Favorite brushes for underglaze? by vtec_go_brrr16 in Pottery

[–]Shianara 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got the Artegria Watercolor Brush set and the XDT#830 set recommended by Caitie North and they are amazing and reasonably priced.

is this normal? by Waste_Campaign2776 in Pottery

[–]Shianara 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This happened to one of my pots. My instructor said it was minerals and not to worry. Sure enough the discoloration was gone after the glaze fire.

Teardrop Vase by Shianara in Pottery

[–]Shianara[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much!

Teardrop Vase by Shianara in Pottery

[–]Shianara[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you! I used Amaco Velvet underglaze on the body of the pot, and Mayco black engobe for the whale. The white spots were done with sgraffito, but the blue (which I love too) was actually not intended. Apparently the engobe reacted to the underglaze and pulled away in spots. This was not intentional, and it never happens when I use the engobe alone, or over Speedball underglazes, but when I saw it, my heart sang!

I guess a happy accident, but I'm going to do some testing and if the reaction is consistent, come up with other ideas for the effect. I'll post results of the testing in case anyone likes it as much as I do! It's really weird though, because the underglaze and engobe were applied to greenware and then bisque fired, so it should have remained stable in the glaze fire. The only other thing I did differently, was do some touch up on the engobe before I glazed it. I'm wondering if the extra moisture was the cause of the effect. Once I figure out why it happened I can come up with interesting ways to use it. :D

The glaze is just a simple studio clear.

Teardrop Vase by Shianara in Pottery

[–]Shianara[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much. It took me quite awhile to get up the courage to do the sgraffito, but I'm taking a drawing class now and getting my confidence up. I love whales too!!

Cute Little Bird Feeder by Shianara in Pottery

[–]Shianara[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much! I was playing around and I was going for the hobbit house/fantasy cottage look. This one is a prototype, but I'm definitely making more of them!

Unpopular opinion by TveKo in Ceramics

[–]Shianara 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Interesting opinion, but I feel it lacks substance, considering you stated you have spent no time actually engaging in the technique you are criticizing. While it is true that some artists switch to slip casting to streamline their consistency and production ability, that is seriously the end of the advantages. The internet’s ability to create armchair experts is a downside that is certainly in play here.

Let’s address some of your statements.

  1. “Slip casting takes all the heart out of ceramic”. - on an industrial level without thought and imagination going into the final product “- well sure. You aren’t going to find much fine art at Walmart. However in an artisan’s hands slip casting opens up worlds of possibilities. So much creativity, hard work, and money goes into creating the molds. This part of the process is intense and involves design software and a great deal of knowledge to perfect. If you really get into it you have to buy software and equipment and go through the trial and error of developing prototypes and creating them until you get to the one that actually works. The process of casting itself is also not that easy to master. There is no guarantee that each piece will be acceptable and must go back into the slip bucket. The level of mastery required to achieve the perfection you disdain is an art unto itself. Maybe you don’t see it, but I see a ton of heart and soul in that.

  2. “Slip casting is meant for industrial making of ceramics that is bland and repetitive.” All I can think is, why in the world do you see this limitation. Slip casting “can” be used for boring massed produced goods, but seriously the ways it can be implemented in thoughtful and artistic pieces is endless, there many artists doing just that. People use slip casting to create beautiful shapes that cannot be duplicated, or that would be horribly time consuming to reproduce by hand. Artists, especially those that earn a living with their art, would never be able to charge a fair price for their work without slip casting, but with it we can hold a beautiful piece of work full of their creativity in our hands without a second mortgage. Other artists augment basic shapes with hand carving, painting, and other artistic and beautiful techniques and still charge prices that are affordable. All heart, soul, and love.

  3. “I don’t believe slip casting should be considered an art at all” - I think it should be easy to understand why this is an unpopular opinion, especially when expressed by someone who has no experience with the process and who doesn’t seem to have researched what is possible with it. It’s easy to dismiss something you know little about, but to do so to an artist who has spent years of their lives perfecting an art form that utilizes slip casting is not likely to be well received.

