All posts tagged: Clay

Koyoltzintli’s Clay Instruments Channel Sounds from Distant Pasts

Koyoltzintli’s Clay Instruments Channel Sounds from Distant Pasts

Published by Jenni Sidey

“I feel like I am in constant conversation with the past and we are discussing what we’re going to do with the future,” said Koyoltzintli, surrounded by dozens of flutes, whistles, drums, and other handmade instruments scattered around her studio in upstate New York. She was talking about her connection to the Pacific coast of Ecuador, home to some of the oldest ceramic practices and ceramic instruments in the Americas. But she was adamant about her roots in the present—“as someone who carries a lineage while doing my own thing.”  Koyoltzintli started out working primarily in photography, as a photojournalist in Ecuador with a particular interest in the expansion of Amazonian cities and healers in the Andes Mountains. But while she continues to work with the medium—as well as others, including painting, drawing, and sculpture—she had an epiphany around sound in 2020 that continues to resonate. Unable to travel back to Ecuador from the US—where she had moved to attend the School of Visual Arts in 2001—because of the pandemic, she started going to museums …

A rich man’s game? How Roland Garros host France turned its back on clay

A rich man’s game? How Roland Garros host France turned its back on clay

Published by Sam Flores

Feverish support for local players has long been a fixture of the French Open, a privilege that comes with playing on home turf. For many of those players, however, the “turf” itself hardly feels like home. While Roland Garros is the ultimate symbol of clay, the French Open’s home country has produced remarkably few specialists of the ochre surface in recent decades. Some players, like Adrian Mannarino, are even described as being “allergic” to the red dirt. Of the 30 French players who entered the tournament this year, only nine made it past the first round, the third lowest tally in the past three decades, suggesting yet another disappointing run for a nation starved of success. Lining up for an ice cream outside the French Open’s centre court, local fans Benjamin and Pablo offered one explanation for the lack of home wins. “In places like Spain or Argentina, the kids are practically raised on clay,” said the pair from the Basque Country, one sporting a Gallic horned helmet, the other a French tricolour. “But in …

Here’s how the pros play on the clay courts of the French Open : NPR

Here’s how the pros play on the clay courts of the French Open : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

Hailey Baptiste of United States plays a forehand against Madison Keys of United States during the Women’s Singles Fourth Round match on Day Nine of the 2025 French Open at Roland Garros on June 02, 2025 in Paris, France. Adam Pretty/Getty Images Europe hide caption toggle caption Adam Pretty/Getty Images Europe The men’s and women’s qualifying rounds of the French Open started Monday, culminating a season of professional tennis on a surface that’s notoriously challenging to compete on: clay. The court at Roland-Garros, the stadium where the French Open is held, is a five-layer sandwich of various stones and coal residue, topped off with a thin layer of red brick dust. The mixture can be unstable, as it can shift underfoot. By comparison, hard courts have a resin or acrylic top coat that provides an even surface. Grass has a rougher texture that gives the ball a lower bounce. But any athlete who makes it to the French Open is “a phenomenal tennis player at that point” and learns to adapt to clay, said Steve …

Are human beings getting better? What is ‘feet of clay’? – OpentheWord.org

Are human beings getting better? What is ‘feet of clay’? – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Credit: wellcomeimages.org, Wikipeida, CC BY 4.0 Are you civilized? Do you feel like the human race is making progress, mostly in the right direction? Are you positive about the future of human civilization?  Here is a pessimistic, negative opinion about human progress: The news can be depressing. Right now there is at least one war in the Middle East, but that’s no surprise. There always seems to be something to fight about in that part of the world. So, where you live; are things getting better? Is society moving on to better things? There is a large amount of pessimism in most places. If we believe in human evolution, we should be progressing to greater and better things. Even if we make mistakes, in Darwinian thinking, we have a system called the survival of the fittest, which means that we can learn from our mistakes and do better things, next time. The people who can’t keep up, and can’t get it right, will probably become extinct, according to that theory. I have friends and neighbors …

U.S.-Iran ceasefire; Clay Fuller; Abortions; ICE : NPR

U.S.-Iran ceasefire; Clay Fuller; Abortions; ICE : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

Good morning. You’re reading the Up First newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox, and listen to the Up First podcast for all the news you need to start your day. Today’s top stories The U.S. and Iran reached a ceasefire deal yesterday, just hours before President Trump’s deadline for Iran to meet his demands. Under the agreement, Trump announced that the U.S. and Israel would halt bombing for two weeks, contingent on Iran following through with its commitment to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices plummeted and stocks soared after the announcement of the deal. Brent crude oil dropped by more than 13% to $94.74. In the early hours of the ceasefire, Israel disputed that the deal included a pause of its attacks on Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon and continued its attacks today. Iranians react after a ceasefire announcement at the Enqelab square, in Tehran, on Wednesday. AFP via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption AFP via Getty Images 🎧 NPR’s Franco Ordoñez tells Up First that the deal marks a significant shift from …

