The Fruit Bowl

So, it has been a while since I have posted.  It has also been a long time since I promised a ceramics post to come.  This bowl was recently shown in the student show (that show will probably be my last for a while).

Photo Credit: Brianne Fulton

I call it the fruit bowl.

I'm not sure, but I think this is the first bowl I threw.

I carved a verse from the Bible about the fruit of the spirit :  "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." Galations 5:22-23

For glazing, I applied iron oxide with a brush and sprayed a clear glaze on the inside.  The iron oxide make a beautiful blue color where it was heavily applied.  It also made the words darker and more readable.

Photo Credit: Brianne Fulton

Blessings,

Alyssa

The Brown Mug

School starts Tuesday, and I’m so excited!  I wonder what new skills and knowledge I will learn this semester.  For now, though, I will share something from last semester.

I think this is the first cup I threw—well, the first successful cup.  I went a little fancy on the handle and curled it up.  By the way, I had fun pulling handles.  I set myself up in my own room with a gallon bucket of water and a lump of clay.  (I can’t figure out how to explain the process, so just look it up on YouTube if you are really curious).  A mold I had made worked great to add three little roses in a cluster.   I used a rubber stamp to add some delicate swirls to the rim and handle.  After it was bisque fired, I painted the swirls with white under-glaze, the roses with pink, the base with white and pink, and the main body with browns.  With a clear glaze on top of that all, it is food safe!  (Safe to drink your favorite hot drink)

More ceramic posts to come…

Blessings,

Alyssa

Surface Inspiration

Lately, it seems like the potter’s wheel has been calling me.  Yesterday, as I played volleyball, I was lamenting my inability in sports and felt like throwing something. (pun intended)  No matter how many times I mess up on the wheel, it is still so rewarding.

I was in Hobby Lobby today and picked up some inspiration:

Wouldn't it be so classic to do something like this in under glazes?  I think this effect could be accomplished by applying a base coat of white under glaze, and then carefully painting a design in blue (for a classic look) or another color such as lime green (for a chick look).

Then I saw this vase and was interested in the texture.  I think they must have used wax resist on some of the raised areas.  I love the distressed look, and I want to try it sometime.

Two other surface techniques I can’t wait to experiment with is slip trailing [using a brush or a syringe to apply slip in intricate designs] and Sgraffito [scratching through one under engobe to reveal the layer beneath].  I only read about them in my ceramics class, but now I’m thinking of all the possibilities they open up.

This is a pitcher I found on Pintrest, and I wondered if I could do that--or something similar--with slip trails.

Sgraffito is an ancient technique, but I think it can have a modern look too.

Blessings,

Alyssa

Abalone Shell Ocarina

When I came into ceramics class this semester, I knew nothing about clay.  Our first assignment was to make an ocarina.  Ancient cultures had made these whistles ages ago, and we were instructed to make our own.

Our ocarina was supposed to be a natural object, and while shopping in Michael's, I found my inspiration: an abalone shell.

I began with two pinch-pots formed into the basic shape I was wanting.  Once I had both pieces formed and matching up, I scored the edges, painted on slip, and pressed the two pieces together.  Then I scored the seam and blended it.  Now it was one piece of clay instead of two.  I carved the seam of the shell, but before I added too much detail, I made the mouth piece and the aperture.  It took lots of testing and adjusting, and we joked about walking out of the studio unaware of brown smudges on our mouths from the raw clay.

Carving the textures and designs took a lot of time.  I'm glad now that I took that time because I love the feel of the surface.  After the little thing was bisque fired, I painted it with under-glazes and fired it again.

Overall, the form is a little exaggerated and stylized, and I think the earthy and cool pallet worked well with it.

