Inspiring Pieces by Other Artists

I wanted to include a tribute section to my fellow student artists and a few others.
Included here are pieces that I purchased and the reasons why they are interesting.

Wheel-Thrown Pieces

Plates by Janet:
I am a big fan of Janet's work in general. She's definitely a pro with glazes and her work has a nice weight - not too light, not too heavy - just right!

Compare with my small plate
Mine is tiny and heavy when compared to Janet's! You can see where I tried to duplicate the overlapping glaze effects she created.

Bowls by Matt:
Matt's work has a really interesting hand-made feel to them. However, this is a set of one large bowl and six matching bowls that actually match. This is really difficult to do by hand although we are used to identical pieces made by forms. The basic black glaze is especially well done since it goes all the way down to the bottom of the piece.

Compare with my blue bowls
Both are small when compared to Matt's. Also, the glaze misses the bottom of the bowls by about an inch. One bowl shows a nice consistent glaze. The other shows how difficult a basic black glaze can be. This bowl also shows interesting "ridges" which happen when the pressure is inconsistent while throwing the bowl.


Vase by Yumiko:
This light-weight vase is of very high quality and is very thin. However, what makes it remarkable is that it is a mixture of two different clays. The outside is left unglazed to show this feature. As a result, the vase has an interesting texture as well: rough on the outside, smooth on the inside.

Compare with underside of my small plate and my Indian Motif Bottle
I mixed two clays for this plate, following Yumiko's instructions, and it actually turned out pretty nice. (If you look carefully, you can see a drawing of me "cutting off" the plate). The Indian Motif Bottle looks similar but remember looks can be deceiving in pottery. When you pick up this bottle which is 1/4 the size of Yumiko's vase, it actually weighs more than the vase! The weight is "hidden" in the thickness of the walls that you can't see.


Cups by various artists:
These cups were produced by professionals. However, what is remarkable here is the glaze work.

Compare with my blue cup
This cup is a pretty nice little cup actually! One of my success stories. However, artists always want to take the next step! So, imagine this cup with a more interesting glaze job.

Whale - Hand Built Raku by Inga:
Inga is a fellow beginner but she already has good technique. Her whale rattle makes a beautiful sound when shaken. The whale was glazed with the Raku process, which is very exciting to watch. It involves fire and a lot of luck. The hot piece is pulled from the kiln and newspapers are poured over it. The newspapers catch fire easily and are allowed to do so for a few seconds and then a bucket is clamped down over it to snuff out the fire. Inside the bucket, the glaze reacts to the smoke and the fire causing variations and iridescent effects.

Compare with my Raku Turtle
Again, another success story! Turtle is quite cute and turned out well for a Raku piece. However, if you pick up Inga's whale and my turtle, you would notice the weight difference. Hers is much lighter and more consistent in texture. Her rattles have a lot of room to move. In my turtle, they move but not as much, which indicates that the walls are thicker. So my next step as an artist is to follow her example.