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Showing results for tags 'handbuilding'.
Found 24 results
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I need to find the best All-In-One clay for cone 5, great for both hand building and wheel throwing I know. That's a tall order. But I can dream. I have a pug mill and don't want 2 bodies. Problem: I have too many problems with my gas kiln for cone 06 anymore. I'm DONE. I am moving to cone 5. Criteria / Factors: I'm in Southern California I teach 180 high school students grades 9-12, all levels of art skills, so it has to take punishment Not too sandy on the wheel, not too smooth or squishy for hand building Not too dense so it is so top-heavy when trimming I'm willing to pug the new clay to soften it for throwing, if it is stiff and great for hand building, or visa versa Doesn't stain clothes or the tables, rolling pins, or make a mess everywhere Is not pure white (students can't see where they missed glazing spots when using light color glazes - painting) Good leather hard, doesn't soften up too easily when re-wetting to score things together Doesn't take every indentation to the surface of pieces, temperamentalD Centers on the wheel fairly easily, especially for teen girls with tiny hands Can take a good amount of water from beginners Pulling walls, it is strong, doesn't warp or sag easily Won't dry out too quickly in hands while hand building Doesn't bend or warp easily when removing from the wheel Not so soft that it caves when cutting and sliding off the wheel Doesn't make teens hate the class because it stains clothes or gets everywhere and of course, takes glazes well and can handle a little fluctuation in gas environments Cone 5 clays I've Tried: Laguna - Dover White: Nice clay, but pure white. easy to center, but A little soft when hand building Laguna - Plain (Buff): Nice light tan color, easy center and to rehydrate if repairing, but a bit too squishy and shows every dent Laguna - Moroccan Sand: I love this clay, doesn't leave residue - color, but a bit dense to center. It is really dark grayish brown, if they only could lighten it Laguna - Buff with Sand: Nice tan color, but WAY too sandy for students on the wheel Laguna - Greystone: Too dense and top heavy for small pieces, hard to center, but really takes a beating with water, warps when thin due to density of surrounding clay Laguna - Speckled Buff: A bit dark in color, has iron so it gets read everywhere, could stain (think girls with pure white vans) Laguna - LB-6: hmmm, can't remember, but nixed it very soon after Laguna - Sante Fe: OMG - red EVERYWHERE, like a crime scene Aardvark Clay - SBF - Too dark tan - a bit sticky for students Aardvark Clay -Arctic White: Too white Opinions???? Go!!! -
Hi, I have this problem of cracking or clay splitting when throwing in the wheel, pls find the attached picture and also, after firing at cone 08, the clay has a lot of surface cracks and sometimes structural cracks pls find the attached pic, pls advise why this is happening and how to avoid this in future. Thanks.
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Hi peps, I've had an idea for a box for my daughter. She's a complete bookworm and works for a publishing house. I want to handbuild the box. Sloping top carved to outline a couple of books. How do I go about attaching hinges to it? Or should I rather make it a lift off lid? Thanks and my you reside in your potting space for the weekend. Andrea
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Hi everyone I really need help with this! I am making large slabs 30x30 cm approx with decoration attatched so a 2D effect. I've dried slowly over a week and also used a clay meant to be resistant to cracking / warping. Just got two of them out of the kiln , disaster the pieces attatched to the slab have cracked up and ' jumped' away from where they were attatched. I had broken kiln slab pieces supporting underneath to circulate the heat I'm under pressure now to get them done for a deadline . Any help to sort this problem much appreciated. Julia
