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Essential Question:
How do artists grow and become accomplished in art forms? How do artists learn from trial and error?
Reflection:
If you were to ask me, there truly isn’t such a thing as “being bad at art”. To improve and grow as an artist (just like anything else) it takes time, dedication, and focus. Obviously, if you asked me to make a pinch pot the first day I walked into ceramics, the outcome of the pinch pot would not be NEARLY as good compared to the ones I made recently. From working with clay and from just making and taking time and focus with the pinch pots, I have improved as an artist. Instead of just ignoring the cracks and bumpy texture in my pinch pots, I took the effort to fix them and turn in something I was proud of instead of something that was just decent. As an artist, when you spend more time and put more positive energy into your art, it is almost guaranteed you will be pleased with the outcome, and I think this is something I’ve learned as an artist in addition to exploring new patterns and shapes and glaze colors that would match the vibe of the pinch pot.
I learned that the best way to go when it comes to pinching techniques is to go slow, take your time, and instead of just trying to make a big hole in the middle, pinch the middle, and work your way out until you’re happy with the inside of the pot and the size and thickness on the outside. From there, you can focus on smoothing and working with the appearance and shape of the pot itself. Be gentle with the clay and focus on and be thinking about the ideal size you want your pot to be. Not too thin, not too thick. Smooth, not rough. And using both your thumb and pointer finger when you’re pinching and work your way until you have a bigger center.
Although contrast may not be something that comes to mind when you first think of pinch pots, the glaze appearance is so incredibly important when you are working with pinch pots. Much more important than I would have suspected. It took me a good amount of time to fully plan and think about the colors and which ones would not look the same, but instead, look different from each other. For example, I put fushia and petal pink together, and when I got a mix of a darkish-medium pink and a very light, subtle pink, they balanced each other out, and created an outside that I really admired on my pot. Contrast creates the entire outside and enhances the beautiful and unique aspect of the pinch pot that ties it all together in the end.
If I were to make one more pot, I think that I would make something similar to one of my classmates (Neena). She did a ring holder, and since I am someone who adores rings AND adores pinch pots, I truly wish I had gotten to making this pinch pot, and didn’t even think of the idea until mid-way through this assignment, and at this point it was too late. I think that I would make the inside of the pot a dusty orange color (or dark orange), and complete the outside of the pot and the ring holder itself a tawny color or yellow sand color. I would use a diamond-like texture or use one of my rings to create a pretty and unique texture.
Glaze Notes:
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