September 15, 2009
Daniel Johnston does not blush about his humble beginnings, nor will he turn his back on the historical influences that shaped who he is today. In fact, by way of introduction, he insists on announcing his genealogy in clay. "I have been trained in the Leach, Cardew and Hewitt school of making pots," his artist statement and our interview begin. Bernard Leach is widely recognized as the grandfather of studio pottery in the United States and Michael Cardew was Leach's student. From 1997 to 2001, Johnston apprenticed with Mark Hewitt, a student of Cardew's. As Johnston began to navigate from these influences toward a voice of his own, an additional triumvirate of geographical influences came together: England, Thailand, and North ...Already Registered? Please sign in.
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September 9, 2009
Master potter and impeccable craftsman Jeffrey Nichols talks about finding one's voice by developing your techniques and your ideas over a period of time. He also demonstrates his accumulated skills by sharing his technique for making a faceted teapot and using his unique decorating technique of layered underglazes.September 2, 2009
Glazing Wheel: A Resourceful Potter Makes the Ideal Tool for Glazing Large Pots
Preferring the look of poured or dipped ceramic glazes to brushed or sprayed, potter Daniel Johnston had to come up with a system of pouring his glazes that minimized waste and gave him the look he wanted. So he came up with the perfect tool - a glazing wheel. Today, Daniel shares how he made his glazing wheel and discusses his glazing technique. Plus, he tells us a little about the large-jar construction techniques he learned in Thailand.August 31, 2009
Getting the Most out of Ceramic Glazes and Underglazes Available for Download
Today we have another great download available for Ceramic Arts Daily Subscribers (insert drumroll): Getting the Most out of Ceramic Glazes and Underglazes: Using Commercial Ceramic Glazes and Underglazes to Achieve Color, Depth, and Complexity. And Im going to give you a sneak peek right here with an excerpt.July 22, 2009
In today's post, Robin Hopper gives some expert pointers on how to solve five of the most common pottery glaze problems.July 10, 2009
Mini Pottery Workshop Video: Three Nuggets of Wisdom from an Expert Potter
A couple of years ago, master potter Tom Turner hosted a two-day workshop. Fortunately, for those who were not lucky enough to attend the workshop, he had the whole thing filmed and turned it into a DVD. The DVD is chock full of little nuggets of wisdom that come from Turner's many years of making pottery. I picked out three of those little nuggets to share with you today.June 10, 2009
Brushwork on Ceramics: A Multitude of Decorative Possibilities for Pottery
Robin Hopper talks about the importance of a good brush and demonstrates one type of maiolica-style on-glaze decoration that can be created on pottery using different colored glazes, a brush and a slip trailer.February 19, 2009
Lichens and Lizards and Leopards, Oh My! Reticulated Glaze Recipes For Wild Ceramic Surfaces
Glazes are sometimes formulated to intentionally crawl and create reticulated surfaces resembling lichens, leopard coats, or lizard skin. Today, Robin Hopper presents a slip recipe and a base glaze recipes for such an effect, and gives examples of this slip and glaze combination with various ceramic colorants added.February 9, 2009
The Old Mud-Pie Dilemma: Making Ceramic Art and Making Ends Meet
Today, we’ll show you some of Tom and Elaine Coleman’s work and talk about their working methods. Plus we’ll throw in a couple of the Coleman’s glaze recipes for good measure.February 4, 2009
Freeze Frame: Using Photography to Capture Inspiration for Ceramic Art
Today, we'll see some of ceramic artist Lee Akin's photographs and learn how he uses stains, glazes and underglazes to create surfaces inspired by his photographs. Plus, Lee shares some of the slip and glaze recipes he uses to achieve the effects that he wants.February 2, 2009
No Scale? No Problem. Using a Volumetric Glaze Recipe for Ceramic Glaze Testing
Mixing ceramic glazes from scratch can be intimidating to those just getting started. And sometimes it just isn’t practical or possible to purchase or have access to an accurate gram scale. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that mixing glazes is out of the question. As Sumi Von Dassow explains in today’s post, mixing ceramic glazes with a volumetric recipe can be a great way to get your feet wet and learn more about ceramic glaze materials in the process. - Jennifer Harnetty, editor.November 5, 2008
Ceramic glaze recipes are to potters and sculptors like candy is to a kid on Halloween. We just can't seem to get enough! The cone 6 oxidation glaze recipes in today's feature were contributed by Lou Roess.November 3, 2008
Adding Depth to Your Ceramic Surfaces with Commercial Glazes, Part II
Last week, we shared one way to use a mixture of commercial glazes and custom-mixed glazes to make interesting surfaces on your pottery. Today, we’ll share two more effects Lisa Bare Culp has come up with using pouring and layering to create visual texture. She also uses a tactile texture to add another layer of interest and complexity. Try these techniques with the same glazes she uses or with your own. Happy testing!October 29, 2008
Adding Depth to Your Ceramic Surfaces with Commercial Glazes, Part I
