Stephanie C Schulz

I developed a line of imprinted clay ware and decor inspired by a book Early New England Gravestones. I picked the book up on a whim, after loosing both of my parents within a year of each other. I was, and still am, attracted to this  charming and simple style, it being from earliest, often not formally trained American settlers; artists and craftsmen that were multifaceted in their works- one would be stonemason, leather worker, blacksmith, as needed. Their abilities were used often, these people were creative problem solvers and involved in many aspects of early American life, but not much is known about them., pretty much only their careful loving, respectful art,  hand chiseled into stone, as gravestones for the people of their time-usually the more affluent/powerful that could pay for the artists materials and living wages while the work was done.

The designs no doubt were carried down from stone workers from different backgrounds,  interpretations of memories of earlier works seen firsthand in churches back in the artists countries of origin, perhaps passed down through many generations. Many times no doubt an artist was commissioned to 'make one that looks like that' as the customer pointed, so another interpretation of an old design was born. 

The images are not overtly expressive,,if you recall, in early-time photographs, nobody smiled, it was not considered dignified (ever heard of the term 'grinning fool' ?) Plus, nobody's happy when someone dies. In the stone picture renderings the people/angels often time had curly hair, as men and women both wore powdered wigs. Wings sprouted from the neck, and symbols such as figure 8, for Infinity, , weeping trees, tears, or cactus symbolizing  the dried up dead feeling death leaves behind, urns that symbolize cremated remains of children, occasionally adults,  lilies, all things sad. Grave stones, and similar art depicting the departed, the revered, the beloved,  have always been done as honorably as possible given the tools, materials/stone used, and time and skill available. These are meaningful, sincere, solemn artistic markers with intentions to help the living memorialize their dear ones. I find great beauty in that. Like a direct denial of the impermanence of Life, the use of stones such as granite and marble shakes a fist at Death. The physicality of the markers and the writings on them provide tangible connections to the near and distant past.  I appreciate that stone, and stone carving, were never an easy medium, and so appreciate that these were painstakingly carved,  accomplishments showing great detail, the moving of the rocks from the artist workspace to the graveside, the installation, all took great effort, by countless unknown helping people. It takes a village to raise a child, and, to bury a loved one. Grave markers are evidence of Humanity in its most reverent, and burial sites remain a special source of history for all.  The fact that who, how long they lived, sometimes what they died of, who their family was, maybe a bit about what they did or were known for, an artistic rendering of what they looked like, symbols of what they enjoyed in life, all tell stories, and give meaning to our own lives. The oldest graves are succumbing to the ravages of time, crumbling, moss and water erosion,  sometimes vandalism, as permanent as they seem, they are not. Its good that some people have found these stones charming and worthy of protecting. The designs are compelling, and worthy of preservation, they have been captured in photos, and provide inspiration to new generations of artists in all mediums. I wanted to share my own discovery of this Inspired art with you, and hope others can find a special place for something Ive made to help connect to something Meaningful, as well.  We all loose someone close to us, family, friends, pets. Having art like this around us can draw our minds back to happy times spent together. That's why I have made this work. To help Stay Tuned In to that love.

In between menial jobs, I worked in the family business Schulz Porcelain off and on since 1976.

The baton was handed to me in 2005, after Bill l and Terry had both passed. 

Sales  from our booth at Portland Saturday Market ended in about 2008. The  decision to stop selling there was due to the 2008 Recession; money was  tight for everyone, and Tourism dollars, the main income source of  Schulz Porcelain, became an insufficient livelihood. 

Necessity is the Mother Of Invention,,,

     My mom, Terry, came to me in a dream saying: 'There's No Money In Art'

 That  felt like profound wisdom to me. It was the push I needed to go ahead  with my idea of Dog Grooming;  'Service' based work, in addition to the  pottery.

At  that time, I was supporting several cats and 2 dogs-  the cost of  grooming alone was incentive enough to self-train, learning advanced  grooming techniques from the internet, DVD's, and working through other  groomers. I got the ok from the city and neighbors to start working out  of my kitchen in 2008. It went well, so I moved the new grooming biz  into the basement, ordered better equipment, and grooming has been a  solid income source for 11 years now, with the addition of dog daycare  and boarding and now additional service of dog walking.

