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...Asymmetrical pottery? Ceramics that are rustic, unrefined and simple? I am really drawn to intentional homespun pottery that has a very "handmade" look to it. I am not talking about accidental flaws, but something that has been made to imitate a earthy look, like an un-ribbed pinch pot. I have tried to give some of my pottery recently the "unpolished" look and it is actually quite difficult!

 

How do you define what is good rustic/asymmetrical pottery? Weight for me is big, I love light mugs and plates, but prefer a slightly more hefty bowl or planter.

 

 

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(I do not take credit for this work and do not own these images).

 

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I admire many types of ware, but like Neil, I personally like to use things than fit my hands, are the right size for my servings, etc. My friend made a left handed teapot for me and it is a pleasure to use...better than any I have made for my own use. I Like light well-balanced mugs that hold about 8 oz. for my morning cappuccino with lots of foam. I like soup bowls with handles. 8" pasta bowls. etc.

Funny how our personal tastes don't necessarily reflect what we make.

 

Marcia

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...Asymmetrical pottery? Ceramics that are rustic, unrefined and simple? I am really drawn to intentional homespun pottery that has a very "handmade" look to it. I am not talking about accidental flaws, but something that has been made to imitate a earthy look, like an un-ribbed pinch pot. I have tried to give some of my pottery recently the "unpolished" look and it is actually quite difficult!

 

How do you define what is good rustic/asymmetrical pottery? Weight for me is big, I love light mugs and plates, but prefer a slightly more hefty bowl or planter.

 

 

I like to look at it, but I don't like to use it. I need my dishes to function well, and wobbly plates and crooked handles just don't do it for me.

 

 

I admire many types of ware, but like Neil, I personally like to use things than fit my hands, are the right size for my servings, etc. My friend made a left handed teapot for me and it is a pleasure to use...better than any I have made for my own use. I Like light well-balanced mugs that hold about 8 oz. for my morning cappuccino with lots of foam. I like soup bowls with handles. 8" pasta bowls. etc.

Funny how our personal tastes don't necessarily reflect what we make.

 

Marcia

 

I would love to hear @JosephF weigh in on this one. He does a lot of deliberately imperfect yunomi and mugs that are lovely. You should check out his gallery if you haven't seen it yet. 

 

I love the look of the things you posted, Sydney, but making and/or using them would drive me insane. It's a huge pet peeve of mine when dishes won't sit solidly on a flat surface. So I agree with Neil as to the use of items like that. 

 

I think if you like making deliberately imperfect items that's fine and there's definitely a market for them. However I feel strongly that combining practical function and making them sit level (for example) would be important.

 

I often see people making pottery that's intended to be functional and it's fired and finished with knife-sharp edges left all over the place. Not only is that not enjoyable to use, but sharp pointy bits have a tendency to be knocked off. Another thing I see a lot of is people putting a picturesque handle on their items that you can tell would be really hard to use. I'm not going to share any photos of work like this because I would hate to hurt anybody's feelings. But for example one potter made these really beautiful mugs but the handle was like a bootstrap, a loop that came up almost straight from the rim. Another potter, whose work I otherwise love to pieces, puts enormous handles on her mugs. They are so big that you could fit not only all four fingers of your right hand, but all four fingers of your left hand inside the handle. 

 

Sorry, I got on a kind of handle tangent. ;)

 

Marcia, I think it's so interesting that I love big mugs, 16+ ounces, and yet I make mugs in the 6-12 oz range only. I was surprised to find that so far every extra-small mug or cup I've made has sold despite the fact that everybody told me that people want huge mugs, 24 oz. if possible.

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Imperfection is my calling! My artist statement is WYSIWYG. But I don't let functional ware wobble and it must "fit" the hand and so forth. Everything else I make, including my smalls/trays/incense burners/catch-alls, wall pieces & table pieces is definitely homespun. Not rustic or primitive in style, just visible hand made. I let a lot of flaws live because I like the look, and the philosophical nod to "let's not be too precious" in the world of fine art. At the same time, I do not for one minute underestimate or dismiss the essential quality and value of excellent craftsmanship and expert technical skills and knowledge (which I do not possess, and is probably part of the reason I have cultivated an affinity for and acceptance of the asymmetrical and unrefined style of my own and others work in that vein.

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@Giselle 

 

I had originally typed up a reply to this post. But then I felt like I was just repeating what others had said. I have been trying not to post unless its something original to be said. 

 

However since you mentioned wanting my opinion I will give it.

