Vol. XIV No. n. 
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK 
March 191 3 
CORRESPONDENT WTites that she 
can make more money raising chickens 
than painting china, for which reason 
she has decided not to continue her 
subscription to Keramic Studio until 
she can see more money in china 
painting than she does now! Cer- 
tainly if money-making is the chief 
end sought in china paintmg or in any 
art, it is far more sensible and sincere 
to take to poultry farming. With eggs at fifty and sixty cents 
a dozen and chickens at twenty-five to fifty cents a pound a 
small fortune awaits the foresighted and industrious woman 
who devotes herself scientifically and whole-heartedly to the 
care of that succulent bird. It is strange how few understand 
what is necessary to success in any undertaking. It is for this 
reason that so many false starts are made and ill success is laid 
not to one's own self but to the occupation. 
For financial success in china painting as well as in any- 
thing else, it is necessary that the work be undertaken, first, 
because you love it, second, because you love it better than 
anything else, and third, and last, because you love it so that 
you know you can not give it up and you must make a success of 
it. "It is love that makes the world go round." If work is 
undertaken because of whole-hearted love for it, success 
artistic and success financial and every other kind of success is 
bound to follow, because every faculty, every thought will be 
concentrated on that one point and your success will be the 
measure of all that is in you. But understand well, money 
making must be only a secondary aim. Some have the faculty 
of money-making and some not. To the first kind of person 
m.oney is the chief object and if art is used simply as a means to 
that end the success artistic will never come to them. They 
will be, as it were, gold brick sellers, and for a while they will 
make money simply by their power of hypnotising, at the same 
time they will damn their own souls by selling the false for the 
true art. No man can serve two masters, and as between money 
and art, as a master, money will follow the real thing in art as 
a natural sequence, but art never follows the money seeker as 
a natural sequence. 
As for those who are not money makers by nature, that 
is much as you think yourself. If you have real talent and 
perseverance the money cannot fail to come. Believe in your- 
self. Love your work. Think success. You can not fail. 
>h 
It never pays in painting of any kind to buy cheap materials, 
colors, brushes, gold or anythmg else. The beginner has 
troubles enough without hampering herself with inferior work- 
ing tools and the advanced worker has too much respect for 
her work to risk spoiling it. Economy lies rather in the good- 
ness of the material than in the cheapness of the price. 
'b 
We are giving in this issue some interesting sketches of 
California flowers and designs from there by Miss Johnson 
and Miss Culbertson. There is a wealth of new and good 
material in California and we wish we would hear more often 
from the designers of the far West. We had a promise once 
of a number of Keramic Studio devoted to the woi'k of a Cali- 
fornia Club but it never materialized. We know that good 
work is being done there and hope that some California Club 
will be interested to send us a representative lot of designs. 
-h 
Friends of the editor of Keramic Studio who would like 
to see the Robineau porcelains may be interested in the itiner- 
ary of the collection which is now being exhibited in the Cin- 
cinnati Museum after having been shown at the Chicago Art 
Institute, Buffalo Albright Galleries and St. Louis Museum; 
from Cincinnati it goes to the Philadelphia Museum in March 
and the Boston Museum in April. 
HELPFUL HINTS 
OUR work-table is covered with white oil cloth and a jar is 
provided for the dirty turpentine that is left, after the 
lesson is over. When this settles, it is used to clean the oil 
cloth, with good results and little trouble. 
Glass jars with lids, such as stick and fancy candies are 
sold in, are used for such supplies as brushes, palette knives, 
pencils, burnishers, etc. A glance at the jars shows just what 
is wanted and the supplies are kept free from dust. They are 
also used for holding the tracings, made on tracing cloth, of 
conventional designs, and labeled, as plate borders, steins, 
vases, bowls and so on. In this way they are easily found 
and the pupil can wait on himself, putting them back after 
they are through with them. 
A large note book, with place for index and pages numbered, 
having plenty of space allotted for such subjects as Enamels, 
Gold, Color Combinations, Design, Firing, Water-Colors, etc., 
in which I make notes on the different subjects whenever I 
discover or read something new upon them, has been of gi'eat 
personal benefit to me. 
Often, in spacing designs and making drawings on china 
a line is shown that should not be outlined and it is difficult 
for a new pupil to remember this; the eraser on the end of a 
lead pencil removes these lines easily and quickly. 
A good color card will often convince a pupil of the merit, or 
lack of merit, of a certain color combination where words fail, 
the same as a blistered plate of a certain porcelain with a very 
soft glaze stopped the bringing of that ware to be decorated. 
Gertrude Gilpin. 
We can't all have filing cabinets for our studies, try this 
simple method and save hours of time: Take the leaves out of 
an old letter-file or make same out of stiff brown paper, letter- 
ing from "A-Z" and "Special." Place in your portfolio and 
file studies according to flower, placing odd designs or "purely 
conventional" and historic ornaments under the "Special." 
Tie a rag around the neck of your medium bottle, it will 
never become sticky. 
Buy a ten cent package of surgeon's plaster, cut up as 
needed to make the pad that holds yom- compass. 
Who has not tried to draw a line where a keramic gauge 
could not be used. Try placing the china on a smooth surface 
such as a tile. Place flat objects — books or boxes to the re- 
quired height. Hold your pencil flatly on them and twirl 
your china. The result is a perfect line. M. E. Clemens 
