“Good Morning” has an atypical surface treatment. I decided to put a clear coat over the sculpture because I felt it enhanced the blurry-eyed morning feel.
Medium: cone 5 porcelain
Time: 8 hours
Dimensions: approx. 6″ x 4″ x 2″
2015 – Growth
My intention with “Growth” was orignally to be an outdoor ornament on which moss could grow. This wasn’t the final vision for the piece, though I may go in that direction another time. I ended up covering her in a thick coat of oxide wash which I wiped off a majority of the sculpture. This left behind glossy details in the recessed areas, creating a lovely contrast. I have no idea where the yellow came from in the second picture, it just came out of the kiln that way.
Medium: cone 5 red clay, red oxide wash
Time: 20 hours
Dimensions: 20″ x 8″ x 6″
2015 – Hydrology
I named this piece “Hydrology” because she reminded me of a water nymph. Solid yet not whole, moving, changing shape, alive. Plus the color scheme.
Medium: cone 5 clay, blue decorative slip with clearcoat interior, exterior painted with white acrylic
Time: 20+ hours
Dimensions: approx. 18″ x 8″ x 7″
2015 – Sophie the Sea Turtle
I wanted to try a new approach to slab building larger animal sculptures, so a turtle seemed the appropriate choice. The layered white, yellow, and black slip (most visible on the face) to color the piece. After bisquing, I painted a clear glaze over the whole sculpture. It turned out the clear glaze had been contaminated with cobalt along the way, giving it a blue tinge. This ended up being a happy accident because it contributed a watery look to the sculpture.
After the final firing, I coated the outside with Mod Podge, hoping to seal some of the exposed parts of the turtle from the elements. As a second happy accident, apparently Mod Podge can’t stand up to cold and rain and started to flake and crack. I appreciate this look because it gives a cloudy, weathered look to the shell.
Medium: cone 5 clay
Time: 20 hours
Dimensions: 6″ x 17″ x 14″
2015 – Venus Icon
This piece was inspired by the Venus icons as old as sculpture itself, most specifically the Venus of Willendorf. I created this sculpture as a test for a pit firing, also referencing back to ancient times. I didn’t bisque fire the piece before the pit fire (hence the broken portions), but I did paint it with some terra sigillatta (note the flaking). This turned out wonderfully because I wanted it to look like an ancient figure from a previous civilization.
As we pulled the pieces from the fire after eight hours of firing, we placed various materials on the surface to decorate it. For my Venus, I dropped horse hair on the surface which immediately disintegrated, leaving those little black squiggle marks. Again, this was perfect for my intended antique look.
Medium: cone 5 clay
Firing: Pit fire
Dimensions: approx. 7″ x 3″ x 3″