My Ceramic Pieces - Glazing

Just before holiday break I have managed to glaze some of my pieces. I wanted to duplicate the effect achieved on small test bowl, unfortunately with no luck. The small bowl was glazed with Bottle Green and then dipped in Yellow. The effect of running Yellow was exactly what I was after. Unfortunately I think the top glaze on oven dish was to thinly put on, so the Yellow has not run, but rather disappeared. I should get used to failure. Second oven dish is sprayed the other way round, Bottle Green on top of Yellow.

Tuz przed przerwa wakacyjna udalo mi sie poszkliwic czesc moich prac. Chcialam zduplikowac efekt jaki udalo mi sie osiagnac na malej miseczce, no ale jak zwykle bezskutecznie. Miseczka byla pociagnieta Zielenia Butelkowa, pozniej zamoczona w Zolci i wlasnie efekt splywajacej zolci chcialam skopiowac. Niestety mam wrazenie, ze wierzchnia warstwa szkliwa byla za cienka, wiec zolc nie pociekla a zniknela w zieleni. Powinnam juz sie przyzwyczaic do tego, ze jestem noga w szkliwieniu. Drugie naczynie do pieczenia zostalo pociagniete szkliwami na odwrot, czyli Zielen Butelkowa na Zolci.

My ceramic pieces - Turning

Yesterday I have turned my pieces and added handles... these are my first handles ever ... :D

Wczaraj wykonczylam na kole moje ubieglotygodniowe prace i dadalam uszy... moje pierwsze uchwyty :D

My Ceramic Pieces - After a Long Absence

Eventually I have managed to go back to the studio. I was quite apprehensive ate first, as it's been... 12 week? maybe even more, and i was really afraid that I have forgotten everything. Thankfully, it was not that bad, I have managed produce few things that have not landed in a bin. Overall quite chuffed with myself.

Po dlugiej przerwie, w koncu udalo mi sie wpasc do studia. Chyba z 3 miesiace mnie tam nie bylo, a moze nawet dluzej? Troche sie obawialam, ze wszystko zapomnialam, ale nie bylo tak zle. Udalo mi sie "popelnic" pare kawalkow, ktore nie wyladowaly w koszu.

Ceramic Voyages - Calu Fontes

I am smitten. Utterly. Me, the patternphobe and colourphobe is absolutely, head over heels in love with the pattern crazed pieces of Calu Fontes. And here is why:
There is not much written in English about Calu Fontes, so here is a wee blurb about her from LAMA (Latin American in the Middle Age)

Starting with a youthful desire to create a “more colorful life for others,” independent Brazilian artist Calu Fontes employs a range of techniques – hand painted images, illustrations, and graphic transfers – to create truly unique ultra-colored porcelain pieces. Each item is a hand-made, one-of-a-kind creation that incorporates myriad graphics, images, and symbols inspired by the diversity of Brazil’s cultural, religious, and musical landscape. Painstakingly created one layer at a time in high temperature ovens, images get mixed with and superimposed on one another, allowing Calu to fashion any and everything that her imagination dreams up. The result: an explosion of graphics, fantastic colors, and ornate configurations that transform objects into Art. LAMA is proud to be the sole distributor of Calu Fontes’ masterful creations in the United States.

You can find more Calu Fontes pieces on her Flickr photostream. Enjoy it!

Ceramic Voyages - Ceramic Art London 2010 - A to H

Lately I hate everything I make in the studio. Even if the beginnings are promising, the end result is just... crap (pardon my French, but i am really frustrated with myself). So yet again, no update on my work.

Ceramic Art London is coming soon, so I had a peek at the exhibitors. A to H.

Duncan Ayscough - fantastic glazes. Do I really need to say more? Especially the last rounded pot seems to radiate with gold from within.





more Duncan Ayscough ceramic

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Peter Beard - brilliant mix of colour and texture. I adore his sculptures. The combination of colours and the precision with which they are applied is fantastic. If I am not mistaken I have read somewhere that the effect is achieved by using silicon filler.







more Peter Beard's pieces

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Matthew Chambers - his work has been fascinating me for ages. It reminds me of Chinese puzzles. Elegant, simple, yet quite complex.



more Matthew Chambers work

Inspired - Formafantasma

Aren't these delicious? There is something homely about them. Maybe it's their crispy rustic shapes, or maybe warm crusty browns, or wholesome homely feeling? Or maybe, just maybe, they are made out of dough? Think baking, think bread.






These pieces were created by FormaFantasma, duo of Italian designers based in Netherlands. It was a part of “Baked” collection - a commission for an exhibition presented during Dutch Design Week, on the theme “Getting Lost”. "Baked" is inspired by a Sicilian folk event in Salemi, where a flour based material is used to create architectural decorations. But for me what is even more amazing than the idea of making 'ceramics' out of a bread dough is a use of ceramics moulds to create the objects! How fab is that!



More of FormaFantasma works is available here

My ceramic pieces - 2 bowls

I have tried to make a similar bowl to the plate made by A Plate A Week .

I love the simplicity of it, although I must say that I am not happy with my results, so this bowl is a test piece. I have resprayed it hoping for clearer lines. If this will work, I think i will make a series of bowls like this, with bananas, apples, kiwi, etc. Another bowl turned to test piece. One of these days I will make something that I am happy with. The decorating technique worked this time, but I am not happy with the texture. It is way to "rough" and prominent in the areas where stems were thick and strong. Not too keen on it, although S seems to like it. I have resprayed it with four different semitranslucent glazes, to see what effect may be achieved. I will definitely redo this bowl, as the effect is brilliant.

My ceramic pieces - learning to turn

I've been trying my hand in turning. I've been even trying my both hands in turning. ( i know it's a lame joke, I've just could not stop myself). May I just say... I hate centring. I hate it and despise it and then hate it some more. But the rest is fun! I do not have pictures from my first session. The pictures below are from last two sessions. I am quite chuffed with myself, after three sessions I can turn by myself. I know these are not perfect. I know I have loads to learn, but still... well done silly old me!

My ceramic pieces - mish mash

Surprise, surprise... I am not happy. This is not pink I have wanted, and the shading is nonexistent. On the other hand, a shape works a charm for brollies!

My lovely rhubarb forcer. The contrast between a glaze and terracotta works well. I wanted the glaze to run more, so I have sprayed extra layer of clear, but it did not work really. I need another two of those!



First attempt at nachos bowl. The olive glaze looks quite flat here, but in fact it stands out quite well. I need to work on smoother connection of two bowls. Also after speaking with Argillae, I will start to sand my work before if will go for first firing. This should eventually allow me for smooth and even edges.



And last but not least! This is what I am working on at the moment - beside learning how to turn (!) I wanted to make series of vases with wide oval base and tall necks. I have used bowls moulds, but the shapes did not work at all. So, I could either be left with 4 bowls, or totally change my concept. So here it is. It is a work in progress, so bare with me :D