Tree Shrines #2

Shrine for a tree, or whatever you want.  size 6" tall x 3-1/2" wide

The depth is pretty shallow, but there's also a hook for hanging. (on all the tree shrines I make)

A wide and dark tree setting, size 6" wide, about 5" tall.

A small tree shrine with white glazed back and bottom, size 4-1/2 wide, 5 inches tall.

 These have the little raised glaze leaves, and the more difficult glaze branches done with glaze pens.  The next set will just have incised branches and more impressionistic leaves...without all the sky colors.

Cloverleaf Ramekins

Oatmeal colored glaze is actually eggshell

Rims are given a hint of turquoise with Mexico glaze

The clay is Bellas Blend, (from Highwater) which is a nice creamy cone 6 white stoneware.

Size 7 inch diameter, 2" deep.

I just wanted you to know I'm still throwing things, and this is a pleasing set of baking bowls.  I like their stackability, since I personally have a tiny kitchen.  Many things are easier to add to a kitchen when they don't take up a lot of new space.

They may be a bit shallow for ramekins, when I look at the various ones used to make single serving soufle's.  But I am definitely interesting in cooking some shepherds pies.  Mmm, won't that look yummy?

Circle of Trees

An open space which is hidden beneath a lid.

When the lid is removed, an open container with trees in a circle inside and out.

I'm excited about exploring looking into a space from outside.  This will be a focus of more of my sculptures coming soon.  This is a concept of coming in from the public area into intimacy of inner private spaces.

The Circle of Trees was inspired by the concept of a sacred grove of trees, which was often used in ancient times for rituals of worship.

Ancient Mesoamerican Clay

Mayan art in Charlotte, NC.  Who knows what you'll find in a museum?  ( this may not be clay, but is cerrtainly interesting sculpture!)

Somehow this is listed as a Male Effigy Vessel by the museum.  Mayan

Moon Goddess, Old God and Deer, Maya

This is scarey, but I don't have the description.

big bottle

A pencil to give scale for this bottle

This large bottle is done in raku clay, with dry-wiped Mexico glaze over red iron oxide wash.

Facades

Faking it, making you believe it's something it's not...the facades which come to my mind are the buildings which once graced Main Street in many towns across our country.  I started to say "out west" then thought of some of the buildings right in our small southeastern towns.  Yep, we tend to strut fake stuff by making things look bigger, prettier and better than they actually are. Think of the cosmetic industry.

So here are some little facades.

Is it this, or is it that?   Not meant to "strut" at all, but to be humorous or perhaps to touch some memories.

 

Click here for the rest...

Archives of tree goddesses

A friend from our studio said she hadn't seen any of my old tree goddesses, which I made several years ago.
So, in case she looks here, or anyone else is interested, here are a few shots of them.  Apologies for the poor photo quality!

What's orange and turquoise?

Plate is 10 inches, sponged Mexico glaze and sponged Eggshell, on raku clay.  The iron really turns it orange (also eggshell glaze when it's thin is orange)

Platter is 12 inches.

I've been thinking about new things to make.  In the middle of the night whenever I can't sleep, I think, what about making computer faced people, calling them screen heads?  Then I think, it's probably been done, how about iPhone faced people?

Well, I let most of these forms of inspiration go right back to wherever they came from.  I don't make very good figures.  But I will make some more shrines.  I cut out five more trees today, and the little bases and backs for more tree honoring shrines.

Secret Room finished

You may have seen this after it had been bisque fired.  Now it has also been fired to cone 6, to bring it to glaze temperature without glaze...in order to vitrify the clay.

The Haniwa House

Again, in case you noticed, I offer pictures of a house in the style of a Haniwa house from Japanese ancient times.  (see earlier post which has some source materials)



Here is the final version, with some stain on the terra cotta coloration, so it is more, I think, sculptural. 

Haniwa house

Tree shrine and green symbols shrine

Shrines are personal, and I've left much of the decoration to whoever wants to use them to symbolize something with meaning to the owner.

Tree shrine

Tree Shrine

Glaze is mostly Mayco "Stroke and Coat" except the green base which is matt bronze green.  It was applied thinly, and over the back side of the piece as well.  I have supplemented the glaze on the back with some acrylics for improved coloration.  Black linear branches were done using a glaze pen, which I found incredibly taxing of my patience, so don't expect much more of it.  The leaves were a mint green glaze pen, and came out delightfully light blue. 