 

When I first started making pots I made them as best as I could to be perfect. Then later I started adding stuff to them and making the rims uneven, cause I saw that in a lot of pictures of beautiful pottery. When I started using the uneven rims I realized that the cup was a lot more difficult to drink out of. I had to hold it in a certain place not to bump my teeth or just feel odd. So I started making most of my rims as level as possible, but still organic looking. Which when you start making really purposely distorted stuff is sort of a challenge to do.

 

I also make my handles as smooth and as good to hold as they can possibly be. Each handle I attach has the weight of the mug and the shape of the mug in mind. I don't like funky handles. I have went to a lot of pottery places and seen these artistic handles and they are just a put off. The handle and the rim is the most used part of a mug. If they don't feel good the object is a piece of junk for usability purposes.

 

As far as rocking plates and cups, I wont sell a pot that rocks. I have thrown away many pots which I had planned on selling, but when I test it for levelness on my granite, if it rocks, it goes to trash. 

 

Looking at the picture of those plates. They are absolutely beautiful to have stacked in a glass cabinet or sitting on a shelve. But they look like a usability nightmare, not idea if they are or not. People shouldn't have to think about that stuff when you want to sell a pot. No one should have to think about will it function correctly before a purchase, if its pottery that's meant to be used day in and day out on a regular basis by kids and family.

 

I think the same goes for that cup and saucer. In the picture it looks like if a slight wind blew it would knock over the cup. I get the purpose of the design, its to look that way, but why make objects that are meant to be used on a daily basis designed that way. The bottom right part of the foot isn't even touching. Now I am not hitting on the artist work. I am not in any place to critique work, I am a very new person at this clay thing. These are just my opinions on the usability side of the work. As far as the aesthetics they are nice to look at, and I wouldn't know for sure if they are good to use unless I tried them. 

 

Thanks for the nice words about my work though. My gallery is pretty empty on my profile, I added a gallery a month or so ago to my website if the OP is interested in seeing it. But it is nothing special. Just some of my favorite work. Most of it has been thrown away because I was not happy with it enough to keep or sell it. 

 

Another thing I think people need to think about when making this type of work is. How you create the form. It needs to be even walls, and weigh as light as possible for the type of pot it is... The quality of the glaze work and the end product has to be much higher quality when your making pots that look like these pots posted by the original poster.

 

If you don't make everything as best as it could be, the work looks amateurish.  The reasoning is because to an untrained pottery person, they don't understand the purpose of having a cup that has an unlevel rim, has a big bulge on the side or a slice of the clay missing out of the side. They don't see the point in random grooves going up and down the cup. If they pick it up and it's oddly weighted, heavy, or just doesn't feel smooth. They are going to put it down and probably be put off by your stuff.

 

I have seen this first hand with my family members. When I was making straight walled beautifully made pots they all loved them. When I started moving into this different aesthetic of deforming things on purpose, they didn't understand why I would mess it up. My glaze work wasn't that good at the time and they just didn't like it.

 

Everyone is pretty honest with me when it comes to my work because they know I don't really get upset about their opinions so they give the truth of their opinion to me. After I started improving my glaze work and getting the surfaces and the rims better, the handles more perfect for the shapes they started liking the pots a lot more. Some of them don't even like my evenly made stuff anymore. My mother in law actually ask for a porcelain bowl that has the messed up rim. 

 

So... after this huge post I would say. If your making deformed pots, they should be exceptionally well made. It is much easier to sell a badly made mug that looks like what people would expect, then a badly made mug that attempts to look organic or imperfect on purpose. 

 

-- EDIT:

 

I have added a blackish mug which shows basically what I call an imperfect rim. It is pretty level, but it isn't perfectly level. It declines on the right side of the picture sightly. I like this. It doesn't affect use, it doesn't bump teeth, it doesn't cut your lip. But it matches the shape of the mug. If you look at the bottom of the mug, it gives the appearance of leaning to the right, and the top of the mug also goes along with that. One of my favorites. Notice the handle looks good and matches the shape. Imagine a wonky handle on it, the mug would be too far out there for average consumer to buy.

 

 And the white/cream mug is an example of a mug I made that never sold even though I liked it a lot. The rim was just too far out there for the market of people that have browsed my shop so far.

 

I will say though that non of my work is really like the work Sydney posted. She was talking more about the earthy unrefined stuff. Mine isn't really in that group. One of the reasons I didn't make a post originally.

 

EDIT2 : I don't mean to be negative about anything I said here. I was just simply stating my answer to "do you like?" I do like them very much!