End Of an Era,,,,,?

     I  continued the pottery,  by showing through Oregon Potters Association,  but it was too hard to do alone. Sales were minimal, and I ran out of  room in the shop to store anything new. Fulfilling orders was the only  reason I was ever out in the shop.

     Recently,  2019, my pottery sales through Made In Oregon Stores have been cut  waaay back.   Further exploration of the reasons for this have revealed  2018 Consumer Confidence had dropped, but that goes up and down,, The  sad fact prevalent in all brick and mortar stores, all over the world,  is that in-store sales are down, and online sales up. 40% of sales are  made from mobile devices now.

 There  is a price war for every single thing made. Customers may 'discover' an  item for the first time as they window shop and they may buy, but don't  return to the same place to buy it again, instead they go online to  buy. Made in Oregon sell some things online, not all in their shops, and  not my stuff; mostly food and wine.  Not only that, but they would not  allow me to have my website on my hang tags, for when I did have a  website, many years ago. This was not a problem, until now. 

Not  being online is a problem that adversely affects all craftsmen in all  locales.  With competition up, its critical to play the online games of  payperclick, social media, paying ever higher cost for winning  strategies, taking the fun out of being an artist and crafts person.   There are a few places left, but the learning curve for some of us Old  Schoolers is almost insurmountable. It's all right on par though, with  business as usual: one should never become an artist or craftsman  without first getting a degree in business, then your success will only  be until The Next New Thing.

 Now  the key is Branding. With the invention of plastics, and mass  manufacturing using slave labor, the entire world has The Lowest  Priced,,whatnot,,,available to it, no matter where they are, and now  Free Shipping is also expected! In order to compete, all artists get  practically nothing for their work, unless they know how to Brand  themselves, and to pay teenagers and 'influencers', and SEO boosters to  create fake reviews on every platform on continuous drip to fool the  'bots,,In other words, be a computer geek, or be independently rich or  blessed with smart kids willing to help, or able to afford to have  others do it for you, or get out.

 I'm no geek, but I'm not getting out,,yet!

Travel  has always been expensive and tourists budgets for souvenirs has always  been low. Its the 'Experiences' that people want.  Couple that with the  insurgence of the Minimalist Movement, aka IKEA,  now people have even  more buyers resistance to souvenirs.  No matter how good the quality of  the items, no matter where made, they are still just cute little  Memorabilia:  'junk', dust collectors, chachkis, knick-knacks, various  other derogatory names...not the intention of the artists that designed  them, at all! 

     Still,  Memorabilia will always have a place in our lives, we all have the need  to gather and give things, give meaning to our lives by using items  kept that remind us of happy times, and great 'Experiences.  So often  now, though, it's just a selfie taken in front of a souvenir shop,   something that can be kept In The Cloud,  taking up no space at all,  accessible memories that will (hopefully) last forever, even while  Downsizing ones life to make it more mobile and affordable.

So, as a Creator, Crafts person, Artist,  Artisan, What's The Answer?

     Life,  and Collecting Things, are different now.  Items must have real  Purpose.  It helps if they are Wearable, make our lives easier, more  efficient. Functionality, Dual and Multi-Functionality, if possible, is  what it takes for an item to earn a place in our homes. Heirlooms are  good to keep and display, if they are handmade, and or given by a loved  one,,,as long as they match the couch,,or, off into the garage storage  they go. This is the demise of so many lovely handcrafted special items.  We are increasingly entering a 'virtual reality'; who needs Grandma's  Doo Dahs, when you can have 4 white walls and a smartphone? Who needs  actual people when remote viewings of your loved ones face on a tiny  screen is available? See where we are going here? Without our 'stuff',  we're becoming robots. 

  'Stuff'  makes us Human. The concept of 'Heirloom' requires someone have some  one special, usually a family member, to pass something to, in  continuation through many generations. Solid, tangible reminders, even  if the stories behind them are lost. The fact that the item is there in  your hand, is validation that Love was, and is, part of your history.