Ceramics

Bit late on the blog for this, but Tuesday was my first open access at South Hill Park, on top of the course I'm doing on Thursdays. I couldn't wait seven days to get my hands on some clay! The photos below are of the pieces I'm currently working on that were thrown last week.

My first foray into terracotta, which is lovely to work with, but not as stable as Stoneware as there's no grog in it....and the red stuff gets everywhere as I'm a messy beginner. Two pots, turned and ready for biscuit firing.

The following pics show four items thrown on Tuesday evening. I have had a request for a pot from my mum, so this chap should do the trick.

And this one will probably end up in the house somewhere. Fruit bowl anyone?

I've been putting it off, but Tuesday night saw my first attempt at throwing porcelain. It's a bit like working with wet plasticine and gives a beautifully smooth finish. Another pot. I seem to being doing nothing but pots!

So I tried something a little different, a bottle. It started off as a large mug, but it collapsed as I went too high and too thin. So with what was left, this little chap appeared out of the clay. Think I might keep the wobbly top as it offsets the hard lines of the body.

Tonight is the course again and I will attempt to turn the vase I'm making for my wife. A surprise, so it will only appear on here when it's finished and in her hands. Besides, plenty could go wrong tonight!

Finished Screen Prints

All three prints are now done and dusted and are in an edition of 5. I struggled a bit with the screen clogging as the studio is getting unbelievably hot at the moment (for some reason the central heating is still on!). Using a 90 dot screen has helped not only with the clogging, but also with dot definition once the image has been printed. I originally used a 120 which was just insane to work with on such fine details in this heat. You live and learn.

They are taken from photographs I shot around the Meatpacking district in lower west side Manhattan, New York. The Highline (a disused elevated railway) has recently been turned into a park and the area surrounding has be rejuvenated into art galleries, boutique shops and condos. An excerpt from my artist statement:

'My intention is to draw the viewer away from the immediately obvious and hone in on the detail, be that a insignificant battered roller shutter, a faded wooden water butt or just an intriguing opening in a wall. These are all objects that are more often than not, completely dismissed due to the immersive and overwhelming nature of the environment in which we live and work. With this in mind, I took these unusual and striking viewpoints and highlighted the often-bypassed objects within the landscape, through the use of vibrant, block colours under a halftone screen. The viewer is now drawn away from the main subject matter and forced to focus upon the less prominent detail within.'

 

410 W 13th (above) is definitely my favourite and seems to be the one most people prefer too. This has turned out to be a bit of history captured as the graffiti no longer exists, painted out for ever.

161 10th Avenue. The back of a giant billboard with a water butt sat on the roof of the building opposite.

843 Washington Street. A condo that straddles the Highline. Very impressive building with this strange hole in the wall that just seemed to lead to nowhere.

I have entered all three pieces into the Bearspace travelling show; Print & Design Now 2011, my first serious show. I'm slightly worried and more than a little bit nervous! I'll keep you posted on whether or not my work is selected.