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joseph, both of your mugs are beautiful but the black one is spectacular!  

 

i do not see any of the things you mention about it, just the gorgeous glaze that makes me want to fondle it.  

 

you have come a very long way from your first postings, your self-confidence has grown and is showing.   GOOD FOR YOU!!  

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Guest JBaymore

As a long time maker of asymmetrical and "loose" kinds of forms....... intended mainly for function........ I find an interesting aspect in the use of language in this thread.  More so than the pieces themselves.  It is how we are defining and describing things as we discuss them.

 

The choice of the use of the terms like "Perfect" and "Imperfect" and the association to "Symmetrical".

 

And the choice of terms like "Unrefined" associated with "Simple" and "Rustic".

 

And the associations that things like "wobble" and "wonky" are a negative.

 

I would contend that some of the "wonkiest" asymmetrical and rustic pieces can also be some of the most refined, well-considered, technically well executed, and sophisticated pieces there are, and are approaching if not attaining being "perfect". 

 

best,

 

.......................john

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@ John

 

Since I am the only one who has used the word wonky I am going to infer here that you think I meant negative. I usually describe most of my favorite work as wonky a large percentage of the time to people I know and talk to. I love wonky work. I don't think of it as negative at all. Maybe other people do, but I certainly do not. In my sentence:

 

Imagine a wonky handle on it, the mug would be too far out there for average consumer to buy.

 

 

I was just simply stating that the mug becomes harder to sell to people who don't understand the idea behind it. I think a lot of people who don't buy pottery or search for it probably dont understand the ideas behind a wonky pot. At least it has been my experience showing people some of my "wonky" work. Most of them just seem confused.

 

I just wanted to clarify. I didn't mean to be negative in any way. I love unique things. If one looked at my pinterest, most of the stuff I like is pretty irregular. Maybe I should use that word in the future. The few pots I use most are the most irregular ones I have made. However they are all study when on the table and are not easy to knock over.

 

John, I aspire to one day make pots as beautiful as yours and the other great members of this forum.

 

 

@oldlady: thanks.

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For the past couple of years all of my work has been pinch or coiled.  I looks like it could be thrown from a distant but when you get close you notice a irregular lump  or a imperfect angle.  I like the feel of the work it has a slightly uneven surface that makes me feel connected to the clay in it's fired form.   Denice

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when i started taking clay classes a year ago i had an idea of what kinds of pots i wanted to make. as i started using them the functionality started affecting my form. i love wonky asymetrical forms, but if its hard to use then it becomes a sculpture and its no longer a pot. 

 

last week a burden had been lifted off of me. i attended a great workshop where the potters reminded us that remember after all the wheel is just a tool. i also watched in their demo how much they 'manhandled' the clay (they formed their shapes by taking away the clay). 

 

that really opened my eyes and had a huge affect on me. but i find as i start manhandling my clay i get to learn even more about different clay bodies and elasticity and different stages of leather hard. 

 

it has also started my hand building practice which i had been thinking of but not doing. so i throw in class but at home i do pinch pots. i sometimes am up half the night working on a pinch pot. because i figure i am going to be making two different kinds of pots. one to sell and one for me. it would be GREAT if they were the same, but ...

 

before i got into clay i would have oohed and ahhed over your pictures. but now that i am actually making them and trying them at home i realize for me function comes first. if i had that cup it would be as a display - sculpture, not functional. 

 

when i first started, i never thought functional would matter to me. that quite surprised me. so now my pots are not as wonky as they used to be. a certain amount of wonky is wonderful but if it doesn't serve my purpose then the piece does not work for me. amongst all the students in our clay department, i am the only one who does majorly wonky stuff.   but they are functional first. i did attempt my first lucy rie bowl but that was sculpture to me. a paper thin warped bowl that is meant to be looked at and admired but not eaten out of.

 

having said that i AM toying with the form of the plate. the cultural form of plate. what would be the ideal plate to serve indian food in. if i served food the way my mom served me what kind of plate should it be since our sauces are pretty runny. flat plates are for knives. to cut meat. and keep each food separate. 

 

btw i thought weight was important for me. light. but now anything super light weight feels fragile and scary. i'd rather it be a little bit heavier. 

 

however having said all that if a piece is really beautiful, really exceptional - the flaws wouldn't matter. it would be my special time pot. i'd slow down and deal with its imperfections but i would definitely not use it everyday.

 

i am a loose painter and loose potter. making the pieces wonky asymetrical comes easy to me. 

