Organic Coil Pot- Clay & Glaze

To create the base of this pot, I made a flat bottom the size of a cup. Then I created single coils, scoring both sides, slipping both sides, and individually placing each coil on top of another. To make a bit more width towards the middle, I would put a coil slightly off-center then build upon that so it would curve out a bit. Once I was satisfied with the width and desired to come in, I did the exact opposite, placing a single-coil slightly inward and building off that new placement. The purpose of this piece is to create crips lines and a calming tone. Nothing crazy is going on, and that was the goal. I did not want to distract viewers with wild designs, so I kept the same foundation for each texture with a slight variation, so it wasn’t too dull. My texture appealed to simplicity because, although looking a bit complex, it represents clean, crisp lines. When glazing, I did a heavier coat of the green in some places and then emphasized the blue in others. The lines are not perfectly straight or the pot perfectly smooth, but that is okay because it highlighted the organic theme. Nothing in nature is exactly perfect, but perfection is not beauty. There are vast amounts of beauty in imperfection!

Animal Mug- Clay & Glaze

I began with forming a ball out of my clay, aiming to make it the size of a tennis ball. Once this was completed, I moved on and started making my pinch pot, smoothing and adding coils, making sure there was enough room on the pot to make an animal face. Once the pinch pot was at my desired height, I began making facial structures, mimicking the sketch I made. I made two balls with curved lines to replicate the cheeks and whiskers, indented my pot to make almond-shaped eyes, made ears, added a tail out of a coil then slipped the whole thing. When the pot was fired, I then took glaze to add more details, Making blue eyes to draw the viewer's attention, painting pink in the ears, black dots with whiskers. I aimed to enhance details not only with clay but with the colors and glaze as well. My cat Minnie inspired my artwork. She is a super sassy kitty but also my best friend. I have had her since I was three years old, so we have grown up together. I kind of tried to make the face of my mug quite sassy to show her personality! Since this project was done later in the year, I was able to take more initiative when making facial structures, painting, etc. I did this project more efficiently, and it was by far my most favorite project!

Face Mug- Clay & Glaze

I created my artwork by starting with a foundation of coils, blended and smoothed. I shaped the lips, nose, and eyes, all of which incorporated curved and straight lines. These lines dictated the emotions depicted on the face of the mug. Overall the mug was a very smooth texture. Line variation is present in the emotional aspects of the mug. I used my fingers to shape many mug features and then added in clay to define more features like the cheekbones and brow bones. Once fired, I glazed my face with blues and greens. I found it challenging to find a color that would look good with a face. I like the colors I chose but am not a fan of how the color variation makes my pot look bumpy and not smooth. My goals were mainly to learn this technique, especially working with this new gray clay. I mostly tried to understand how to handle the clay. I think I was pretty successful, but that wasn’t based on how good I was naturally, but how well I could ask questions and get help. In this process, I learned to accept the mistakes, ask questions, and offer grace to myself. I haven’t taken an art class so long, so I am learning not to be so hard on myself. Also, understanding that my art is not supposed to look like the person’s next to me, so don’t put the pressure of perfectionism on myself. This is not my favorite piece, but I enjoyed the process, and I look forward to bettering my techniques.