Summary
These are the products of a semester's course in pottery in which we made and cured clay, threw a wide variety of pots on kick wheels, and low fired, glazed, and high fired the pots. Below are descriptions of my pots with links to pictures of them, and a picture of the whole set here on the right.
Teabowls
The teabowls were one of our first projects, as they are small and used simple glazes. I like how these came out with the color, shape, texture, and pattern maintained almost perfectly through the firing stages. Though their low-fire glazes do restrict them from being really functional, they now adorn our mantle at home.
Bowls
Building on the skills used for the teabowls, the bowls were made larger, thinner, and at a curve, which made them decidedly more difficult, but allowed for greater honing of skills. They turned out well in form, even though thelayers of glaze did not survive the firing very well.
Mugs
Perhaps my favorite pieces, the mugs turned out well in color, pattern, and form. They added the challenge of attaching the handles in such a way that they would be useful to adult hands without overpowering the rest of the mugs or falling apart through drying and firing.
Plates
The plates, which came off the wheel and dried so well, full of potential, had the misfortune of falling down in the apparently over-intense heat of the kiln's firing. They also fell victim to a mix-up in and shortage of the glazes, leading to the inconsistent and shoddy coloring on them.
Canisters
The canisters rival the mugs in their success. They added the complex detail of making lids that fit the form of the bases (and would not fuse together in the firings). I only wish that I had made them larger so that we could use them for proper kitchen storage.
Pitcher
The pitcher was my first real piece made from coiling extruded cylinders of clay into the final form. It also is the only piece that I used to experiment with interacting high-fire glazes, which, in retrospect, I would like to have used more of, as they had visually and texturally interesting results.
Salad Bowl
The salad bowl ranks among my favorites and, with the cheese tray below, was a good use of low-fire colors and gloss to create a serving piece. Considering the fate of the plates, I am glad that we did not put this piece through a high firing, as it would likely have been ruined. It now resides with my sister Katharine.
Cheese Tray
Resembling the plates, the cheese tray managed to fall, because of too much moisture and too little support, during its drying. The initial disappointment gave me valuable lessons for the salad bowl and allowed the repurposing of this piece from a large plate to a tray with a cutting or serving block in the middle and an indented ring for crackers, chips, or vegetables around the outside. The drying mishap did leave it unevenly dried, which led to some cracks which did not take the initial glazing well, but, I think, are acceptable with the glossy coat applied. This one is with my parents, avid cheese-and-crackers snackers.
Twin Vessel
Receiving more of my time than any other piece, this large pitcher is the result of an attempt at artistic meaning. It ended up, however, as an unfortunately rushed 15 pound mass whose glaze ran out and whose handle crumbled in the low-firing. At least it was un to make and pushed my skills in the attempted rescue.
