Diana Ware Clay Studio -- an avenue for creativity

Most of us remember the pleasure of wet clay oozing between our fingers as we immortalized our small handprints in a clay plaque in elementary school, or proudly displayed our budding creativity with a hand-sculpted ashtray or coffee cup. If you long for that avenue of creativity once more, or just want the therapeutic benefits of producing something with your own hands, then Diana Ware Clay Studio is the perfect place for you.
 

Diana Muhs, a professional ceramic artist who has been working in clay for 25 years, opens her Apple Valley studio for wheel throwing classes, both beginner and intermediate, every Tuesday afternoon from 1 to 4 p.m. and again from 6 to 9 p.m. Each month-long session is only $75 and includes a free open studio every Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m. Clay, glazes and firing are available for a small additional fee.

"I love to see students grow and become creative when they say they have no creativity," Muhs said.

"I nurture my students. They are so appreciative and so lovely."

When not teaching ceramic classes, Muhs can be found in her studio creating stunning works of art in clay, or decorating her new Artemis Gallery.

She also travels throughout Southern California and Oregon to craft shows and on promotional tours.

Muhs specializes in dramatic ceramic processes, such as Raku — a Japanese technique that is hundreds of years old and has found popularity among modern American potters. The Raku firing process is very involving and hands-on, and produces breath-taking pieces, each one unique.

Once a piece is hand-thrown on a potter's wheel, it is glazed and fired in a Raku kiln at over 1,800 degrees F. "The pieces are so hot that sometimes they are nearly transparent," Muhs said. The kiln is then opened and Muhs endures the blasting heat to remove the piece with tongs, setting it into a paper-filled trash can. The paper immediately ignites from the intense heat of the piece and begins to smoke. The lid is set on the can and the smoke begins to force carbon from the burning paper into the pores of the clay body.

"As smoke blends into the piece, metallics come out — very dramatic colors," Muhs said. After 10 minutes, the piece is removed and hosed down as Muhs watches the colors come out — the more paper in the can, the darker the smoking of the piece. "It's instant gratification watching it," she said. "You watch the transformation right in front of your eyes. It's magical."

Muhs has come a long way to become a studio potter, gallery proprietor and teacher. Originally from the Los Angeles area, she took a clay class when her two daughters were little and really enjoyed it. "I just loved the feel," she said. "Something about the freedom of clay — it's malleable and not intimidating."

Muhs and her husband James, who holds a Master of Fine Arts degree from the prestigious Otis Art Institute and has been a professor of art for over 30 years, wanted to raise their girls in a more rural atmosphere. After looking around many areas, they finally sold their home, James quit his job, and they moved into an old farmhouse in Ashland, Oregon. "We had no idea what we were getting into. We were wild and adventurous," Muhs laughed. "It was like Green Acres."

Although James got a job at an art institute, they knew they needed a business to support them. That adventurous streak continued when they decided to open a tofu processing plant — it was 1981 and tofu was the "up and coming thing," Muhs said. "Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd become a tofu manufacturer." But there was a need. Tofu was very popular in the area, but by the time it was shipped to Ashland, it was sour. The business took about a year to start up and did wonderfully. "The community was ecstatic," she said.

Once the business was up and running with employees to help with the work, Muhs went back to school and earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Southern Oregon. She had a large home studio in Ashland and taught ceramics there.

The Muhs' ran the tofu factory for 17 years while raising their daughters. The girls both moved to California to go to college and start families. In 1998 Diana and James sold their tofu business and moved back to Southern California to be near their children and grandchildren. With two artists needing studios, the Muhs' needed lots of room. A real estate agent recommended the High Desert and they fell in love with the "big skies and powerful rock formations and magnificent views," she said.

When Muhs saw a for sale sign on a large warehouse building on Highway 18 in Apple Valley, she bought the building for her studio. She has been creating extraordinary works of art, and teaching other High Desert residents the joys of clay ever since. She has also taught sculpture at Victor Valley Community College for two years and wrote the sculpture program for the college.

Muhs' studio is a potter's dream with high ceilings and lots of light and room to work. There is also a kiln yard with three state-of-the-art kilns, and beautiful views of the desert. The studio boasts a variety of potter's wheels, including a kickwheel, a slab roller, a clay extruder, and large work tables.

When not teaching her classes, Diana works as a studio potter fulfilling gallery commitments and craft shows throughout Southern California. All this keeps her very busy and happy to be working in what she loves - CLAY.