dried flowers weave throughout the display.

99 Different Cups

Stacking Coffee Cups

Jumping Jinah

Our show announcement

www.JinahChina.com

Building Frankenstudio!

2008-07-02T00:04:00.000-06:00

Jonah and I moved to Colorado in July 2008 and immediately began building a studio with Jonah's father, John. The three of us were able to transform a 300 square foot shack into a fully functional ceramic studio in just a few months. Since the studios completion in winter of 2008 we have generated a new body of work, been in several exhibitions, and participated in Durango's local studio walk.

Jinah China Studios - July 2008

Rebuilding the interior

The roof gets a major facelift!

The digging never ends!

Building a wrap around Redwood deck

Paul, Chris, and John do some custom landscaping.

Jinah Sign-ah

www.JinahChina.com

Going Down to Jinah Town!

2008-06-01T21:11:00.000-06:00

Hi there! Welcome to our blog! We are two ceramic artists working out of our studio in Durango, Colorado. Check out our website at www.JinahChina.com