Choice Project

For this project, I set out to make a realistic human hand! I like the way the texture and shape turned out, though it was difficult to make it completely realistic. This piece turned a little gruesome when two of the fragile fingers popped off during the first fire! Since it was nearly Halloween (and I didn't know how else to flip the narrative of the broken fingers) I added blood so it looked like the fingers were severed... muah hah hah.... I think this is the best glazing job I've done yet! I used a slightly different layering technique so I will continue doing that.

Slab Structure With Darts

I made this piece for my dad, who really likes oak trees. I think the act of making the slab cup itself went great, and it is my new favorite technique for forming cups. I tried to add a dynamic (though not functional) touch with a branch coming off. I also tried to add contrast in the leaves (one has a raised veins and midrib, the other has veins and midrib cut in, and I also swapped the colors). Overall, I like this piece and my dad does too. However, the glaze job is not my favorite; some green from the inside stained the rawhide color on the outside, and the edges between colors are really unclean.

Coil Pot

For this project, I made a small coil pot using as many types of coils as I could. I wanted to make it look very ornate and Baroque. I was very proud of the results after the first fire, but it was a little gappy. I used crystal glaze for interest, but I laid it on too heavily and it turned a darker brown than I would have liked without many red spots. I like the base of this project, but I wish I had fixed the gaps and done a different glaze for more of a Baroque-inspired coloring.

Slump Mold & Sgraffito

I combined two projects to create this bowl. Made from a slump mold, this bowl took a lot of trial and error to create, but I finally succeeded. I underglazed the inside orange and the outside red. I used sgraffito and carved "YUM" on the inside (so you see it when you finish your food!) During the first firing, someone else's glaze got on my piece, forcing me to take another direction. I glazed with a crystal glaze for interest but clear glazed over the sgraffito letters and left a little "halo" of underglaze around them to catch the eye. I think this piece looks great, but could be smoother in terms of glaze and the build.