Trump-backed Clay Fuller wins House race in Georgia to replace Greene : NPR

Trump-backed Clay Fuller wins House race in Georgia to replace Greene : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

Clay Fuller received President Trump’s endorsement earlier in the election season in the race to replace former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. He will serve out the remainder of Greene’s term. LEILA FADEL, HOST: Republican Clay Fuller will replace former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. That’s according to a race call by the Associated Press. Georgia Public Broadcasting’s Sarah Kallis reports. SARAH KALLIS, BYLINE: Congressman-elect Clay Fuller came into the race with a clear message. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) CLAY FULLER: We need an America-first fighter to stand strong for Northwest Georgia. KALLIS: Fuller, a North Georgia district attorney, got President Trump’s endorsement in a crowded special election with over a dozen candidates in March. But after no candidate got over 50% of the vote, he advanced to a runoff against Democrat Sean Harris. For voters like David Hale, Trump’s endorsement carried weight in this solidly red district. He says he cast his ballot for Fuller. DAVID HALE: He is backed by President Trump, and I hope they can work together. KALLIS: That would be a departure …

Republican Clay Fuller wins Georgia special election for Marjorie Taylor Greene’s old seat in Congress

Republican Clay Fuller wins Georgia special election for Marjorie Taylor Greene’s old seat in Congress

Published by Sam Flores

Republican prosecutor Clay Fuller won the special election to replace former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in the House, NBC News projects, defeating Democrat Shawn Harris in a runoff in Georgia on Tuesday. Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content. The special election to fill the rest of Greene’s term in the 14th Congressional District went to a runoff after no candidate in the crowded all-party primary won a majority of the vote last month. Fuller, who is a district attorney, was the firm favorite, entering the Tuesday runoff with President Donald Trump’s endorsement in a district Trump carried by 37 percentage points in the 2024 presidential race. See live results here With more than 85%of the expected vote counted, Fuller led Harris by 15 points, 57.5%-42.5%. Fuller pitched himself as the best choice for those who “100% support President Trump,” touting the endorsement on the airwaves and appearing with Trump at an event in the district. He also played up his record as a local prosecutor, a …

Who is Clay in Virgin River and does he find his sister?

Who is Clay in Virgin River and does he find his sister?

Published by Daniella Wilson

Warning: Contains spoilers for Virgin River season 7! There’s a newcomer to Virgin River this season, and he brings plenty of secrets along with him. Season 7 of the beloved cosy drama is now out on Netflix, and introduces viewers to the tough and athletic Clay, someone who certainly gets noticed when he enters a room. And while he most definitely grabs the attention of one Virgin River resident, there is a shroud of secrecy surrounding Clay as it becomes clear he is hiding something… Played by Cody Kearsley (Detective Knight, Breach), Clay is on a mission to find his sister while in Virgin River, but does he manage to find her? If you’re keen for answers and want to know more about what secrets Clay is hiding, read on to find out. Who is Clay in Virgin River? Cody Kearsley as Clay in Virgin River. Netflix Clay is a new resident in Virgin River who makes quite the first impression by getting into a fight at Jack’s Bar. He eventually smoothes things over when he …

Isiah Whitlock Jr, actor known as The Wire’s Clay Davis, dies aged 71

Isiah Whitlock Jr, actor known as The Wire’s Clay Davis, dies aged 71

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Isiah Whitlock Jr., the character actor best known for playing the corrupt Senator Clay Davis in The Wire, has died. He was 71. The Indiana-born actor was also acclaimed for his work in Veep, Chappelle’s Show, Law & Order and several Spike Lee movies. His manager Brian Liebman made the announcement on Instagram, writing: “It is with tremendous sadness that I share the passing of my dear friend and client Isiah Whitlock Jr. If you knew him – you loved him. A brilliant actor and even better person. May his memory forever be a blessing. Our hearts are so broken. He will be very, very missed.” Whitlock reportedly died peacefully in New York following a short illness. He was born on September 13, 1954 in South Bend, Indiana. He graduated from John Adams High School in 1972 and later attended Southwest …

Of God, Faith and Clay – OpentheWord.org

Of God, Faith and Clay – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Credit: Earl Wilcox, unsplash.com It is no secret to those familiar with the Bible, that God took some clay and molded the first man, Adam. The potter too takes some clay and creates a pot. Being a potter and being very much aware of how clay responds to the potter’s hands, the undersigned was struck indeed by the parallels between the ever developing life of a Christian, as God directs that life and the “playing in the mud”. By Rogier Donker The Art of Pottery The origins of the potter’s wheel and the art of pottery are lost in history, but it is known that both the potter and his craft were around in Biblical times. The Bible contains several verses in several different books and passages that relate to the potter and his clay. Used as metaphorical illustrations the “pottery passages” in the Bible are used to show the reader something about man’s relationship with God. The prophet Jeremiah was told by God: “Arise, and go ye to the potter’s house and there I …