Dragon Vase

So, I have a commission to do a 37 cm tall vase (a little over 14 inches tall) and I decided that I should do some practice stacker pots to make sure that I can still throw tall (I've been throwing so many mugs lately!). And the vase you see is the result.

Also, there is a wood salt firing coming up next weekend. I wasn't sure I would complete much of anything in time, but I sure was going to try. A friend had given me 3 bags of Danish White with sand clay, and since that clay takes color very well in wood firings, I knew what clay to use. Just needed to make something.

Made the vase. I really liked how it turned out. The main body is made up of two cylinders that were merged and blended and shaped together. The neck and top part of the vase is a separate cylinder that I attached after trimming. I was very pleased with it. Now, my original idea was to sculpt a dragon on the vase.  But, since I liked the shape of the vase so much, I posted a photo and asked my friends whether or not I should add a dragon. Although a few people said "no", a great majority said "DRAGON!"

And so... here you go... a dragon vase:

RAWR!

Now, the dragon is made of the same clay as the vase. I decided to add some underglaze to the dragon so that it will look different from the rest of the vase when it is fired. Remember, wood fired pieces usually get color from the type of wood you use in the firing. And although you may not get uniform colors, the results can be unexpected. By underglazing the dragon, I will add a bit of control on the end result. I will definitely post photos when it is completed.

And finally, here is a photo of me underglazing my dragon. Photo taken by a friend.

A new Tree Woman and underglazing a fish

Some of you might recall the trimmed Tree Woman. One of the BHC sale customers really liked her and at the time, I wasn't willing to sell her. Now, since she's been trimmed, I can't sell her. So, at long last, I'm work on a new one. Here's the body of the new Tree Woman thrown out of Sculpture Raku. I think that I'll be adding some to her base to make it look kind of like the bird bath I was working on (which, by the way, is done and drying. Pictures to come!)



Now, since I like to change up what I make, here's what I've been working on.
I've been sketching big eyed designs such as the fish above with the intention of painting them on little plates. I do have to make some pasta bowls before I can make the little plates. But, I'm excited to have a new project/goal in mind.

A few weeks ago, I found a bisqued bowl and I decided to underglaze it. I had no idea what to underglaze, but it's a good test to see how the colors work and how easy it is to paint this type of work.
I'm thinking that it needs some blue around it. Or not. I will think about it. Hope to get it glazed tomorrow, so I can't spend too long thinking about it.

Phoenix pot

Painted the Phoenix pot with various yellows, oranges and a red underglaze. I think I'm pretty happy with it so far. We'll see how it is after it's been completely glazed and fired.

I also underglazed a bowl with a bunch of different blues. I'm not too happy with how it's looking, but will paint a few more things on it that will hopefully make it better.

Underglaze is basically pigment and clay in a very liquidy form. It's meant to be applied "under the glaze", hence its name.

I will be re-bisque firing these before applying the clear glaze over them. This will hopefully prevent the underglaze from streaking or getting messy especially with the cone 10 clear glaze since it's so watery. It might not matter with the phoenix pot as I will be brushing the glaze on it and smudging the underglaze might make it took cool. I shall have to think about it. I plan to do a few more pieces that will require a cone 6 glaze so I might wait until I get all those pieces made before I fire up the Phoenix pot.

No pictures tonight, maybe tomorrow or Tuesday.