Pottery Progress

Sorry I rarely post anymore. I am never home anymore to have access to my computer. I am practically living at the ceramic studio these days. I finished painting the rabbit this weekend! Wahoo!!! I'll post more about that when I get better photos. For now I will share my wheel throwing adventures. Since I started back up with Clay Arts Vegas back in August I have been experimenting with both sculpting and practicing my pottery making. After finishing the rabbit I needed a break from sculpture. I learned how to make handles last week and have been having a lot of fun with mug making.

First attempt at handle building.

Round two of handle making and mugs.

Experiments with under glazing and decoration.

Tuesday I was introduced to a new clay body and am infatuated! It is smooth and creamy to work with and resembles chocolate. How can a girl resist!? I am able to throw really thin pots the way I like. I have been fighting the various clays I've been working with so far. Up until this point, I might have been able to produce 4 bowls in one sitting, because the rest flopped. Last night I was able to crank out all the pots in the photo below. I think all the practicing I've been doing contributed to it, but I also think I found the right clay for me. The only down fall I've found so far with this clay is that it stains my hands really bad and is a pain to clean up. Trust me though, it SO worth it!!! The next step is glaze experiments. I have a knack for turning my beautiful creations ugly when I  glaze them. Fingers crossed! No uglies!

Rabbit Update

I'm officially done with the building of the rabbit sculpture. It has to dry now before it can be put into the kiln to be fired. Once it has been fired, I can begin the painting process. I'm going to use oil paints to paint the clouds and add cherry blossoms and branches across the rabbit. For now, I'm going to play with throwing again and then back to some smaller sculptures I started prior to the rabbit.

Rabbit Zodiac Sign for Chinese New Year Project

A month and a half ago I was selected to be one a over a dozen artists in a collaboration piece to create a totem of the Chinese zodiac symbols for City Hall here in Las Vegas. The work will be on display from November to February. The twelve zodiac signs will be displayed as three totems.

I was chosen to create the symbol of the rabbit. I drew my inspiration for this project from Chinese calligraphy work and fabrics as well as Beth Cavener Stichter's sculptural work. I began by acquainting myself with the anatomy of rabbits by drawing them from every angle. I found myself drawn more towards hares for their strength and musculature.

One of the many phases of the face.

Once I decided to jump into the sculpting of the rabbit it has been a roller coaster ride of highs and lows. For every thing I have been successful building, I have rebuilt it dozens of times. I have had the whole back end fall off, the legs fall off repeatedly, and have redone the face at least three times for every time I have worked on the sculpture. Whew! Yes, it has been and fight and a struggle. This piece is the largest sculptural work I have ever made. I have learned SO much by building this rabbit! I have definitely been learning how paper clay works. I've also been improving my building and sculpting techniques and processes.  You're constantly having to reevaluate the steps in which to build something of this scale. It has become a wonderful puzzle that has to go together in a specific order to make all the pieces fit.

Adding the cloud to the belly.

I'm currently in the home stretch of the building process and will hopefully be finishing it this week. After that it has to dry for a week or so to be ready for firing. Once it is fired, I'm going to paint it with oil paints.

I fixed the ear after I took this photo, but this pic shows off the upper cloud.

I love the line this ear creates! Finally starting to resemble a rabbit!

Sculptural Progress

As I was putting the final touches on my sculpture yesterday I was approached by a fantastic couple who were admiring her. We spoke of the inspiration and thought process of her creation. They had a lot of great questions and I thoroughly enjoyed talking with them. I don't know that I have ever had such an amazing conversation about my work with someone before. I'm still basking in the afterglow. Throughout the evening they came to check on my progress and to speak more about my art and of her. Both husband and wife spoke of a spiritual connection to the piece, which is more than any artist can ask for. Needless to say, they were completely enamored and offered to purchase her as soon as she is complete. She has about three weeks to dry before I will be able to fire her in the kiln and then she will be painted. My mind is still reeling that someone would want to buy my piece before it's even completed!

Here are some more progress shots. She is dreaming and has a landscape of a forest, cabin, and river running across the top of her hair and fading off into the distance. These are photos of the addition of the trees. The river and cabin came after these photos were taken.