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Hello there, my partner and I are considering the challenging undertaking of a ceramics workshop at the next Burning Seed festival (Australia's Burning Man) in September, so quite a bit of research and development time. However, if this is an absolutely impossible task in your esteemed and learned opinions, it would be better to pull the plug early on. It will be held outdoors (under shelter), there will be no electricity available and the festival lasts 6 days. Budget isn't huge and conventional small gas kilns aren't easily available in Australia, so I've been considering the ceramic fibre flat pack gas kiln designs. At this point, I believe my biggest challenge is the timeframe - I feel like delivering a glazed piece on day 6 is likely unlikely, particularly considering the lack of drying time and the unpredictability of being exposed to the elements. Though if there is any way I could incorporate a candling feature into the flat pack design, perhaps this issue could be mitigated. Here are my thoughts on a timeframe: Day 1 & 2: Handbuilding workshop - earthenware clay, cups Day 3: Drying Day 4: Candling and bisque Day 5: Glazing and glaze firing Day 6: Finished! So my questions are: -Impossible? Yay or nay? -Is candling possible in the flat pack gas kilns? Perhaps with a smaller, less powerful torch attached? -Are there any better ways you think this could be achieved? -Do you have any other general advice? Thanks wonderful people, this forum is an absolute wealth of information and you're all great. If all else fails I'll just take some airdry clay and be done with it :-P -
Jeremy Randall: From Flat to Form WS02 – Saturday - Sunday, July 8 & 9, 2017 10-4pm, Fee: $200 members; $225 non-members www.baltimoreclayworks.org In this 2-day workshop, Jeremy will present his techniques for using tarpaper templates to make repeatable and adjustable pottery forms out of textured earthenware slabs. Focusing on the development of form and the terra sigilatta surface, he will assemble the form, discuss line and surface elements in his pots. Eccentric finishing techniques using non-clay elements like carpet tacks and wire for accent for his vessels will be demonstrated. Open to all skill levels Jeremy Randall received his B.F.A. from Syracuse University and his M.F.A. in ceramics from the University of Florida, and has been making his hand built pottery professionally since 2005. He currently lives in Tully, New York, where he owns and operates his home studio. Jeremy is a visiting instructor of art at Cazenovia College in Cazenovia NY, and an adjunct professor of art at Syracuse University. Jeremy has been involved in numerous national and international shows, is represented by Red Lodge Clay Center in Red lodge MT, The Clay Studio Philadelphia, Society of Arts And Crafts in Boston, among others. He also has work included in the permanent collections of Robert and Jane Myerhoff in Baltimore, Bailey Pottery Equipment permanent Collection, and the Southern Illinois University Museum in Carbondale, Illinois. Questions? Please contact Mary Cloonan at [email protected]<script data-cfhash='f9e31' type="text/javascript">/* */</script>
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From the album: 2017 Stuff
The final result of my first animal head sculpture. I'm quite pleased with how this turned out--as you can imagine, I was sweating when this piece was in the kiln!! My fella, its intended and current owner, was extremely happy when he got it for Christmas. <3 Sculpted from Clay Art Center (of Tacoma)'s Xtra White lowfire earthenware, painted with Amaco, Mayco, Duncan, and Clay Art Center underglaze, fired to ^03.© Me and my fella
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Bisque Stamps & Greenware Stamped-Mug
ChenowethArts posted a gallery image in Browse Member Galleries
From the album: Custom Mugs and Commission Concepts
I have my share of commercially produced stamps (particularly logos and finely detailed items), but I still enjoy sitting in an easy chair with my feet-up and carving clay stamps to be used on various projects. It is an exercise of patience for me and a learning experience to be aware of when the clay tells me that its OK to carve/cut/trim. I've wondered before if an exhibit of clay artist's bisque stamps might be a fun thing to organize.© Copyright 2016 - Paul M. Chenoweth - Nashville, Tennessee USA - All rights reserved.
