2018-03-07 - Wednesday - Goneaway Pottery

I made this graphic using stencils available on my phone. I like it and thought it was worth sharing here.

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2010-10-07 Thursday - New direction

I am exhilarated by the new directions my clay exploration is taking me.  I am still doing the slip/sodium silicate process, but now I am using phoenix and black slip and pushing the clay to it's limit (and sometimes beyond).  I call these pots my "balloon pots" since they are so thin.  Sometimes just taking them off the bat is dangerous.

As you can see in the pictures the teapot form was so thin it  just collapsed straight down from its own weight.  I was thinking about tossing it into the slop bucket when Greg told me I should make it a teapot.  Thanks Greg!  I think it came out pretty well.  More to come.

Heady times, these.

 New batch.

 Sometimes form trumps function.

 Meteor strike.

Alien?

Somewhat more subdued.

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2010-01-13 Wednesday - Clayworks

I made the beginnings of a teapot and lots of tiny pots.  I like to make some tiny pots for several reasons:

1.  I generally lean towards making larger pots
2.  I like to take a break from pushing and pulling lots of clay
3.  I think the tiny pots "punctuate" the larger pots on the shelf

I didn't include the fact that they're just fun to make, but that goes without saying.  I like to have fun whenever possible.

Teapot body, spout and tiny pots.

More tiny pots.

2009-10-31 - Saturday - Duh, It Was Halloween...

These pictures were taken on October 11, and I was going to save them for Halloween. Well, Halloween came and went and I forgot all about it. (The fifties are rough!) Please revisit Halloween 2009 for a moment with me...

The crypt is as quiet as death (huh?), and you hear a soft scraping sound of stone on stone. Turning, you see the mummy's fingers pushing the lid of the sarcophagus to one side. You freeze, wondering what to do, and then...

Your realize you are in the clay studio and it's not scary at all.

I thought these clay remnants looked a lot like mummy's fingers so I took some photos (go figure!).

The mummy's fingers!

The larger picture.

The back of the hand.

Oh yeah, and I started my teapot on that day...

2009-10-21 Wednesday - Clayworks

The big gas kiln was firing on Wednesday and Greg was checking the progress of the cones and the reduction. I was lucky enough to be there and had my camera handy (go figure, eh?). The back pressure gave us a nice green flame coming out of the peephole. We do some pretty awesome reduction in that chamber and I have been one of the lucky recipients of the carbon deposits on more than one occasion. Flame on.

Greg checking the cone progress.

Reduction firing.

I also finished body work on my teapot. I am excited about this teapot since it is the first one I've done using a bamboo handle. Teapots are a lot of work and this one's got a ways to go yet. Body, lid, spout, handle, glazes, etc. Many pieces, many options, many variables equals many things to go wrong. Still, I need to make many more of them to get more comfortable with the process. Remember: It's all about the process.

Teapot with future bamboo handle.

2009-08-21 Friday - Door to Door Teapot

I purchased a teapot set from Gary Rith and it arrived today! It's wonderful and I am displaying it proudly. I can't help but pick up and handle them every time I walk by them. Thanks Gary! Folks at Clayworks begged me to bring the set to the studio so I am planning on taking it there on Sunday.


Please check out Gary's work here, and tell him I sent you.

Cool fast thrown teapot

Here's a lesson to all us potters that fret and stress over teapots. Keep it loose like David Cuzick of San Diego, CA. Check out his site here.