technical tuesday: How to Make a Conical Pattern or Template for Slab Forming in Clay

by | Jun 12, 2018 | Uncategorized

This video quickly shows how I create templates with my students for conical forms. I first create a large “chart” or master drawing of concentric circles in lots of different sizes. Then, I uses some radial lines to subdivide the circles into arches. After the drawing is ready, I take something see through like tracing paper, or acetate, and trace over an arch ending the ends at the radial lines. Once it is cut out, you can see what the conical form looks like. It may take a bit of experimentation to get just the right curve, height, and length… but once you have played around with it, you will find this a great tool to make any of your own templates for a great variety of forms! The material I use is mylar, and I purchase it from Amazon by the foot. I buy the 24″ size, but it comes in various widths. I love it for patterns for my students, as we can wash them when they are dirty, but they are sturdy enough they will hold up for years! Here is a link to what I purchase, although I realize it may be a US link, I don’t know how that works! 😉 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00… Sandi Pierantozzi, the wonderful potter from Philly, (married to equally awesome potter Neil Patterson) has a website where she sells templates commercially- here is her site if you would like to purchase hers premade! https://circlematic.com/ I am a public high school ceramics teacher at William Mason High School in Mason, Ohio. (Mason is currently the largest high school in Ohio!) As a potter, I have been working in clay for over 30 years, and I have been teaching for over 28 years, the past 20 have been specifically teaching high school ceramics. I love what I do! I have my own studio in my home basement, where I work on my personal pottery for my Etsy site; https://www.etsy.com/shop/KaransPotsA… I started my Youtube channel a few years ago, to make videos to help my students if they are absent and miss a demo, or if they would like to explore more advanced techniques independently. I have been amazed to reach such a wider audience than my own students! For a list of my FAVORITE TOOLS, check out this link to a Googledoc with lots of my favorites on Amazon using my associate links! https://docs.google.com/document/d/1X… Please subscribe to my channel if you would like to receive channel updates, or would like to learn more about clay and studio processes! Please stop by my Etsy shop https://www.etsy.com/shop/KaransPotsA… to see my personal work! Follow my Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/KaransPotsAn…

technical tuesday: Nixi Artisan Potters

by | May 29, 2018 | technical tuesday

The following is an excerpt text from “Nixi Artisan Potters” via Kathy Erteman’s website. She has had a number of experiences working with contemporary Nixi Artisan Potters.

Please read more of her writing here and find links to further resources and research – and make sure to check out her ceramic work as well.

“The Nixi Potters live in Tandui Village, nestled in a bucolic valley on the Tibetan plateau at 10,000 feet in Yunnan, China. The city of Shangri-la, a tourist destination famous for fresh air, Chinese herbs and Tibetan Culture, is a half hour drive away. The villagers are artisans and farmers, the heirs to a 1200-year-old tradition of pottery production threatened with extinction during the Chinese Cultural Revolution after which time only three artisan families remained in the village. In the ensuing decades the numbers of Nixi potters has steadily increased.  There are now 120 artisan families in the village. 
 
Traditional Nixi pottery is utilitarian black ware with decorative porcelain inlay and carving, used by all Tibetan households for cooking, and cultural and religious ceremonies. This deep tradition of pottery production is the social glue that provides community cohesion and economic opportunity for the entire village. Training of young artisans is done exclusively through apprenticeship with one of the village pottery masters. Apprentices begin by creating their own set of tools from rhododendron root, horn and leather. Apprenticeship is a slow process yet many of the younger generation are now making this choice.”

Below is a video from Youtube demonstrating some of the traditional techniques of these artisans.

 

technical tuesday: How to re-glaze your pottery with Earth Nation Pottery

by | May 1, 2018 | technical tuesday

This video was requested by one of you dirty potters. when re-glazing your pottery remember few things.

1. the reason glaze dries fast when at bisque is because the pores are still open. fully glazed and matured pottery will not have open pores so your really just putting glaze on top of glaze and hoping it will combine with the other glaze when it reaches temp.

2. because of reason #1 you should save a little more time to re-glaze your pots then just regular glazing them.

3. once dry it will smudge very easily , be careful

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