 

heirloom tomatoes. some can look pretty wonky and gnarly. at the farm i worked at those not so symmetrical ones would not sell. yet to me a tomatoes function is taste. i don't really care for its imperfections. in fact it adds that much interest to my enjoyment of a tomato as i admire its form. 

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I am noticing more and more that the loose and fun stuff tends to sell the fastest but without the tight matching stuff sales would really suffer. I work on doing a mix and like both. But I don't have that many forms and do a lot of mugs and tumblers and those are easy to do this way. One of the reasons I love making and selling pottery is that pottery lovers are all drawn to different types of pottery and that makes it so much fun and interesting.

 

I do keep everything very functional but like LeeU I am trying to leave some handmade look and feel to my work. I don't always do the last rib work to smooth the surface and remove every non functional blemish. I also often leave the trim lines for some surface character under the glaze. I also have found myself less and less throwing to gauge or using profile tools and that makes them a little less structured and more fun. 

 

I also am really working on establishing a good medium weight. I don't like heavy pottery and I don't like super light (feels machined to me and I think others). My mentor told me when I started throwing that what I was going for was my initial thought when I picked up a pottery piece being no surprise and 'just what I expected'. After a few seconds the brain adjusts and a heavy mug doesn't feel that heavy and a light mug feels heavier BUT when you first pick it up that initial reaction is the sweet spot. Off topic but weight was mentioned by a few :-) 

 

Anyway make for yourself to your own tastes and there will be plenty of pottery lovers who agree and to the ones that don't, 'hey, they are not your audience' and some other potter will please them. BUT if I didn't like making mugs I still would or I would starve.

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Ahhh, I love the inferences here, and the topic does pull on me in some odd ways. As my understanding of the terms asymmetric vs symmetric goes if my memory serves me: Symmetry is base more on geometric balance, whereas asymmetry it more of a visual balance. No where in any of this is there a judgement, only visual vs geometric, no right or wrong, perfect or imperfect.

 

Now to return to the original topic of ware that is - unrefined, vs. refined, I do have some thoughts that relate to my personal preferences in choosing or making pottery for my own use. First a little of my own search in my own work. I have been a very tight, symmetric wheel thrown type of potter, who has always much admired work that showed more of the movement of the wheel with some natural decoration that relates to that movement. I have been trying to get more of an unrefined look in my own pottery without losing certain aspects of symmetry while allowing some of the piece to by asymmetric.

 

There are certain aspects that I believe are better when dealing with any type of functional pottery. I have seen all of the arguments about cups for holding for those that walk with a mug never setting it down, but those individuals are few.

 

  • So my first requirement in functional ware is a solid base, where as most of us sit at tables, and eat out of dishes on the tables, even flat bases on the bottoms of ware allow for balance in the food-staying in place, and stability in cups that don't tip over.
  • Secondly, I have also found that rims on drinking vessels are usually better if round or close to round or to some degree rounded. It seems to fit better with the mouth-to be more specific, the down profile of the rim.
  • Bowls are something that I have a quirk with. There are (to me) bowls and dishes. Bowls have a rounded inner curve that goes from the rim down to the center and back up to the rim on the opposite side. Dishes have a curve that moves from the rim to a flat base inside of the bowl. In both cases a well thrown dish or bowl has a curve that is constant, not reversing or having a high area, more constant and even. This does does not mean the bowl is symmetric or asymmetric, just following an even curve.

Over the years, when I think of pots I eat out of, those requirements seem to hold most true. I have eaten out of all sorts of other pottery, some held better in the lap, some designed to set in a bed of sand, some meant to be held like a palette and many others. Yet I always return to what works in the most circumstances. . . sitting at at table eating without the worries of tipping, enjoying the food, the hand made pottery, and good company.

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@Giselle 

 

I had originally typed up a reply to this post. But then I felt like I was just repeating what others had said. I have been trying not to post unless its something original to be said. 

 

However since you mentioned wanting my opinion I will give it.

 

When I first started making pots I made them as best as I could to be perfect. Then later I started adding stuff to them and making the rims uneven, cause I saw that in a lot of pictures of beautiful pottery. When I started using the uneven rims I realized that the cup was a lot more difficult to drink out of. I had to hold it in a certain place not to bump my teeth or just feel odd. So I started making most of my rims as level as possible, but still organic looking. Which when you start making really purposely distorted stuff is sort of a challenge to do.

