For some reason, I always want to have new pots for a craft show. It never occurs to me that the pots from the past few firings will be new to anyone who comes to my booth ... but what the hell. So I fired yesterday, a cold, wet day. Which is also the situation today, only more so. And will apparently be the situation in Wellfleet at the OysterFest over the weekend. Things do not sound good, weatherwise. Still, I'll go, set up the tent, drink coffee and hope for buyers.
This was the first firing of a number of the faceted and torqued forms I've been making the past few weeks. I think they generally came out well, though I'm not crazy about the Miller 700 clay from Portland Pottery. I was up at Portland a couple of weeks ago to get clay and they were out of the high-iron stoneware Miller 750, my usual dark body. So I got a box of the lighter 700, which does not react nearly as well in heavy reduction with my glazes. I'm sure it's fine for other firing conditions, but I'll be happy to go back to the 750.
Otherwise, things worked more or less predictably, except for the dipped and poured Shinos, which I never expect to act predictably. But I always expect to like them and that was the case this time.
The pot photos: A couple of rows of teabowls, as always; a carbon-trap Shino vase; several side-handle teapots; tea for two with one of the ash-glazed teapots; and an adaptation of Willi Singleton's maple leaf/slip combination. I'm trying to be subtle with the leaves, leaving a hint of them rather than a full portrait of each leaf. This plate is beginning to get there.
Now, to pack for the weekend show. I hate that.
11 comments:
Really love the earthy subtlety of the leaf plate. Good luck at the show and stay warm!
Thanks, Anna. Someone suggested today that I build a fire in the center of my tent. "Everyone will come in to get warm!," my friend Mary said. Right ...
Love that plate Dad... great stuff. Good luck in Wellfleet. It's rain, rain, rain here already, but WAY too warm.
What! No left handed teapots!? I just love this style teapot, I've been meaning to make them, but mine would be left handed and then, alas, wouldn't sell! These look great. Hope for good weather, stay warm:)
Thanks, Marco. I could use at least a little warmer weather than 40 degrees, which is the prediction.
And no, Tracey, no lefthanded ones. I should do a couple, since I'm lefthanded myself. But I think the righthanded ones sell better ... if, that is, either of them sells at all. We'll see. People usually think they're bongs ...
I hope the show goes well. 40 degrees... Burrr! I love the teapots. The blue is my favorite.
Love the leaf motif on the plate, that's working out really well. The faceted and torced chawans look fantastic! Are you selling these online?
The blue is mostly blue because of the overcast light from outside the studio. That glaze is more of a very light green celadon. I'd love to have one that was as blue as that appears. And no, haven't sold online yet. I've been thinking of Etsy, but haven't made that connection. Should do it, I guess.
gorgeous teapots...love the glaze too be it blue or green is that a c10??
Pots look good Holis. I like the faceted ones. I know what you mean about new pots for a show, I'm like that too. A room full of pots and yet I have seen them before so I want new ones to take away. I know it only too well.
Thanks, guys. Yep, that's the feeling, Hannah. Ang, the celadon is Phil Rogers' standard ash glaze, with a bit more Grolleg than he uses, to keep it from running too much. And it's a pale green. The blue in the photos is, I think, the color of the light coming from the overcast day just outside the door. I shoot these right next to my big front door, so there's lots of light, but on cloudy days it's very blue. And yes, it's C10, though these are a bit closer to 11. Things got ahead of me a bit in this firing.
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