A TRIBUTE TO JOE CAMPBELL

It’s with a heavy heart that I share with you, my clay friends, the passing of potter and brush-maker, Joe Campbell.

Joe has been a close friend for many years, both in clay and otherwise. He developed and guided the clay program at Frederick Community College in Frederick, Maryland for more than thirty years, retiring in 2013.During those years Joe developed his love of brush -making – just one of his many creative talents - and I’ve been incredibly honored to be his main source of getting his brushes into the creative hands of potters around the world via my vangilderpottery.com/tool store website.

This selection of JCampbell brushes will be the last time his brushes are available to our clay community. This is the end of that wonderful era. Thank you, my friends…and Gods speed and care, Joe.

Bill van Gilder

Joe Campbell Brushes

Brush Materials and Methods

All brush heads are natural hairs – again most of which are locally and/or USA based – the one exception being the white Goat Hair that is used for the slip brushes. This white hair is the traditional Asian goat hair that has been used for centuries for brush making in Asian countries and comes from China.

All handles for the brushes are bamboo – most of which is locally grown and harvested near my home in West Virginia. A few of the brushes use exotic tropical bamboo varieties that will not grow locally and are from California. A few specialty brushes use local cedar wood as part of the handle structure. Some of the one–off brushes use combinations of assorted woods.

The decorative thread wraps on the handles are made from waxed linen thread – commonly used to bind carpet edges or hems. These are largely decorative but do also play a role in the comfortable grip and use of the brush handles.

All brushes have a hanging strap for drying and storing which is the recommended method for protecting brush heads. Most are re-purposed leather from thrift store finds. The small brushes may use linen thread.