 

I also make my handles as smooth and as good to hold as they can possibly be. Each handle I attach has the weight of the mug and the shape of the mug in mind. I don't like funky handles. I have went to a lot of pottery places and seen these artistic handles and they are just a put off. The handle and the rim is the most used part of a mug. If they don't feel good the object is a piece of junk for usability purposes.

 

As far as rocking plates and cups, I wont sell a pot that rocks. I have thrown away many pots which I had planned on selling, but when I test it for levelness on my granite, if it rocks, it goes to trash. 

 

Looking at the picture of those plates. They are absolutely beautiful to have stacked in a glass cabinet or sitting on a shelve. But they look like a usability nightmare, not idea if they are or not. People shouldn't have to think about that stuff when you want to sell a pot. No one should have to think about will it function correctly before a purchase, if its pottery that's meant to be used day in and day out on a regular basis by kids and family.

 

I think the same goes for that cup and saucer. In the picture it looks like if a slight wind blew it would knock over the cup. I get the purpose of the design, its to look that way, but why make objects that are meant to be used on a daily basis designed that way. The bottom right part of the foot isn't even touching. Now I am not hitting on the artist work. I am not in any place to critique work, I am a very new person at this clay thing. These are just my opinions on the usability side of the work. As far as the aesthetics they are nice to look at, and I wouldn't know for sure if they are good to use unless I tried them. 

 

Thanks for the nice words about my work though. My gallery is pretty empty on my profile, I added a gallery a month or so ago to my website if the OP is interested in seeing it. But it is nothing special. Just some of my favorite work. Most of it has been thrown away because I was not happy with it enough to keep or sell it. 

 

Another thing I think people need to think about when making this type of work is. How you create the form. It needs to be even walls, and weigh as light as possible for the type of pot it is... The quality of the glaze work and the end product has to be much higher quality when your making pots that look like these pots posted by the original poster.

 

If you don't make everything as best as it could be, the work looks amateurish.  The reasoning is because to an untrained pottery person, they don't understand the purpose of having a cup that has an unlevel rim, has a big bulge on the side or a slice of the clay missing out of the side. They don't see the point in random grooves going up and down the cup. If they pick it up and it's oddly weighted, heavy, or just doesn't feel smooth. They are going to put it down and probably be put off by your stuff.

 

I have seen this first hand with my family members. When I was making straight walled beautifully made pots they all loved them. When I started moving into this different aesthetic of deforming things on purpose, they didn't understand why I would mess it up. My glaze work wasn't that good at the time and they just didn't like it.

 

Everyone is pretty honest with me when it comes to my work because they know I don't really get upset about their opinions so they give the truth of their opinion to me. After I started improving my glaze work and getting the surfaces and the rims better, the handles more perfect for the shapes they started liking the pots a lot more. Some of them don't even like my evenly made stuff anymore. My mother in law actually ask for a porcelain bowl that has the messed up rim. 

 

So... after this huge post I would say. If your making deformed pots, they should be exceptionally well made. It is much easier to sell a badly made mug that looks like what people would expect, then a badly made mug that attempts to look organic or imperfect on purpose. 

 

-- EDIT:

 

I have added a blackish mug which shows basically what I call an imperfect rim. It is pretty level, but it isn't perfectly level. It declines on the right side of the picture sightly. I like this. It doesn't affect use, it doesn't bump teeth, it doesn't cut your lip. But it matches the shape of the mug. If you look at the bottom of the mug, it gives the appearance of leaning to the right, and the top of the mug also goes along with that. One of my favorites. Notice the handle looks good and matches the shape. Imagine a wonky handle on it, the mug would be too far out there for average consumer to buy.

 

 And the white/cream mug is an example of a mug I made that never sold even though I liked it a lot. The rim was just too far out there for the market of people that have browsed my shop so far.

 

I will say though that non of my work is really like the work Sydney posted. She was talking more about the earthy unrefined stuff. Mine isn't really in that group. One of the reasons I didn't make a post originally.

 

EDIT2 : I don't mean to be negative about anything I said here. I was just simply stating my answer to "do you like?" I do like them very much!

 

I did not find your post negative at all! It brings up very good points (such as making something look a certain way, but still behave perfectly functional). Even walls, a flat bottom, and pleasurable lip to drink out of is important. I find that most of the potters I follow on Insta make only cups/mugs/bowls in the pinched style, as obviously a large teapot or lidded bowl would be quite difficult.

 

It makes sense to make sure a piece performs as it should. A teacup should not sit sideways if it is to be usable. A bowl or plate should sit flat on the ground if it is to hold its contents. I agree that if you are to use something it should do these things. However, if used as a talking piece, hung, or otherwise a decoration these things matter less.

