Many different looks all from the same hand

Here's the latest kiln load with many different looks made over the last month. Black Cassius clay overlaid on white stoneware, free-formed and textured Cassius "teardrop" vases. 1960's inspired tall vases, black and white flings, textured and leathered look. Which styles should I continue develop?

March 2013 kiln load

  Here's some new ideas from my last kiln load. The plates sagged and I learned alot from it so I'm not sad that it happened. Better next time, right?
  Check out my successes and failures.

 What is it? A planetary plate and pot called-- a PLOT. Ok, never mind.

Then black clay tests made from Aardvark Cassius clay.

Scratch coffee cups. They're in our cupboard. Want some in yours?

 One of the best examples of Jasper glaze application I've done so far. Fantastic colors, thick and glossy brown to red. Yum!

Nice little 7" bowl, what could you do with it?

Small bowls and salt containers.

 This is the thin, slumpy plate that next time I make it, I'll use alot of support when doing the final firing. It did fine in the bisque firing, just lost it in the final glazing.  I used color templates, overlay and sprayed the glaze for interest.

Learning and Sharing

My newest creations are brewing! Some ideas include stacking, sealing spice pots that use O rings for a tight seal, pastel painting on a clay surface (for my wife Kim who is an award winning pastel artist!) and many more "modern" shapes.

Stay tuned for more!

Production may be slow, but my mind is racing!

From the last production of 2011-- more Fling, Scratch and introducing--Wiggle!

Planted Fling

Planted Scratch

A variety of Fling vases

Scratch Plate (about 7")

 A New technique using a special tool to cut patterns in the clay leaving "hills and valleys" to show off the glaze.

Coffee cups ready for your morning brew!

Test glazes on shot glasses.

 New shapes. New names and many admirers.

Ball

Fling

Scratch

Brown glaze on scratch

Iron Scratch

Ancient Jasper Scratch

Orange Scratch

Chun Scratch

Shino Platter

Gloss black no scratch

New Shapes!

The last few months have been tedious with all the glaze tests. I had to get back to forming and when I did, there was an explosion of new shapes and forms! Here's a few finished and in the works. Note the different clay colors. I think I'm settling in on Aardvark's "Cafe Cinco" but I still like the light color bodies for glazing. See the round form below? You think it has some potential?

I especially like putting a texture like scratching and finger grooves on the form to help showcase the glaze.

 

While relearning what I forgot to remember I found some new stuff with the old

A great form can be easily ruined with the wrong finish. You have to listen to the form and not force the wrong glaze or a bad application onto the pot. Seems silly to listen to a pot but I find it necessary and true. A pot can be a utilitarian form or a 3 dimensional canvas both of which, if you don't study and evaluate the pot, it's form and essence, if you don't listen as the potter, you can erase the pot's voice with a bad finish.

So I practice, testing glazes and have mixing combinations of old oxides, fluxes, and other glaze components to formulate my own. Perhaps the glaze and the pot will choose themselves? If I could only listen that well.

Glaze triangles combine 3 products in different ratios to see what they create.
I look at each glaze dot with a magnifying glass to catch any imperfections,
then mark my choices to expand further.

Mixing measured dry portions in specific amounts then
applying them to a new tile.

Christmas Creations

BBQ Plate and Casserole. The idea is to bring the pair to the BBQ
with meat in the bowl then place the cooked items on the plate.

Yes I have been working and here's some new items that will find there way under a Christmas tree somewhere.

The casserole may be inverted to keep food warm.

Triangular serving dishes for some
special Christmas goodies!

Wine goblets.

Shots anyone?

A presentation of alot of my work to be included in a  business card somehow.

I know you want to see more.

Good morning. I know you all want to see more items posted and I will do that soon but in the meantime, to keep you interested and coming back I thought I'd let you know what's going on in potteryland.

It's getting to the point now where I am successful in creating pottery since they are stacking up around the house and studio. To slow down production, I am thinking of refining my work, both in shapes and glazing. I went to Aardvark and picked up more clay and a variety of glazes so I could further explore different clay bodies and how the glazes perform on them. The idea is to see warmer tones on the body itself with the glazes as accents. We visited the Sawdust Festival in Laguna Beach and saw many examples of fantastic everydayware that have inspired me to look into casseroles and serving dishes for my next production.

As always, my studio is open to others for fun and creativity. Diane and Leslie Ekker came in to make little trinkets to pass out at the upcoming Burning Man Festival. It was a fun, quick project where they produced 150 little tablets with a Burning Man symbol on them. I'm sure they will be a hit at the Festival. Come bring your creativity and join me in the studio!

Ekker Style

Here's a few pieces that I made which you will find in the Ekker abode. The Clay slab pieces are literally "thrown" slabs against the floor, stretching the clay and causing it to rip and fissure into unique patterns which I then form into, uh-- something nice.

The colored vase is another variety of one of my more utilitarian designs, just larger than most-- for the Ekkers, of course!