Things Cant Always Go As Planned....

 Some good can come from the unintended.....

and some not so good........

So dear Tracy and I have now created a collaborative piece! It was not in the plan but alas these things happen......I can add it to my blooper reel of interesting ceramic happenings...

Thanksgiving Break... What?

This week was Thanksgiving break! How can that be? Time is flying and I am feeling the pressure set in! I stayed in Edinboro over the break in an attempt to make new work and keep the pace going. I recently got a lot of feedback from my classmates about what direction to head with my work and I wanted to implement some of that discussion into actual work. In consideration of there comments, and with a lot of angst I decided to include more slip decoration techniques. Here is the first stab at this surface treatment:
Its been awhile....

I love the idea of transferring my patterning through the use if sgraffitto! Something I will definitely be doing more of.... It was somehow liberating and it adds to some of the layering and depth I am trying to achieve.

Ryan Takaba

I recently came across this work by Ryan Takaba and thought it was worthy of sharing... unique idea. click on the picture below to watch a short clip about it, or click on the link below.... enjoy!

http://vimeo.com/29158752

I am thinking about a new wall installation piece with plates..... its going to look nothing like this...

OUTSIDE STUDIO HAPPENINGS!

This week was a hectic time both in and out of the studio for me. I had my presentation and crit mid week which kept me busy making sure I would have new finished work to show. In addition, putting my slideshow together got me thinking critically about what is informing my work. I don't think I have come to a resolve about it fully, but I am on the right track.

MARTIN KLIMAS PHOTOGRAPHS

I recently came across this artist and was fascinated by the use of porcelain figurines within his work. He seems to be interested in capturing a photo that is very difficult for the eye to witness. I love these images, it is as if the figurines look happy to be moving and free. I think I am also really attracted to these images because they feel so awake and refreshing. The objects value in these pictures is not as precious and important. it is something about the lack of attachment to the the object within the work that I find captivating. I think this is relating to me because I don't want to be as attached to patterning and the perfection of the object as I current am within my work. I want to let some of it go by the wayside but I'm not sure what will be left.

  

Are you enjoying these as much as I am? check out his website for more! http://www.martin-klimas.de/

Moving Forward... Another Exploration

This week I have been working on cleaning up some forms that I made in response to the discussion my committee and I were having about relating the forms to the patterning. In addition I finally had my crit with Donna Nicholas this week which was absolutely helpful. She is a gem.... she had a lot of suggestions and comments which I was not thinking about or considering. From our talk I think I have decided to move on from vertical forms for a bit and work on larger plates and bowls. they are a great place to work out patterning without facing the challenge of fitting to the form and relating so critically to the surface. This is still something I have committed myself to figuring out but I have the suspicion that working on a flatter surface will quicken the desired outcome.

Also just yesterday I received my Amaco order which had the new underglazes I had been waiting for! I got right to work last night making test tiles so that I may get going on that new front! I hope to implement the underglazes and slips really soon!

So as this semester has gone on I have realized that I have made a fair amount of work that has yet to be documented. I don't have a suitable camera with which to document my work so I have started to research what kind of camera to buy. This upcoming weekend I have resolved myself to buying a new camera so as to remedy this entire situation. I think (to the horror of some) I am going to go with the Nikon D5100. For me this camera will act as my professional documenting cameras, but also my everyday whatever camera. I have tried it out and its comfortable and fun and also practical. I think its my best bet and, its within my price range. ....

 

OHH I AM SO EXCITED!!!!!

One of My New Forms

so this is one of my most recent pieces I am working on. I wanted to make something a bit more dramatic in shape. I wanted to play with the instability of the base and push the platform for patterning a bit further. Overall its fun but I am not sure what my intentions are with making these forms. They are all still functional but I don't know that they would really be used for anything, unless one considers display a function. I might ague that it is in fact, though its a tough battle..... None the less I have enjoyed making this piece and am excited to move to the next stages of the process with it.. 

Interesting article

This week I have been watching a lot of videos and conducting a lot of research about various topics art related and not. I came across this article along the way and felt it was worth sharing.
Interesting article worth the read.

slips!

OK so this week I am focused on changing the way my imagery is presented on my work. I have been thinking about the ways that my layers or lack of layers are being portrayed within my work and also how to explore what I am trying create. soooo.... I have started to explore slips as underglazes. Both of these materials are not something that I have used but are a resource that I should have naturally found. Yes, they were around within my practice but they were not materials I was considering..... At this point I feel like this is a similar situation to how when you read a book and you grasp at parts that are relevant to you at the time, then you put the book down and let it marinate for awhile, then when you reread that same book after a month or a year, or 10 years new things strike you in ways that they had not previously before. slip and underglazes hold new potential for me. I understood them to be good for one purpose but now I see them as a resource that has a lot of potential to do many things. Well, we will see where it goes!  