Attached is a larger body of work I am referring to (many of her work sits perfectly flat). Her work, to me, could be used as tableware, or use as a centerpiece/decoration.

 

 

As a long time maker of asymmetrical and "loose" kinds of forms....... intended mainly for function........ I find an interesting aspect in the use of language in this thread.  More so than the pieces themselves.  It is how we are defining and describing things as we discuss them.

 

The choice of the use of the terms like "Perfect" and "Imperfect" and the association to "Symmetrical".

 

And the choice of terms like "Unrefined" associated with "Simple" and "Rustic".

 

And the associations that things like "wobble" and "wonky" are a negative.

 

I would contend that some of the "wonkiest" asymmetrical and rustic pieces can also be some of the most refined, well-considered, technically well executed, and sophisticated pieces there are, and are approaching if not attaining being "perfect". 

 

best,

 

.......................john

 

I absolutely agree, and I apologize if my language is anything less than clear to describe my points.

 

 

Stephen - I do not plan on making my own pottery in this way. I would certainly purchase it, and enjoy for my own use, just as I would purchase a crystalline cone 10 porcelain vase or orb. Pinching forms too much irritates the nerves in my hands, and I enjoy making more traditional thrown forms with little alteration after the initial form has been completed on the wheel.

 

Preeta- Haha, I have that kind of pottery as well! It's called "What I don't find acceptable to sell or giveaway I'll use at home!" and once I get better, my friend the hammer will help me make beautiful walking stones in the garden :D

 

 

Thank you all for your interesting points of view and comments. It is enlightening to read so many similar opinions on this type of pottery. It seems many enjoy the look, but not how it behaves as tableware (assuming it does no sit flat on a surface or hold it's contents correctly).

 

 

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I thought I had purged myself of most self-doubt regarding how I view my own stuff. Apparently not quite done yet. After reading John B.s comments (he writes "I find an interesting aspect in the use of language in this thread.... It is how we are defining and describing things as we discuss them.") I realized how much I am still buying into the notion that certain descriptors carry all kinds of subtle connotations and biases, including my own, which are, in my view, best to be avoided, rejected, well-considered before using, and otherwise paid attention to before locking down the text, and the internal dialogue as well!  

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Sydney, are those bracelets in the back? i cant imagine what else they could be. love the combo.

 

yes i can see using those dishes myself. 

 

i am also a little confused. it seems potter uses blue glaze and no other glaze. so the red seems to me bare clay.

 

what are the bowls at the back. are they bowls? glaze outside, but not inside?

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Sydney, are those bracelets in the back? i cant imagine what else they could be. love the combo.

 

yes i can see using those dishes myself. 

 

i am also a little confused. it seems potter uses blue glaze and no other glaze. so the red seems to me bare clay.

 

what are the bowls at the back. are they bowls? glaze outside, but not inside?

 

Yes those are bracelets! She is a very talented potter, and her jewelry is quite unique.

 

The ware is partially glazed. Many young potters are experimenting with this fad in Southern California (it seems everyone around me here is doing it). I quite love it, if done with functionality and ergonomics in mind. I love the look of a partially glazed mug, but unless the entire handle was either burnished or glazed I feel like the speckled clay would be a little rough on the fingers.

 

 

 

This is a different potter's work and she does most of her ware in this sideways manner, it is quite lovely!

willowvane_by_sunstategalleries-dajv8hy.

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@SydneyGee, I love the look of those mugs. I've been thinking of trying this for a while but haven't found a ^6 clay with that nice warm earth tone that isn't around 3-4% porosity so I've been reluctant to give it a go. Can't help but think the raw clay would get stained over time. 

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@SydneyGee, I love the look of those mugs. I've been thinking of trying this for a while but haven't found a ^6 clay with that nice warm earth tone that isn't around 3-4% porosity so I've been reluctant to give it a go. Can't help but think the raw clay would get stained over time. 

 

I heard burnishing can create a slightly more watertight seal? But that would scratch the point of the pottery looking "weathered".

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@Diesel, thanks for that. I had thought about that one but since most of my work is with white clays I had second thoughts about keeping the red and white separate. Somehow it doesn't seem as daunting to keep tan and white clays from contaminating each other. 

 

@SydneyGee, I don't know if burnishing would seal it up enough to stop leaks or not but I do know I'm too lazy to be burnishing all my pots. :rolleyes:

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