Final result after Second and higher temperature Firing.
The combination of glazes created new layers of new colours and the LAVA glaze created its craters, just disappointed I didn't have time to take better macro images, but overall very happy with the final result.
These are the results of my finished project ' Narrative of the Senses" Clay +
These pieces were fired in a second and higher temperature firing.
I would loved to have finished these images properly by using a macro lens to catalogue the changes of the glazes and to give the pieces their best possible display, but I ran out of time in the semester to fully complete the process to my satisfaction.
A number of my pieces were de-constructed , re-used in a second exploratory piece and re-fired at a higher temperature over 1000 degrees.
The results are different with such a vibrant popping of the colours.
Even though I like the softness of the first result, its great to see the difference with just a higher firing and also how much harder the material becomes.
For my last work in semester 2 I threw clay on the wheel to make plates.
Tutors Elaine Riordan and Mary Conroy showed me how to get started. Elaine demonstrated how to make a side plate. As the final week was coming to an end she also showed me a handbuilding technique for plates using a table standing wheel.
I'm looking forward to building my experience on the wheel next year.
While I was investigating how I wanted to layer with spices to create a visually interesting sculptural piece, I returned to one of the first practices we learned in ceramics elective workshops of using paper to create the structure first before we moved to clay.
As part of research and designing for a ceramics project, having a documentation process can be a valuable part where the ideas are informed by what is around us.
So I was happy to try out the school camera equipment before our first year comes to an end. I used a macro lens to take images of my primary research.
This is how I arrived in my thinking process of 'layering' as a study of how spices and many other ingredients are layered to create a tasty edible dish.
Tutor Elaine Riordan has a wonderful catalogue of books which she introduces us to for our research. She has a collection of out of publication magazines called BLOOM.. which I absoletely enjoyed leafing through and finding inspiration from them.
I like how this artist worked with the idea of layering clay. he achieved a refined look which I would like to work towards by learning to use paper clay in my continuing ceramics discipline.
He has achieved texture within the folds and shapes he created with paper clay material which is something I practiced with using other materials.
Some of my results with creating layers using clay slips and an interesting glaze called Lava/crater glaze spread inbetween the various slices of layers.
This was fired at a low temperature, I like the result so far but I plan to refire this piece at a higher temperature to hopefully get a different appearance with the glazes melting into each other.
I also used a macro lense in the photography studio with Tutor Paul Tarpey to take some of these images.
I have quite a good few of macro images taken which gives me options when editing and choosing how I could use them in various settings , e.g.; in a background or a display
Dipping material into clay slip,
these images below are some of the results after the first low temperature firing.
I plan to re-use these pieces in something else and refire at a higher temperature to observe how they will change again.
I began a second layering project which seemed to take longer to dry this time, I think because I made the clay slip layers thicker. I didnt get to work as quickly with the material in order to get a more refined result this time.
so I know what to improve on with timing and drying of thickness of clay. A valuable lesson with clay.
Work in progress and cataloging the process as I go.
I began with several clay slips mixed with different colors. I worked in layers by pouring a colored slip on the molding bats and allowing it to dry before pouring on the next layer of Clay slip.
I interchanged with strips of cloth materials.
This image is of the layers dried out overnight and cut into square pieces. I layered them placing other clay structures I had dipped in clay slip and allowed to dry.
There is cardboard, cloth strips, hessian layered in with dipping glazes and Lava /crater glazes.
It is fully assembles and placed in a Sager before it is fired in the kiln.
For my research I prefer to scavenge through books rather than relying on online google searches of the most part. I was introduced to an interesting series of books by Tutor Elaine Riordan in ceramics elective.
I am inquiring into the layering process of spices that occurs when preparing a meal. I am interested in the expanding practice of our elective and this for me took me down a road of incorporating textiles to create or re-create shapes with clay by studying various spices.
I spent a week investigating CLAY SLIP which is a material I hadn't used in the previous semesters.
As I cannot put actual spices/food into the Kiln I am experimenting with coloured slips for now.
I cut pieces of paper from the image below taken from a second book of the same series, to make a paper structure resemblance of one idea I have of layering, I am going to make this with clay.
Helen Beard is one of many inspirational artists working with Clay. As part of our Clay + Narrative of the senses project I researched helens work to inspire my own ideas.
I continue to explore how I want to display the sense of SIGHT/VISUAL sense of Spices into ceramics.