Posts Tagged ‘stoneware’

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Wheel-Thrown Bottles


2010
11.03

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Posted in Construction Techniques, Wheel-Throwing | Comments Off on Wheel-Thrown Bottles

Tall Porcelain BottleGiven the choice between making vases or making bottles, I chose the latter. The decision probably has something to do with a home that is full of great examples created by the real ceramic artist of the family…and something to do with the cool factor of making tall bottles with unusual stoppers. I have no idea what I will do with any survivors from the bisque and gas firings, but I suspect that empty Etsy account may finally have entries just in time for Christmas.

The Pricing Dilemma

Each bottle takes about an hour to throw and join…excluding some drying time between throwing and joining the sections. Add another hour for trimming, decorating, and clean-up and I have a greenware piece ready that must dry slowly. Stoppers generally take another hour to throw, carve, clean-up, and fit. By the time bisque firing and glaze firing are complete, each tall bottle has nearly 5 hours of my time committed to the project in a process that takes about two weeks from start to finish. A quick Google of handmade ceramic bottles returns pricing results that range from $55 to $200, so, somewhere in the $60 to $75 range seems to be a reasonable target. Your thoughts are appreciated.

The Details

Any bottle that I make that is over 12″ tall is thrown on the wheel in two pieces (usually about 8″-10″ each), then joined and completed while still attached to the wheel head. Stoneware clay is my preference, but porcelain makes highly polished bottles possible although they are a bit more challenging to produce. I have not ventured into the world of really tall bottles, made of three joined pieces, but the possibilities for horn shaped pieces constructed using that technique are certainly a possibility (with kiln height limits taken into consideration). I am including the MugPhlute stamp on all of these pieces since they do include a unique stopper with an instrumental musical theme.

Glaze images coming soon (I hope).

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Sew & Throw Circus


2010
10.17

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Posted in Humor, Wheel-Throwing | Comments Off on Sew & Throw Circus

Debbie and I enjoyed a gorgeous weekend at Cedars of Lebanon State Park with a full campground of folks who had the Fall weather in mind as much as we did. By the time we arrived at the park, all of the prime camping spaces were occupied. We were grateful to find even one, reasonably level space to park, even if it meant that we’d have very little privacy due to the nearby entry drive.

Paul at the Potter's WheelOur plan was to take some time to play with our toys. For Deb, that meant a sewing machine on the park provided picnic table. For me, that translated into trying out a potter’s wheel that I purchased several months ago but had not found a time (or place) where I could make a big mess at the house. The Sew & Throw Circus was a success although neither of us set any world records for production.  What we did produce was entertainment and conversation for many of our fellow campers as they walked by…and stopped by.  I probably mentioned before that making ceramic musical instruments in a state park draws a crowd, but this time we seemed to draw a lot of conversation.  People are fascinated with folks who do strange things in campgrounds…probably like some people are entertained by shoppers at Wal-Mart.

I count myself as one who is still fascinated by  potters who make things on a wheel, and make it look so effortless.  I am not part of that effortless fraternity, but I do have fun with it.  As it turns out (no pun intended) there are people who seem to enjoy watching someone who is giving it the ‘ole college try. To all those new friends, we say Thank You!…and be sure to catch the circus the next time it passes through a campground near you.

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MugPhlute Heresy


2010
10.06

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Posted in Glazing and Firing, Humor | Comments Off on MugPhlute Heresy

It has been almost a month since I constructed a playable ceramic instrument but that doesn’t mean that I haven’t been thinking (and sketching) about it.  For over a year, every instrument that I constructed was purely pinch-pot-handmade…and now I am discovering new possibilities with pieces and parts that are wheel thrown.  Case in point: Trumpet Mugsthe two mugs pictured include horn-like appendages but they do not  play, but the whimsy of MugPhlutes is still there, lurking just beneath the surface.  These are more like steins than mugs, but they open the door for a musical instrument genre of semi-utilitarian sculptural pieces.  These two were designed to rest either vertically (for function) but to appear more sculptural when setting horizontally.

To avoid breaking a record for consecutive months of instrument building, there shall be an ocarina forthcoming soon, even if it is very small…we can’t commit MugPhlute heresy, now can we?

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Making Progress – Ready to Fire


2010
09.27

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Posted in Glazing and Firing | 2 Comments »

Mugs DryingThe first batch of wheel-thrown wares that resemble something usable are nearly dry enough for a bisque firing.  The bare mug forms from a previous post, now have some surface treatment and the stamp that I use on most of the MugPhlutes.  I’m thinking that a dark blue glaze on the interior that caries over to cover the lip area with be the principal color. Red iron oxide will be washed into the textured areas and shadowed lightly below…after that, a simple clear glaze will cover the handle and all of the outside (except for the lip).  Three of the mugs will be used to test other glazes.  The six that are close enough to call a set will be glazed consistently.

