high fire re-fire results

high fire, cone 8

detail high fire

detail high fire

full overhead view high fire

before image, cone 04-05

I am very excited about the results of this re-fire.  Jim Melchert suggested I intentionally try to get my work to slump in the kiln by over firing the clay body above its maturation temperature.  This is one of the works from my first squashed pot series.  It had already been sent back through a few more times because I wasn't comfortable with the original pink glaze.  I had put several layers of pink underglaze and re-fired it as I had done with the dusty blue squashed pot piece.  Where as that result was an interesting mat finish, the pink had turned elephant-like in texture and extremely ugly.  Ugly isn't necessarily bad, but it was in this case.  So, I decided to fire the pink piece at cone 8, expecting it to alter the glaze and slump.  Although it doesn't seem to have significantly changed the shape besides developing some cracks, I really like how the glaze looks like skin ready to shed.  The interior glaze also changed from metallic black to green/brown which is fine; actually more body like.  I generally prefer to keep to low fire with my work because I am trying to be more ecologically minded (why fire higher if it uses more energy, time, and resources) but this is definitely worth exploring further! 

April work in progress

"Slippery Slope" - slant step piece

another view

5 pieces in progress

another view

larger work in progress

another view

still building this one

another view of work in progress

The swan on "slippery slope" is my take on the slant step, a nonsensical object that was passed around by artists in the 60's (including Wiley, Nauman, and Allan) which lead to many interpretations of its meaning.  The other forms are pieces for my installation that represent abstracted tongues of fire or waves.

installation in progress

 

 

Laying down white paper on the floor really helps tie the floor and wall together.  Things are feeling less cluttered and open.  I've also built several white pedestals at various heights (12" to 20") for the squashed pots which I'll post soon.  I will by experimenting with projected words on to the pots next.

moving in, setting up new installation space

moving in, wall boards up 3/11

3/12 & 13, wall board painted, start to move over work

3/14, start installing

more views

try adding in ceramic swan & duck

After getting the wall boards up, spackling, and painting, I built some round black pedestals, and started moving my work over.  I wish I had twice as much area but it is probably comparable to what is given at AIB.  I'll continue to move the work around, edit, and play.  There is too much up at this point but my tendency is always to pack things in. I like the sense of the duck and swan navigating this weird landscape.  Next I'll try projecting words on to the pots.  Does the floor need to be black or maybe white?

correction

The new orbs are floor pieces, not wall!

new work, better images

Now that the pieces I've created since Jan. are finally through the firing process, I'll be moving them over to my installation space to see how they interact. Several have been in and out of the kiln numerous times to get the layers of color and surface textures. With the exception of the group of small "flames", these are wall pieces.  The orbs are 13" to 15" diameter with piano wire extensions up to 27"h.

ceramic with piano wire

detail

detail

ceramic with piano wire and astro-turf

another view

better image of orb from previous post

detail

misc. flames for installation

another view

work on its way

green orb with piano wires

broken mound, in kiln before glaze firing

 

concentric circle mound, in kiln for glaze firing

spiral mound, in kiln for glaze firing

greenware

As above, 1st glaze firing, side view

another view

greenware

As above, 1st glaze firing

finished work

refired from first set of squashed pots

In this next phase of work since meeting with Jim Melchert mid February, there are four mounds and three sets of squashed pots in the works.  Since most of the pieces are still in progress, needing further color work, this is how they appear to date.  The intention is for the green orb to be on the floor but since I haven't moved it over to the installation space (which still needs wall board put up and painted), please excuse the patched paper background.  It looks better on white than the tile floor.  Last night, just as I was finished glazing the mound with swirls on an electric potter's wheel, I put my foot down on the pedal and it went flying like a saucer!  Yup, big mistake.  I'll just have to continue glaze work and piece it together later.  There are three holes for piano wire extensions. 
       Jim and I have been discussing the use of circles/mounds with the implication that they read as portals and/or eruption.  A black circle indicates a hole when placed on the ground, or wall for that matter.  I'd like the mounds to appear to rise up from the earth.  The spiral mound will have both piano wires and astro-turf.  The glaze before firing doesn't represent the true colors. The pink and blue center squashed pots will be refired at a high temperature.  The white matt glaze is too flat, the black should have appeared like gun metal, and the pink is uneven.  If I fire the red glazed pots higher to improve the white matt, I'll loose the red glaze.  These pots will become part of my experiment to project words.  I envision them on (clean) black circles, not wheel bats as photographed.  Once this group of works is complete, I need to focus on my installation space and just play with the forms and how they are perceived in their environment.  I've got a mini projector but still need to figure out how to use it!

Jim also asked me to do drawings of some of the forms I made last semester.  My first attempts are quite academic; it wasn't not easy at that.  Maybe next I'll enlarge and focus on one part.  Not sure what the direction is here.