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Tests Fired

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Remember awhile back when I said my new motto was "Keep doing what you're doing"?  Why didn't someone remind me of that yesterday?!  So here are the glaze fired tests.

I tried inlaying black in some of the line drawings.  When I go back to wipe away the excess most of the black comes out of the lines, not good, and I have to spend time wiping the residue off the background.  I don't really like the end result either. So that's out. Next time I mention "black lines" someone tell me not to bother.

I'm not really pleased with the underglaze color on any of those animals above either.  I do like the energy of that chicken.  The green and blue washes on the top tile are over glaze.  That seems to work okay and would be nicer over some sgraffito.


The next tile is okay.  I don't think I'm going with the brush drawing though.  There are several reasons.  First off I feel like I'm better with the incising.  I just need to keep at it and work on some different line qualities, maybe experiment with some new tools.  And, I have a lot of Ron Meyers' imagery stored in my brain and if I pick up a brush it's going be hard not to copy him.


This plate...oh, it's just horrible!! Ick. It looks like a cheap painting on a Chinet paper plate.


The oxide/stain tests gave me some good info.  They need to be applied like a thin wash.  The copper needs work and that MW stain was supposed to be blue. Maybe if it's super thin it would be.  I'll try it again.


For now I'm back to sgraffito through white slip on red clay with some overglaze color. Basically what I've been doing.  But maybe pushing it a bit further along.

These tests help me get some of the "What if " questions out of my head.  Which lets me move forward and not stay stuck in the question.  That's until new questions arise.

Tests Pt. 1

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These bisque pieces came out of the kiln today.  Now I'll glaze them to see what the final results will be.

This photo below shows 3 tiles, the uppermost and the one in the lower left have been incised and then colored with underglazes. The lower right has a black line drawing done with a brush and then colored in with underglazes.  I'm trying to use these underglazes like water colors.  If I put them on too thick then they fill in the incised lines which I don't like.

Similar things happening on this next one


Which do you like?  The black out line drawing done with a brush or the incised drawings?  Just curious.  I like both for different reasons.  I like the process of incising, it feels more like working with a pen, more physical.  It's also a precise line.  The line quality of the  black brush drawing is capable of more variety, which I like.  But I don't know if I can do those little socks and such with a brush.  The drawings would change a bit if I went to a brush as you can see in the next image.



This pear tile is all glazed. It was incised then the black was inlayed into the lines.  Then colored with glazes.  This is basically what I'm currently doing other than adding the black inlay.  What do you think about the black line vs. the brown line ? The slip is a little too thin in the background but if it were thickened up a bit in places it would be a nice effect.


And here are some oxides and stains on bisque scraps.  These will be glazed with my clear glaze.  I can tell some of these are too strongly applied and will be very metallic when fired.  This is another option for coloring, opposed to using glaze or underglaze.


I'm doing all this mainly to work out a way to get color on the animals that I draw.  I pretty much have the clothesline deco worked out with the little dabs of color glaze.  Honestly though I don't want to have more than one way of doing things so whatever I choose then I'll move everything in that direction. (I guess)  Or I'll just be stuck for a bit longer.

There are other solutions here, but that's for the next post.

Hot Day. Cold Cider

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It was hot today in the shop.

I don't think it was that hot though, this thing is at least 30 years old. But it was hot because the bisque shut off at 2pm.  I should fire it at night, but Karma sleeps in the studio and I don't want to roast her.



I did get some work done.

And I made a chicken


I ran into one of the beer distributor reps last week at the grocery.  I asked him if he could get some cider and he said his company stocked Magners.  So I ordered a case and it came today!!


Of course I had to have one when I got home.  Sure it was 11:30 am but I had to make sure it was good ya know?  It was!  And it reminded me of this time with my Sweet Wife when we were in London.


All right, so the tests should be out of the kiln tomorrow.  Looking forward to that. And  have some more small tests in the little kiln going right now.  They will have to be glazed and go in the big kiln, hopefully on Thursday.


Stay tuned.

Winding Down. First Day

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Ah the first day of summer.  I love summer.  Even though it's hot and humid here in the South it's a great time of year.  I hope to take time to enjoy myself this season and not let the days slip by.

Today was a hodge podge.  Trimming plates, handling cups, glazing and lots of experiments with color on greenware and bisque.  It's all going in the kiln together tonight.  My glaze and bisque are both to 04 so I'm firing a mixed load.


Above you can see that I've glazed two more of my Fuller inspired pots along with a serving bowl.   In the glass is some cider from Eve's Cidery.  Yummy!! My toast to the longest day of the year.

Just A Few

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Unloaded this morning.   Everything looked okay, I'm not showing the Killer pots since they are going to exhibition.  I have a few more to make though and will do that tomorrow.

Here are my Fuller influenced pots:


A serving bowl with Goat portrait

And a Running Birds plate



So there was more but that's all for now.  I'm ready for a new work week.

New Book and the end of a Slack Week

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It's been a  pretty slack week of blogging here.  Hopefully things will pick up a bit next week.  Above are some serving bowls I slipped this afternoon after getting a load of pots all glazed and packed into the kiln.  I should have some new work out on Sunday.

I got a great book in the mail yesterday.  It's The New Maiolica by Matthias Ostermann.  It is very well written, as a matter of fact there are a few passages I've come across that I want to post here at a later time.  This book is like a workshop in print.  It's got a great chapter on color and another on brushes and brushwork.  He shows specific techniques and even shows which brushes he used.

I don't think I'm going to switch to maiolica but I do think this book will help my with my deco.

Sadly, Matthias Ostermann  passed away in 2009.  His website is still online and can be viewed by clicking HERE.

In other news, I have been asked by a group of potters to give a workshop in Allentown, PA in August.  I am looking forward to that.

