Now More Than Ever - Rio Grande

journal of the pmc guild
a show on TV that I like to watch, I’ll be knitting along with it, or embroidering.
I just have that creative urge, I guess. I need to see that I am
progressing, always doing something, to make sure something constructive
is coming out of my time.”
She got started with PMC in 1999. As is the case with so many
members, Landenwitch’s foray into PMC began as a curiosity. As a student
at the College of Mount St. Joseph in Cincinnati, she enjoyed ceramics.
She never pursued that interest after college, but she kept it in the back
of her mind. Early in 1999, she read a magazine article about PMC and
learned that it required firing in a kiln, which reminded her a little of her
ceramics class.
“I tried to do as much research as I could, but there was not much
information available at the time. I kept thinking about it throughout
that spring and summer, and I just decided I wanted to try it. It sounded
so interesting to work with this clay material, fire it and come away with
something made of precious metal. I bought a kiln and one package of
PMC, just one ounce, and I started to experiment.”
Back then, there were no classes. She had a booklet and sketchy information
about the firing schedule so she learned on her own, through trial
and error, and quickly took to the clay. “If you can work with your hands
in one type of craft, I think you can do a lot of things. You can adapt. The
first three pieces I tried all came out OK; rough, but wearable. That’s the
beauty of PMC—even newbies can have success right off the bat.” She’s
been hooked ever since.
It is with that sense of adventure and daring that she stepped into the
role as the Guild’s Executive Director. She is committed to ensuring that
the Guild remains at the forefront of PMC by making information widely
and readily available through www.pmcguid.com, Guild publications and a
biennial conference.
“This August will mark the tenth anniversary of the creation of the
PMC Guild, and I’m honored to play a part in its growth. We have affiliates
in the U.K. and in Australia, and individual members in France,
Germany, Sweden, Turkey, Iceland, and beyond. More than anything else,
what the PMC Guild offers is information and a creative community.”
Nettie and her husband Dave have two sons and each is celebrating
a significant event in the near future. Their son Shawn will be ordained
into the Roman Catholic priesthood this spring, and their son Adam and
his wife Michelle are expecting their first child in July. Guild members join
together in wishing Jeanette and her family all the best in these exciting
times.
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