ERIN FURIMSKY VIDEO

Erin Furimsky video which combined two great ways of transferring imagery onto work. Great Ideas! Combined paper cutting, which I love to do, and a way to transfer images with underglazes....take a look!
http://ceramicartsdaily.org/ceramic-supplies/ceramic-colorants-ceramic-supplies-2/pottery-video-of-the-week-how-to-combine-homemade-customizable-underglaze-transfers-with-paper-stencils-for-a-beautiful-layered-effect/

Recent finds..... Ongoing Inspiration

Meredith Host


Im enjoying looking at her use of patterns and imagery on her work. take a look!

for Linda

And of course you cant forget about Forrest Lesch-Middelton!

yay! Finally some glazed work! Here is a taste of what came out this week. I am still taking in the imagery and working out what direction I want to take the patterning. I am not sure that I love the colors and densities of the colors quite yet. I found that I only have a few glazes that I want to use as liners and background colors. I need to expand that..... I am now working on looking into slips and alternative ways to get the patterning onto the work without relying solely on the glazing at the end. I knew this would eventually make its way into my work and I am excited about the prospects...... Stay tuned....

Just thoroughly impressed by this marching band sequence !

WOW! this blew me away especially at about the 6min mark. take a look.....

If this was to be related to my work I would have to say that i think the complexities that a marching band brings to the table are similar to what all of us using the ceramic medium are facing (in our own way of course) The organization, and different aspects we have to think about that are unknown to the viewer( the glaze works, the layering makes sense, the function and  overall appeal of the piece) and yet the further we look or watch, the more we may appreciate what has been created.

The Wing Back Chair..... Inspiration and Admiration

TALL AND TUFTED <3

GREAT COLOR COMBO

FUNKY YET FUN

So another source of inspiration for me is the wing back chair. I don't know why but it has always been something I have loved. Something that is particularly great about the chairs are the fact that they can pull off crazy patterning and upholstering on a variety of styles of chairs. Also, that each chair can represent a personality type. Within my work I hope to portray my personality through my use of forms ( the structure and frame of the chair) and patterning (upholstery on the chair). I want what I make to be something I want to use and own for myself, very much the same way that I think a carpenter of wing back chairs would enjoy sitting in the chair they crafted.

I hope at some point to bring in some more hand build aspect to my work. I can see the bottoms of my pots having a bit more of a reference to chairs and feet of chairs....... we will see.

Womens Dresses From the Victorian Era and After

 

Ladies Dress styles 

Women's dresses from the Victorian era and beyond are something I find myself looking at a lot. No, I  am not a fashion groupie but, I will admit it, I love period dramas where the characters are all fitted in the full garb. also there is something about the extravagance and value that fabric had, and the story it could tell which  adds to my interest in the topic.

So a bit of history----1870 ~ 1889....is characterized by a gradual return to a narrow silhouette after the full-skirted fashions of the 1850s and 1860s. Fashionable waists were low and tiny below a full, low bust supported by a corset and was characterized by the return of the bustle. just a few random facts.

   

 so my work, the vessels I am currently making are unintentionally taking on the characteristics of the women's dresses from this time period. while sitting at the wheel i realized that they were looking a lot like bodies. In general all of my work have a body like essence which I am subtly accentuating in places on the forms to bring out those characteristics. I don't intend to directly reference the human form, but it keeps spinning its way into my work.

  I find that prints from fabric are holding on the human form the same way that I intend to place patterning on my pots. It Is like the women's dresses are test tiles showing me what works and what might not. Typically they wear satins, to silks, to cottons, to lace... ohh not the time now to discuss my love of lace..... ....These all take on the look of glazes and textures I strive for on my pots.


Enjoy this video clip about lace from Cranford..... HHHHHilariously witty.... a bit out of context but just know these women are hysterical throughout the series. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRyK8j8Dss0&feature=player_detailpage#t=97s

Images of my work to come soon! New glaze stuff just came out recently so more to come!

 

patterns on the pots!

here are some of the transfers that have taken place! I am loving and hating the development of the symmetrical nature of these pieces. I am forging ahead and seeing what they look like.This round of glazing is acting as information as to how my glazes work together and also how they withstand some of the detail work I enjoy bringing into my work.

PATTERNING!

This week I have spent a lot of time developing the imagery on my work. I have been looking back at historic patterning to see how to manipulate  my patterns. Some styles which I am working from include tessellation, symmetrical patterning, stenciling and paper cutting. All which have been done throughout history.

AND...I found a website from which kids (and I) can create tessellations! http://illuminations.nctm.org


 In addition to working out some of the imagery i have had the challenge of figuring out how to adapt them to a 3-d  form. i have been trying all sorts of different ways to work this out. this week i had a semi breakthrough while working at the start up incubator. In Photoshop they now have the 3-d tools which allow one to work with a shape that appears 3-d. I was able to insert my pattern onto the shape and manipulate it to see what it would look like placed on the form. The tools still have there limitations/or I have not fully figured out the capabilities of the software. I was only able to work with the basic shapes like a sphere and cone. My hope is that at some point I will be capable of creating the patterns on the 3-d forms, or even import my shapes of my pots so that I may manipulate the patterning before I approach the real surface. Maybe after making the manipulations on the computer I can print out the flattened Birdseye view and translate that to my work. Hopefully it will eventually make the process of patterning on the work quicker and less tedious.