The ware boards on my shelves seem to be filling up with new work.  I hope that is a sign that my technique is improving. The next assignment for class is 20 bowls. That shouldn’t be a huge deal, but I have other projects that keep pulling me back to some interesting sketchbook work…I guess that’s progress.

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Working in the Woods


2010
09.06

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Posted in Artist's Thoughts, Ceramic Musical Instruments | Comments Off on Working in the Woods

Pinch Pot OcainaFirst of all, parked in a paved space with a motor coach at a state park filled with amenities is hardly the woods. And secondly, doing what I do with clay while sitting beside a campfire is so far removed from work that I should be ashamed for typing in the title of this post. OK. I’m over it, but Manipulating Clay in the Comfort of Resort Living is not the sort of title that gets anyone’s attention, right?

The Labor Day weekend has been glorious and restful and fun.  I pulled out a ball of clay last evening just because it was a different stoneware than I have been using for the last year. Sure, I knew that ultimately it would become an flute or an ocarina, but I began the project with just the slightest idea of what I wanted and more in tune with what the clay was telling me it was capable of doing.  The result is a piece that is a bit eclectic and full of discovery and exploration.  The clay is a high fire stoneware and I am not terribly concerned about the survival of the musical parts if the piece actually turns out to be something worthy of decoration.  That is quite a paradigm shift for me…so I’ll rationalize my title as something that the woods is doing that is working.

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First Pots – Let the Wheel Throwing Adventure Begin (Again)


2010
09.04

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Stoneware - Test CylindersAfter a couple of hours or working on a potter’s wheel for the first time in years, my body reminded me of several parts that are ill-prepared to do this without practice and attention to form (mine, not the pots…well, maybe the pots too).  As a mental break from writing and research, signing up for a clay class looks to be one of the better decisions I have made.  It is fun. The class is full of students plus an great instructor, all young enough to be my children.  I have had more than a few curious looks from my fellow students as I played in the mud the first session or two.

I do have a few ulterior motives.  There are things that a skilled potter can do on the wheel that would make great pieces/parts for ceramic musical instruments…and some of my older sketchbooks attest to the fact that those ideas have been fermenting for some time in the back of my head.  The class also provides me access to a great gas kiln to do reduction firing…a method that produces great color in glazes and from the clay bodies alone.

These practice cylinders are my first.  I suspect that they will end up in the slop bucket, but the picture is a reminder of my first steps back into the (wonderfully addictive) world of wheel-thrown ceramics.

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Ocarina Clay – Campground Social Media


2010
07.05

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We parked the RV in a well shaded space in familiar territory at Cedars of Lebanon State Park. Historically, the fourth of July weekend begins several days before the 4th when the best camping spaces are filled by other first-come-first-served-savvy campers…they were here early staking claims, just like we were.

After the normal cooking area, dining tent, RV awning, and general hook ups were complete, a small folding camp table and a circle of chairs found their way around the metal fire ring. Fire rings are the designated spots where campers are allowed to build campfires in their respective sites without raising the eyebrows of a friendly park ranger. Let’s review quickly here: Middle Tennessee, July, humidity, and a thermometer that reads like it is set on London Broil* – there will be no campfire in this space on this weekend, but it is the accepted space for conversation. To the campfire set-up recipe, I add my clay tools, a spray bottle, a bucket of water, several pounds of pre-mixed stoneware clay, and a handful of my favorite toys clay tools.

Vinepod OcarinaI’m pretty sure that I made it all they way through making the first pinch pot before Ruby, a precocious 8-year-old, walked from the adjoining campsite to ask, “Who are you and what are you making?” By the time the airway on the first ocarina produced a whistle, Ruby’s dad stopped by along with a small contingent of people who seemed astounded that some old dude was making instruments out of clay. The parade of folks stopping by to watch and ask questions during the weekend stay was never an interruption, it was the perfect ‘social media’ to connect total strangers, long-time friends, and even family members to chat about building sculptural ocarinas.

While my long-time friend, Breakfast Bob, was taping a short “how to” segment on his Flip camera, he commented that we needed to take this show on the road. Ocarina building attracted all ages and all types, including the itinerant. campground evangelist couple who suggested that the pottery building thing was a great hook for a ministry. As for me, I’ll stick with Ruby and her friends who wore the pavement out next to our site, waving and yelling, “Hi, Paul” with each bicycle drive-by.

*The weather was actually unseasonably cool for this particular trip, but the threat of steamy weather remains…and this is my story , so hush!

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