Blessings,
Alyssa

Ceramics Christmas

Today was a happy day--almost as good as Christmas.  I walked into the ceramics studio and most of the students were gathered around the glaze shelf.  Our projects were out of the glaze firing!  It was my first time to hold in my hands a finished ceramic piece knowing that I was the artist that had formed it.  The semester is coming to a close, and projects are getting completed.  That means more art posts are coming. :)

Introducing my mug and bowl set!  This has been such a new and exciting experience for me.  Throwing.  Trimming.  Pulling handles.  Carving.  Glazing.  I enjoyed every bit of this project.  I can't say that about every project.  Some can give me quite the headache!  On this set, I chose a simple design that I knew I would like.    It is decorative and flowing.  Before glazing it with "Turquoise Magic", I brushed on some iron oxide around the detail.  The result: a feminine, antique appearance.

Suffering From Ceramics Addiction

I have really enjoyed the ceramics class I have been taking this semester.  I am completely new to working with clay, but I have found that it can be quite enjoyable.  I have not shared very many pictures of my work mainly for two reasons: (1) I do not have very good pictures because I normally only have my phone available.  (2) Nothing is completely finished yet (except my raku piece) because ceramics is a process of building, drying, firing, glazing, and firing again.  All my sculptures are ready to be glazed, but none of my thrown pieces have been fired so far.  At the end of the semester, I intend to get good pictures of all my finished pieces.

I said I was addicted, and here is why:
1. It is a CHALLENGE!
2. I can make functional, personal items--cups, bowls, napkin holders, etc
3. It is a new creative outlet that I had never explored before
4. The more frustration, the more I work, the more sense of accomplishment I have
5. Ceramics is just plain pretty!
6. There is nothing like the feel of clay
7. Clay has so many possibilities

So, now I know what I want for Christmas.  Just buy me a wheel and kiln.  I can put it where my bed is because I won't be needing it anymore if I'm throwing day and night!

I am so thankful I have the opportunity to study art.  Ceramics class is not the only class I've enjoyed.  2-D design class and drawing class has gotten me animated before too.  Oh, but it's a lot of work, and I believe it consists more of failures--I mean, "learning experiences"--than of success, but it is still rewarding.

*Photos to come!

Marred in the Potter's Hands

Jeremiah 18:2-6  "Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it...Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel."

As I have been working with clay the past few months and just recently started throwing, I have often thought of this passage.  We can assume that the clay did not mar because of any fault of the potter (unlike some of my cases).  Sometimes, while at the wheel, my instructor has told me that I pushed to hard or wasn't consistent enough with my pressure and threw it off center.  The Lord knows when to "apply the pressure" or send something into our life.  He also knows exactly how much we can take, and he will never have us go through something too great for us.

Because we know that we are in the hands of the Master "Potter", if the vessel of our life becomes flawed, we need to look inwardly.  First of all, it is important that clay has no air bubbles.  To get rid of the trapped air, a potter will wedge the clay.  This is a repetitive motion of folding and pushing.  Do we ever get tired of Christ working with us trying to get out all the pride and selfishness?  Air bubbles in clay create visible flaws on the surface and cause the pot to explode in the kiln.  Pride and selfishness also look ugly in our life.  Furthermore, as we have learned from the proverb, pride goeth before fall.  Wedging the clay also evens out the consistency so that the moisture is dispersed throughout the whole ball of clay.  Any hard lumps will make the walls uneven and make it off-centered.  If we have refused to give something up, that one thing will keep God from making us exactly what he wants.  Sometimes the clay might be too hard, and It won't respond to the pressure of the potter's hands.  Often, if we are too set in our own ways or thinking, God has a hard time molding us into what he wants us to be.

There is a lot of hope in this verse too: "so he made it again..."  That is a very encouraging phrase.  Every time one of my pots fail (which is more often than not), I just scrape it of, wedge it up, and reuse it later.  As my instructor says, "It's just clay."

"Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Thou art the Potter, I am the clay.
Mold me and make me after Thy will,
While I am waiting, yielded and still."

"Oh, make of me what Thou wilt have me to be,

As clay is so I am to Thee;
Just fashion me to Thine own pleasure,
Till Thou shalt Thine own image see."