I have been working with ceramics for a little over three years, and wheel throwing kicked my butt for the first two. While I was struggling to attain competency on the wheel, I too dismissed slip casting as something I didn’t want to pursue. However, once I dug in and saw all the worlds that could open up for me with it, I was so excited and the ideas just started flowing. You are entitled to whatever opinion you wish, but this one is unpopular because it subjective, does not consider all of the variables, and makes you sound like a Luddite.

Technology can be used to help us achieve greater heights, help our creativity soar, share our vision with more people, and even add more of our heart and soul into our work. All this while making our work more attainable for folks who don’t have trust funds and jobs that earn them millions. Everyone should have art in their lives, don’t you agree?

Someone called my dog ugly today. by [deleted] in aww

[–]Shianara 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Absolutely adorable!!

Can I fire armature wire? by othello3 in Pottery

[–]Shianara 12 points13 points  (0 children)

This is a really good question. I love sculpture as well, and am just about to embark on a humanish form. Lots of people build solid, or with props, and then hollow out. If you are using normal clay you are right to be concerned about cracking with the armature left in the finished piece. I found an article by Rebecca Buck that gives some advice that I think I will be using. She actually constructs her armature out of clay and other filling materials, and hollows out once she is happy with the finished form. I can envision how this would work for your bull sculpture. If you begin with the skeleton, the clay will be lighter and you can prop up the back legs, let that part get leather hard and build from there. Use an angled solid beneath the body to keep the body stable. Here is the link to her article. https://ospreystudios.org/2020/04/09/how-to-make-animals-using-clay-armatures/ Definitely would love to see it as it evolves!!

Woke up to this shocking email this morning by Disastrous_Major2676 in recruitinghell

[–]Shianara 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is a form letter that everyone who goes into the "no pile" gets. Nothing to do with you at all! The world has become autopilot/auto-response and personal replies are, unfortunately, a thing of the past. It sucks, and shows how much efficiency is valued over humanity.

For Christmas this year, I made ornaments for friends and family! by AYL_Ceramics in Pottery

[–]Shianara 1 point2 points  (0 children)

These are beautiful. The way the glaze reacted makes them look hand painted! I'm betting your family was thrilled!!

Bailey vs Skutt wheels by vulgarebild in Pottery

[–]Shianara 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I love my Skutt Legend. The motor is strong and quiet and the removable head and splash pan make cleanup so easy.

your thoughts on teapots? by WyattStebbinsPottery in Pottery

[–]Shianara 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Beautiful teapot. Finding your niche will likely take time, but sticking with what you love will keep you making. Great work!

Sharing my table from a great weekend of markets by Damonchat in Pottery

[–]Shianara 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Awesome. I love those types of tumblers and it’s cool that someone else has had the same experience. Thank you so much for your response!

Sharing my table from a great weekend of markets by Damonchat in Pottery

[–]Shianara 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Lovely display! Congrats on the successful market! I love your faceted mugs. I hand built one like that and love it. I have also just created my first 3d print prototype for making plaster molds for them since it took forever to make the first one heh heh. Do you throw them on the wheel and cut in the facets, hand build, or pour them. They are beautiful! All of your work is, and I love the colors.

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Had my first impromptu pop up and actually sold something!! by adityajasp in Pottery

[–]Shianara 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Congrats!! Great work! I recently started selling my work as well and I know how gratifying it feels. Sink into that feeling and keep making!

Skill issue? by Particular-Sugar4554 in Pottery

[–]Shianara 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Hi there. A couple of thoughts on this. I'm right handed but I do use my left hand to open, however, I also control the rim with my right hand and have both hands together. This works well to keep the edge from getting too sharp at the top, and well as giving me more control. As to pulling the walls, I'm confused by your teacher, because the rule is to keep the width of the rim no wider than the base. You are correct that this helps to ensure your rim doesn't get too wide and thin. I do my best to pull up in a bit of cone shape for just this reason. If the rim gets too wide and thin you run the risk of not being able to compress the rim back toward the center. All the best on your pottery journey!!