Our Process
Embossing
A friend
gave me a bucket full of broken lead type from a printing press
years ago. Now that type has found its way into my work. I use this
type to emboss the clay, creating abstract patterns on the surface.
With a series of upside down or backwards letters and punctuation
I can cover a pot with texture.
Every day items like cake decorating tips, pastry cutters, chain,
or found things like railroad rocks, coral, and even a wasp's nest
when used to emboss a pot create interesting pattern. When I can't
find something to make a mark I am interested in, I bend metal scraps
into embossing tools.
|
| Old lead printing press type used
to emboss the clay |
|
| Found objects and
tools can make interesting marks |
|
| The letter "c" inverted
to create this pattern on the lid and rim of a teapot |
|
Extruding
| This handheld extruder is loaded with
a coil of clay. When plunged, a coil about 10" long and the
width of a toothpick is extruded. I roll up hundreds of spirals in
a variety of sizes each day. The surface of the pot is scored and
each spiral is carefully pressed on one at a time. |
|
| This plate has been layered with
extruded coils |
|
Staining
| After the pots are
fired for the first time they are stark white. Much of the texture
is lost to the eye. I mix a stain using dark, dry clays. This is
thinned with water and then washed over each pot. The porous nature
of the raw bisque sucks the stain into the embossed marks and every
scratch on the surface. The stain is then wiped off leaving all the
details full of the dark blue stain. |
| The cup on the left has no stain,
the cup in the right is stained. |
|
| You can see how the stain has settled
in every crevice |
|
Burnishing
| If the smooth surface of the clay
is compressed it will absorb less of the stain. By burnishing parts
of the surface, the clay will have a striated look, adding texture
to an area where there are no coils or embossing. (see cup above
for example of stained burnish marks) |
| A piece being burnished with a
metal rib |
|
| A finished piece that has been
burnished with a needle tool |
|
Glazing
|
When adding the bright
colors to my pots I use the embossed lines or coiled edges to demarcate
colored glaze from clear. The detailed parts of the pot are painted
with clear glaze to allow texture emphasized by the stain to show
through. The burnished part of the pot is coated with transparent
color so its texture can be seen as well. |
Finished
|
This completed piece
integrates all of the above techniques. |
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