I'm also doing another talk about the Internet in July for a local art co-op.

Off now to get a couple pizzas made.  Have a good weekend everyone!!

Ratatouille

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This beauty just went into the oven.  I hope it tastes as good as it looks.  We didn't have any eggplant in the garden so I left it out and only used squash, zucc. and red pepper.


Nice dish, eh? I need to make more of these to sell.

More from Tuesday

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I feel like I labored over a handful of pots all day.  Sort of unsure about them, thinking, drawing in the sketch book, drawing on pots, then etching them in.  The day went by slowly.  I've got a bisque going now.  That goat bowl is a special order and the yunomi is just a test. I liked taking that clay away from the background but then I was left with a lot of white space between the circles.    Robert Crumb once said that drawing was just an excuse to crosshatch.  My motto is, "When in doubt, crosshatch. "  So that's what I did to fill in the space.

Click on the images for larger more complete image.

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Thanks for all the nice comments on the Crocs.  I can't wait to see them fired.

Weekend Photos

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Sarah and I had a productive weekend working on the house.  We finished painting the stairwell and got the handrail up.  That scaffolding is approved by Worker Safety Organizations in India and Jamaica. Photos below from around here this weekend. Click for larger more complete image.

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I feel like I'm almost out of my 'slump'.  I get into this funky place and start questioning what I am doing fairly often.  I go over and over what I could be doing differently, how the work could change, comparing to others (not productive at all),and getting frozen in doubt and fear.  I had a little break though last night just by looking at some photos of my recent work and realizing that I am where I am at the moment.  The only way to move forward is to work, pay attention, and enjoy what I'm doing.

So today I have lots of drawing to do and a few pots to throw.  Best get to it.  Have a good Monday everyone and thanks for visiting the blog.

End of Week

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It's been a pretty slack week of blogging for me.  I'm struggling some in the studio with getting work decorated for an upcoming exhibition.  I have to nose down and get it done over the weekend.  Of course pushing myself doesn't seem to have a positive effect.  Maybe it will just happen.


I am having some time with my pottery friends Jen, Amy and Julie later this morning.  That will be great and I'm looking forward to it.  We all have a lot going on.  Maybe they can give me some feedback and reassurance about what I'm doing.

I"ve been listing new pots in the Online shop over the past couple days and have had a couple sales.  I'll be putting more up over the weekend.

That's it for now.  I'll post some images later of some stills from the last firing.  The yunomi above was one of my favorites.

Have a great Friday!!

Fuller Style

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I had a chance last night to catch up with Doug Fitch.  We had a good chat.  He's been super busy getting ready for a show and exhibition.

Doug and Geoff Fuller have an exhibition together at Earth Marque next month.  I knew about Fuller but hadn't seen but a few of his pots.  I was happy to find he now has a website.

Inspired, I made a few pots today similar to Fullers.  Below are images of some tankards and funny little pouring pots. (Hand built spouts)



That little hood is necessary so that the liquid doesn't flow over the top when pouring.


I'll get a thin layer of white slip on these tomorrow and then who knows what.

Presentation and Larkspur Report

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My talk to the NC Pottery Collectors Guild went well Friday night.  They were a really welcoming group and I think they enjoyed my presentation.  It was neat to see the NC State Craft Center.  Wow, they have an amazing facility.

Being back at NCSU was nice.  It was cool to see my old stomping grounds.  Sarah and I met up with Kevin, a college friend of mine after the presentation and had a visit.  Of course I picked one of the loudest sports bars around.  Still the company was great as well as the beer.

Afterwards, Sarah and I went over to Hillsborough St. and had a beer in Mitch's Tavern which has been there for quite a long time.  I had my first legal beer in Mitch's.  The place hasn't changed much at all.

(Sorry no pics of any of this, bad blogger!)

On Saturday we headed up to visit Jen Mecca at the Larkspur Party.  Below is an image of Jen's booth.  She was having a great sale.

Jen had made a lot of these little houses.  This was the only one left when we  arrived after lunch.

There was lots of great art, clay, paintings, jewelry, sculpture, wood and even plants for sale.



It was good to catchup with our friends Blaine Avery, Ronan Peterson, Laura Weant Avery, and Brad Tucker just to name a few.

I had planned on going down to Seagrove for the Cousins in Clay event but we got on the road too late Saturday and just couldn't make another stop.  It's nice to be home today.   I have pots to glaze and should have them fired by the end of the week.

Thanks for checking in!

Who's That?

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Oh just me.  Right. Okay, so I have been going over the presentation I am giving tomorrow evening for the NC Pottery Collectors Guild.  I think it's fine.  It's all about the Internet and how that technology as well as some other tech stuff is used in my pottery business.  Like this Blog for instance! Right. I should be able to talk about that shouldn't I? Fingers crossed.

The meeting is on the campus of NCSU in Raleigh, NC.  That's where I went to college from 1988-1992.  I studied mathematics there.  And horticulture (for one of the 4 years).  I didn't graduate which is a drag,(I had great grades, but just got fed up) I had a pretty hard time during those years.  Worrying about pleasing other people and having no clue what I was going to do with my Life.  I had some good times there too of course but it's going to be weird being back there.  I haven't been on campus since I left.  I'm sure a lot has changed.

Anyhow, probably no posts until Saturday.  I'm going to go to the Larkspur Party while in Raleigh.  Jenn Mecca will be there showing her pots as well as several other friends.  I've heard the lady who has the show has these amazing gardens.  That should be neat to see.

New pots on the Etsy site if you'd like to CLICK over and check them out.  I've got a bisque going tonight with some new mugs, bowls and plates.  I'll definitely be listing some of these pots when they come out of the glaze kiln.

All for now. Thanks for checking in!!