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- stoneware
- bisque stamps
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From the album: Fun Fun Fun
These are really fun pieces called Yard Birds. Each one is hand painted with fun whimsical floral designs.© Pottery by Penny
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From the album: The Guinea Potter's Stuff
I made this as a depiction of the loneliness and isolation a rabbit in an outdoor hutch feels. I am a fierce advocate of the House Rabbit Society's philosophy. Rabbits are my life, and it is my dream to see them all in loving homes as members of the family. Cone ten reduction, 13" tall. Heavy as a boat anchor.© Sarah Alderete
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I'm working on performance plans for 2015, and was trying to figure out what level of productivity I can expect from my employees. I'll provide some background and if anyone has any insight I would appreciate your comments / input. We can fire 61 mugs in a single bisque / glaze firing. And, I want to fire a glaze every other day. So, I need 61 mugs made, dried, and ready for bisque every other day. When the bisque is complete, I glaze those mugs, and fire glaze the same day. We typically run 3 bisque and 3 glaze, but can run 4 of each during a rush, like now. So I need to move 61 pieces into the kilns every other day, which means I need to have the pieces assembled and drying about 48 hours in advance of bisque. To keep that pace I need to assemble 61 pieces a day (hand builders). Right now I'm at 32 to 40 pieces per day assembled. My wheel potters out pace my hand builders and then switch over to hand building to clear the backlog. Wheel Potter: 1. How many cylinders should a potter with about 7 to 10 years in clay be able to throw in an hour? Each cylinder uses approximately 2.75 lbs of clay No handle attachment Throws cylinder on small square bat, moves the bat and form to a shelf Fills 12 forms per shelf Cart hold 7 shelves 2. Each potter trims his / her own cylinders Bottom of cylinder is flat, no foot cut into floor of cylinder Lower sidewalls need to trimmed on about 1 out of 5 forms Curved foot ring cut into sidewall at foot using rib template Trimming generally occurs on day after throwing Trimmed forms placed into damp box and transferred to hand building Hand Builder: 1. How many mugs can a hand builder assemble in a hour / day? Pulls empty shelf from drying rack and places on bench Removes trimmed cylinders from damp box and places on bench Extrudes handles Shapes extrusions to form using jig / template Rolls slabs for tiles in slab roller Strikes slabs with die, and cuts tiles used as surface design Attaches tile using slip / score technique Attaches handle to cylinder using slip / score at upper / lower join Cuts triangular thumb rest and attaches to top of handle using slip & score technique Inspects work, cleans up crumbs, scratches, dents, canvass marks, etc. Places assembled mug on shelf, completes 12, and returns shelf to drying rack This is the process we use today. I understand there are lots of things we can do to improve the process, those suggestions would also be helpful. Yes, we could use a ram press, and we do plan to test one in the first quarter of next year, but right now I have to measure this process and need to know what is reasonable productivity? The potters currently throw between 5 and 15 cylinders per hour when throwing and trim at about twice that rate. My feeling is this is low, but I don't know if that's a reasonable belief, and what is a reasonable expectation of performance? The hand builders assemble from 3 to 5 mugs per hour. My feeling is this is very low, but again... Typically 2 or 3 mugs per hour is achieved when multiple tiles have to be attached to the mug. A rate of 4 or 5 mugs per hour is achieved when only a single tile is attached to the mug. Again, I lack experience in a multi-potter production environment and so I don't know if my thinking is accurate or in line with industry norms. Hand builders perform extrusion tasks, slab rolling, and tile making tasks separate from assembly tasks. Each position has studio maintenance responsibilities which affect daily production, but not hourly. Maintenance is generally conducted at end of shift and involves cleaning assigned work areas and common areas as part of ongoing dust abatement efforts. All up surfaces are wiped down, filters changed, floors mopped, HEPA vac, etc. Your insights would be most helpful...