Tree shrine detail

Green symbols shrine

Shrines

Lotus flower shrine detail

Lotus shrine

The eggshell glaze give definition to the carved flower.  Can be hung form attached loop on back.

Crow shrine

Snowflake glazed flowers to shrines

Started making shrines about the same time I was testing John Britt's snowflake crackle glazes.  So it was inevitible that they would come together.

Flower three shrine

Flower three shrine detail

The orange tint  and yellow pollen come from Mayco stroke and coat glaze, as well as the shiney brown and black parts of the shrine.  The matt brown base is just red iron oxide wash.

Flower three shrine

Flower four snowflake glaze trials

Snowflake flower four

Base glazed with matt bronze green and Mayco stroke and coat, with some of the snowflake glaze coming down onto it.

Flower four detail

Why the base leaves for the flowers, you may ask?  Well, I wanted to dip the flowers, and then have them sit on something appropriate, thus the bases, which were not attached until the glaze firing, including on the shrine flower.

More shrines tomorrow!

Snowflake glazes

Several months ago John Britt wrote an article for Ceramics Monthly on Snowflake crystal glazes.

Flower one

So I decided to test some snowflake glazes, cone 6 on brownstone or speckled brownstone clays.  I was delighted with the 8th and 9th versions of his recipes.

The larger batch however wasn't quite as full of crystals and snowflakes.  But I kind of like it as a crazy crazed glaze.  I'm scratching my head about why the test glaze (batch of 100 grams) was gorgeous, then the larger batch (2000 grams) was disappointing.  It still seems to work best with a very heavy glaze covering, but no snowflakes to speak of.

I've got a few pics here, and will post some more tomorrow, as I move into my shrines which I've been assembling.

Flower one detail

Flower two

The leaves of the base are glazed with Matt Bronze Green.

Flower two

Flower two detail

Jomon Pottery from older blog site

 Yesterday I misspoke, thinking I'd included Jomon potters with the March posts last year on my old blog.  But they were before that, in Feb. actually!

This link takes you to some fabulous pictures of ancient pottery, made probably by women.
http://alchemyofclay.blogspot.com/2011/02/jomon-potter-women.html

Look at the rope designs, and remember this was back around 10,000 bc to maybe 300 ad...  And the people. And the forms.

http://www.earlywomenmasters.net/masters/jomon/index.html

It takes my breath away, thinking of these women firing these pots, using them for what purpose, and having constructed them between tending children, homes, chores, animals, crops...etc.

more info will be here

http://www.e-yakimono.net/html/jcn-11.html#tour


Let me know if you have any more information on these wonderful potters!

Remembering Haniwa house

I was struck by this little house, made of terra cotta, which an ancient Japanese culture used with their burial customs (before Buddhism and cremation).

 

I made a smaller, simpler version, but enjoyed the style of the two truncated pyramids forming a structure that might be a living space.

I didn't make all the openings keyhole shape, the way the picture in the book did.

And I just googled Haniwa, so I wouldn't be entirely ignorant about the meaning.  So there are more pictures, which I'll post below.

Photocopy from a book on Japanese Art History..

Architecture, Prehistoric period ( -552)

Terra cotta, Plan: 60x65 cm.  Height: 53 cm.  Excavated from an ancient burial mound at Saitobaru, Koyu-gun, Miyazaki Prefecture.  Owner, Tokyo National Museum.

(Note: I looked up metric conversion, since I don't keep it in my head.  50 cm is 20 inches)

Here are images from Google:

A different view (and in color) of my first image that inspired me.  All those roof structures are fabulous, and this was originally created in terra cotta, that's clay.  Just the same stuff I made mine from but not fired as hot.

 A garden, which has yet another Haniwa house.  Did I mention the burial mound had many figures and cylinders around it?

The pottery of the Jamon period of ancient Japan is different than these forms.  (look at my blog last March for Jamon pottery)  But I never saw any houses when I was studying Jamon pots!

My note to myself is that I've been working on shrines.  What else would you call a small building at a burial mound?