A lot of potters have very specific attitudes about ceramic glazes. Well, we have very specific attitudes about a lot of things, but for the purposes of this feature we'll just stick to glazes. There is a certain level of pride and accomplishment—even ownership—associated with mixing your own glazes. Why shouldn't there be? Glaze mixing and testing is really complicated and can involve a lot of testing and time and effort, but not everyone has the interest or inclination to delve into the complexities of chemical and mathematical formulation. Luckily, some of the folks who really get into this kind of thing have jobs testing and making glazes—and then they make those glazes available for purchase. Some folks use commercial ...October 22, 2008
That Looks Fishy: Diana Pittis’ Raku Glaze Recipes
In a previous feature, Diana Pittis shared the innovations she made to her raku firing technique to make firing her fish sculptures as efficient and successful as possible. Check it out here to see her specially fabricated firing tongs and the raku cradle she made for her fish. Today, we bring you her glaze recipes and decorating techniques for acheiving realistic-looking surfaces. Through trial and error, she has come up with a way to stay true to the form she is trying to replicate. It looks fishy to me!October 15, 2008
On Monday, we presented a couple of ways that you can expand your glaze palette without purchasing new materials or experimenting with new glaze recipes. If you missed that tip, you can see it in the online archives (along with every other feature we've published---just click on "Features Archive"). As promised, today, Lou Roess shares another handy tip for getting a lot more information out of the glazes you already have. You may discover something new and interesting right in your own studio!October 13, 2008
f you’d like a bigger selection of glaze colors, but don’t have the time or money it takes to mix and test new ones, don’t fret. Working with what you have on hand can yield some interesting results. Today, we’ll show you a couple of simple ways to get more from your studio glazes. Whether you mix your own glazes, use commercial glazes or both, it's easy to get comfortable using the same glazes the same way on the same pieces. That's not necessarily bad, because being comfortable with your methods builds confidence and consistency. However, it's also wise to experiment and stretch a little bit to discover new territory. The methods below show that new territory might not be that ...July 28, 2008
Building up Luminescent Surfaces with Commercial Underglazes
Wow! The first time I saw photos of Jeffrey Nichols’ pottery (and pretty much every subsequent time), I couldn’t help but say wow. I’d suspect it is a fairly typical reaction to the vibrant (and vibrant is a bit of an understatement) surfaces of his vessels. Well, today, Jeffrey kindly shares his technique with us.June 18, 2008
Electric Kiln Success: How to Get Exciting Ceramic Surfaces with Cone 6 Glazes
Jonathan has developed some methods with which he tweaks his glazes and his firing schedule to add some oomph to his ceramic surfaces. Today he shares his techniques for enlivening Cone 6 glazes and some of his favorite Cone 6 ceramic glaze recipes.May 21, 2008
Low-Tech Silk Screens: An Easy Way to Repeat Images on Ceramic Art
Today’s feature comes to us from Ceramic Arts Daily subscriber C.A. Sanger of Waterville, Kansas. She was inspired to send this technique when she read Brad Menninga's article “Making Custom Silk Screens for Ceramics,” which ran a couple of weeks ago. Sanger offers this tip as a way to make simple silk screens with inexpensive materials you might already have around the house or studio. Be sure to try combining this process with the technique explained in Susan Kotulak’s feature “From Flat to Round: Screen Printing Glaze Patterns onto Pottery.” I am sure it will open up new creative directions in your work!May 7, 2008
Making Custom Silk Screens for Ceramics: Printing Process Opens Up Pottery Decorating Possibilities
So readers, after Monday’s feature From Flat to Round: Screen Printing Glaze Patterns onto Pottery, are you ready to try using foam to silk screen glaze onto pots? Well, as promised, today we are going to cover the steps in making a custom silk screen so you can be well on your way. Portland, Oregon, ceramic artist Brad Menninga explains the process below.May 5, 2008
From Flat to Round: Screen Printing Glaze Patterns onto Pottery
Today’s ceramic technique was adapted from another artistic process: screen-printing textiles. Printing onto clay is not a new technique. A browse through the Pottery Making Illustrated back issues, including the most recent issue, turns up lots of articles on various ways to print on clay. But the following method was a new twist that I hadn't seen before. Though she had started out her artistic career as a potter, life’s twists and turns caused Susan Kotulak to shift gears and pursue textile arts. But the clay called her back and she now works actively in both media. It’s no surprise, then, that having this dual focus would eventually lead to the two processes influencing one another. This super cool technique ...April 11, 2008
Tip of the Week: Make Your Own Hydrometer for Glazing Success
In this week’s Tip of the Week, potter Mea Rhee of Silver Spring, Maryland, tells us how to make a homemade, low-tech hydrometer for the clay studio. Whether you go high-tech or low-tech, a hydrometer can help you achieve consistent results when glazing!March 29, 2008
Peter Sharpe of Rimbey, Alberta, Canada, came up with this clever solution for glazing difficult-to-dip pots.March 10, 2008
After reading Gail Nichols’ book Soda, Clay and Fire and her article in Ceramics Monthly by the same name, Mark Bollwinkel and his potter friends decided to do some experimenting with soda firing in the wood kiln they fire together.