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From the album: LeeU 12-15 Cut and Ripped Slab Pieces
Embellished with bead and micro-dust glitter. -
From the album: LeeU 12-15 Cut and Ripped Slab Pieces
Table piece embellished with beads, jewelry findings, and micro-dust glitter.© Lee Ustinich-Two Steps Forward
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From the album: LeeU 12-15 Cut and Ripped Slab Pieces
Looking through the box back; basis for my stylized logo© Lee Ustinich-Two Steps Forward
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From the album: LeeU 12-15 Cut and Ripped Slab Pieces
L is outside of box base; R is the inside of the lid embellished with bead. -
From the album: LeeU 12-15 Cut and Ripped Slab Pieces
Embellished with jewelry findings. -
From the album: LeeU 12-15 Cut and Ripped Slab Pieces
Embellished with bead. -
From the album: LeeU 12-15 Cut and Ripped Slab Pieces
Embellished with plastic mesh grid and bead. -
From the album: LeeU 12-15 Cut and Ripped Slab Pieces
Table piece with single edge of micro-dust glitter. -
From the album: LeeU 12-15 Cut and Ripped Slab Pieces
Table piece embellished with two beads. -
I am in search of a translucent clay body. It is my understanding that porcelain is the best (only) clay to achieve this. I am making luminaries with hard slabs. I was considering using Grolleg Kaolin and am researching Frost as an alternative. My main concern is a clay that lends itself to hard slab techniques. I'm also interested in firing at cone 10 or lower, preferably cone 6. Would firing a high fire porcelain at cone 6 affect the translucency, make it less translucent if fired lower than cone 10?
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Growing up, age 9-15, I did a ton of hand building and took a number of wheel throwing classes. I loved it but when I went to boarding school at 16 I had to stop. The school I went to did not have a ceramic program and the surrounding town was tiny so I had no where to take lessons. When I graduated and got to college I couldn't afford to take lessons like I use to. I am now in graduate school and am in the same position. I have a two week break coming up next week and was wondering if I could just go out and buy a block of clay and spend my days hand building. I was hoping I could then take some of my pieces to a children's pottery painting studio by my house and pay them to fire my pieces. I don't want to pay for lesson to get back into clay and I figured hand building would be reasonable enough. Is that a realistic thing to do. I can buy a few tool but can't really afford to spend over $75. I really hope you guys say yes I have so many things I'm dying to make. Thanks for your time. Any advice or ideas would be greatly appreciated
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I am just getting back into clay after a long hiatus due to lack of studio space and other responsibilities. In the past I have usually known other potters where I could get some leads on good clays and glazes and check out some samples. I don't know any potters where I live and have had to rely on manufacturers write ups and test tiles at a supplier. At the clay store everyone says "you'll have to test it". Well, that's for sure but without a glaze studio I have accumulated some clays and glazes that are not working the way I hoped. I am hoping I can shorten the learning curve with some advice from those who have used Western clays. I do smaller scale hand-building: a good cone 5/6 porcelain and a white stoneware with a bit more strength (really fine sand or grog only) would both be desirable (no wheel work). So far I have had a lot of glaze fitting issues with the bodies I have tried (some success with clear glaze on porcelain, but success with a celadon type glaze is on my wish list) My location is Arizona so I would probably be looking at California manufacturers. I am considering a couple of Aardvark clays for my next clay trials (Nara 5 and BeeMix with sand), any comments on those? I do both slab construction and pinching and like a smooth body. I prefer white bodies so that I lessen the chances of contaminating porcelain with another color and I also plan to use body stains in porcelain. Firing is electric oxidation. Just to eliminate a few questions: I have already tried to fine tune bisque firing and I don't think it is the problem. I have called the clay manufacturer and spoke to a tech guy there, and I also talked to a guy in the back at the clay store. In the end I got honest comments about both clays I have been using that lead me to think they are less than ideal for my purposes and one is particularly difficult to get a good glaze fit under any circumstances. So I am back to looking at trying other clay bodies and hope that I can stick with one manufacturer to help with shipping. With any luck I might even find that some of the glazes I have already purchased might fit better on another clay. It isn't practical for me to start up a glaze studio right now so I would probably do best to find commercial glazes but would use glazemixer.com for a proven winner. I would be grateful for any suggestions since my time is limited and I want to reduce stress in my life by having more fun with clay and enjoying the end result. As you might imagine, this is my first post. -
Hello fellow pottery artists, I am wondering if someone has tried to use cake decoration techniques (to make flowers etc.) on clay or porcelain bodies. My neighbor does the most beautiful cup cakes decorated with roses, lilies and different other flowers and I was wondering if this can also be done with clay. It would be a good idea of doing wall plagues and other decoration things. Has anyone tried this yet? Thanks for any comments. Regards Gabi in Perth/Australia
