Recent Kiln Firing

I've been hoarding photos of the pottery from a recent kiln firing! I had the opportunity to fire a kiln with Anne Pärtna from Blue Hen Pottery at Dwight Holland's house. Not only was it a fun chance to help fire a gas salt kiln again, but it was a wonderful opportunity to get to meet and talk with Dwight Holland. Anne (graciously) loaded the kiln on the Friday before last:

Photo of the kiln interior after loading. Photo by Anne

The firing was on Sunday, I arrived in the afternoon to keep company while kiln-sitting, and to help salt.

Anne checking the cones

I also had the pleasure of meeting Thor, Dwight's great dane. Thor's playtoys were five-gallon buckets!

Thor playing with a five-gallon bucket

We salted around dusk, which brought back memories of chucking burritos of salt and dumping angle irons of salt into the gas kiln at Berea. The salt port on this kiln, however, was on top, which I liked very much. Most of the older kilns I saw while in Germany were salted from the top, which I think it is a very good design for getting a good coating on everything.

Anne salting

The kiln was opened up last Wednesday and the results were good.

Interior of the kiln after firing. Photo by Anne

I didn't have that many pieces in the kiln, just some tests of forms and clay bodies. The rope handle pitchers and small jars I made a while ago turned out well. I am glad that I recently made larger teapots though because the final teapots I made previously are much smaller than what I think should go with a tea set (something I'm working on). And the ring vases turned out well too, so I definitely think I will make some more soon. Here are some photos of the results:

Two mugs. The glass melted very nicely and flowed through the faceting splendidly.

The glass also blushed with some reds, which was new to me! Whether it was off-gasing from a glaze, or just the atmostphere of a gas fired kiln, I don't know! Ah, the wonders of making pottery!

Small lidded jar. This lid turned out pretty well. Some of the lids ended up standing above the rim, which only means I need to work on lids more!

Interior of lidded jar with lid on the side

Rope handled pitcher

Top of pitcher (the lighting looks good to me too!)

The twists stayed in tact and picked up the salt nicely. Feels good too.

Another pitcher top

Ring vase

Top of ring vase

Third Friday

This past Third Friday at the North Carolina Arts Incubator was a little quiet, but they have a great exhibition up to support the Haw River Assembly! If you have a chance and are in the area, I highly recommend going to see it. The exhibition is of the Paintbrush Forest project.

Showing how I smooth the edges of my pulled handles by running my thumbs down the side

I brought my work up from the basement studio area and finished up some teapots with a small audience.  It's always great to have a chance to talk about your work as you're doing it and having people ask questions. It makes me think more about the whole process and get a second set of eyes analyzing how I proceed. I put handles on a set of mugs and finished up some teapots I threw earlier last week.

Attaching the handle and talking about placement and making sure it is securely attached

When I attach the spout to the teapots which have spiral facets, I always feel like the base of the spout looks a little odd. I think it's because I don't feel like the smooth base blends in well with the spiraled side. So I have been adding decorations to the base of the spouts on my teapots lately.

Two new teapots. A little larger than the last ones. 

I showed a few decorations when I debuted some new teapots, but I've been going for a little more this time around.

Close-up of the decoration at the base of the spout

I'm excited about putting together a few tea sets and the (hopeful) exquisite outcome!

Winter Messages

I've been making some dishes similar to the piece below:

Wood-fired stoneware dish. I like the broad rim and the slightly dipped-in interior.

I also really enjoy how this shape has a bowled interior, but a straight exterior edge. I've also started rolling the rim, making it a little thicker than what is in the photo.

 I've been thinking about the potter Lester Breininger lately(I've linked an article by he and Greg Kramer since he doesn't have a website. A photo of him can be found here). Lester is a renowned potter and scholar who specializes in traditional Pennsylvania German red earthenware. He has very infamous  "porch sales" at his rather large and rambling home in Robesonia, Pennsylvania where people come from all over to see and buy his pottery. I picked up a few pieces about a year or so ago, and found that most of his dishes/plates have little messages or notes on the back. They're notes like, "it rained today" or, "It was sunny." 

Dish made by Lester Breininger Pottery.

The back of the dish reads, "Breininger Pottery/Robesonia, Pa./March 11, 2009/cloudy skies"

 I was told once about a "dirt dish" someone has that on the back was written something along the lines of "I made this for ---- who lives down the road and past the tree" which I also thought was kind of nice. So I decided to start writing some observations on my dishes. Here are my first few messages (sorry they're a little hard to read, I had just scratched them in and had not cleaned them up yet):

"Started to warm up today and the sun came out." Full date.

"Ice and some snow remains in the shade." I think I might just go with month and year.

I guess someday when the waster pile at my pottery studio is excavated hundreds of years from now (hahaha) people will have to piece together my funny messages. Remember potters, ceramics do not break down, so everything you make is likely to get dug up somewhere! Frightening thought isn't it? It makes me self conscious about the first pots I made...

Austin, Texas

Doorknob at the State Capitol in Austin, Texas

Texas was one of those states which seemed like an interesting place to go if I ever got the chance, but I didn't think it would be one of the states I would actually make it to someday (nothing against Texas!). Well, that changed when I was invited to present on a panel at the Society for Historical Archaeology (SHA) conference in Austin, Texas!

What in the world would you present at an archaeology conference, you might ask?
Well, my Master's thesis with the Winterthur Program in American Material Culture was on the Moravian potters and pottery of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Because there are no intact objects with firm attribution to the Bethlehem Moravian potters, the work was largely archaeological. By reassessing and analyzing archaeological material excavated in the 1970s, and doing a lot of archival research, I found some really great things.

Archaeological ceramic sherd excavated in the Moravian Industrial Quarter of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The dark red color is the lead glaze which remains on the red earthenware body, and the lined pattern is from the white slip trailing which has popped off. Courtesy, Historic Bethlehem.

Archaeological ceramic sherd excavated in the Moravian Industrial Quarter of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The yellow slip trailing is actually white, but appears yellow beneath the lead glaze. Green, white, and black were the three most prominant slip colors used. Courtesy, Historic Bethlehem.

The SHA conference presentation revolved around some archival evidence I found that the Bethlehem Moravian potters may have been sending pottery to the Virgin Islands. I have been working with Stephen Lenik who has been excavating in the Virgin Islands, and we have been comparing archaeological sherds from the Virgin Islands and Bethlehem (keep your eyes peeled, we're working on an article!).
    I also went to the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum and got to see some mid-nineteenth century stoneware produced in Texas with alkaline glaze. I never realized that pottery was being produced as early as 1839 in Texas! I also got a chance to go and see the State Capitol and the rotunda inside:

State Capitol in Austin, Texas

Rotunda in State Capitol

And, in case you ever wondered where O'Henry lived in Austin, Texas for a few years before going to jail and then New York, well, here it is:

O'Henry House, Austin, Texas.

Not Going to the Studio Today!

The only problem with not having my studio in my backyard is that I cannot get there with bad weather! My intention of going into the studio has been put on hold until everything thaws! So I thought I would just share a few photos I took around my house of the ice accumulation, and I'll work on getting a post up about this past weekend. I went to the Society for Historical Archaeology conference in Austin, Texas, and had a great time presenting, talking to archaeologists about new projects, and learning about various excavations and components of studying archaeology! Nerdy? Yes. I'm okay with that. Stay warm and safe!

The Beginning of a New Year

A happy new year to you all!
I made it into the studio on Saturday, January 1st after doing my best to make it to midnight the night before, and making it to about 12:05. A glass of champagne, and then I was gone (I didn't drink the whole glass in 5 minutes, I promise)! While my few hours at the studio on Saturday were not as productive as I had hoped, I did get to making a few things I've been thinking about. I finished them up this evening.
My first intention with these guys was for them to accompany the teapots I am working on. However, these jars ended up being almost the same size as the teapots! Now to ponder just how large should a "sugar dish/jar" be?

Lidded jars

On to pitchers. I had made this pitcher last spring:

Pitcher with twisted handle. Flashing slip on exterior, wood-fired.

Handle detail

It had been my intention to make a few more of these pitchers, but it got put on a backburner. I worked on tightening up the twist and making the curve of the handle more balanced. When I first made this type of handle I was concerned with how it would feel in the hand, but was surprised that it actually fits quite nicely and is not awkward. So here a few of the new(er) pitchers:

Tighted up the twist, and have been playing with handle terminals

May the new year be productive for all, and each day a happy and learning experience.

A Loving Present

I've been anticipating the day I could share this with you all! Several friends recently had this beautiful bundle of joy named Nora:

When I heard they were expecting, I immediately started plotting the perfect baby present. What better thing for a pair of antique scholars than a modern-day loving cup?



Nottingham area loving cup from England, dated 1812. I really enjoy the incised lines and the roulette decoration on this.
http://www.petworthantiquecentre.co.uk/dealer-products.asp?pid=618&did=26&dealername=Deborah+Serpell

Historically, the loving cup was a two-handled vessel often presented for births, weddings, or other commemorative events. The equivalent would be a trophy by today's standards. In the ceramic world, the loving cups were often scratched with decorative motifs, dates, and names (not always!). I especially enjoy the ones made around the area of Nottingham, England which produced a rich brown salt-glazed stoneware.  Here is the version I made for Nora:

I did not extrude the handles, as I currently do not have an extruder, and wanted to try pulling a thinner handle to see how it would look.

Around the rim I used metal stamp letters to write a note to Nora:

The stamps read "Welcome to the World Nora"

I made a second one as well which had a larger rim, but chose to give Nora the more proportionate one. Or, as someone pointed out, if Nora ever knocks it off the shelf, I can send her the second one! Here is the second version:

                                                     

While the piece above has a higher rim than the other, I felt that with the placement of the handles, and the fact that the handles were pulled, made the other one look more proportioned. I thought (and hope!) this was a very loving gift to give to a very lovely little girl!