Teapots

I really like making teapots.

There are so many shapes you can explore.

This is one of my 'lantern' pots. The shape of the body reminds me of old paper lanterns.

The design idea here is to make a pot that has been pared down to the most basic elements of form.

Every teapot has a personality.

A teapot is supposed to be the potter's thesis because of the complexity of aligning many small forms into a single pot for a specific function--the body, foot, lugs, handle, spout, the lid and galley, all must work in harmony to become a good pot.

And of these many elements, many variants must be considered:

The body shape.

The placement of the handle lugs, the placement of the spout.

The lid and galley.

Glazes inside and out

and much, much more.

Will the pot be functional or decorative?

Although most teapots are meant to be used, a teapot can serve as the basis for an art statement .

Pictured are Meryl Ruth's Purse teapots (L.). More of her work can be found on line. It is obvious with this pot that it is not meant to be used for making tea.

My pot on the right is designed to hold two cups of tea plus refills. It is definitely designed for tea.

If the pot is meant to be used, the artist must decide:

The foot: A round, trimmed foot? Legs? A pedestal, attached or a separate one? How about a constructed one?

The body and the brewing of tea: Overall shape: Round, oval, altered, flared at the bottom or top? Concave? Undulating? Grooved, lined or paddled?

Will the pot hold the heat?

What kind of glaze to use inside?

Make a clay strainer or keep the spout clear? Accommodate the use of a tea-ball? I've seen pots with little U-shaped holes in the rim of the lid-seat that will accommodate the string and tab of a teabag.

The lid and the release of steam: Even though the steam hole is traditionally placed in the lid, I have actually seen a pot with a tiny hole concealed in the lid seat. ( The steam hole must also be placed somewhere that will not allow steam to reach the hand that is pouring the tea.)

The action of the lid flange and the seat of the lid during pouring. Does it sit well? Will it have a notch and knob arrangement to keep the lid on when the pot is tipped up? Will the flange have a long bottom that catches on the lid rim and hold the lid?

Make a top knob on the lid or not? How will the knob relate to the rest of the pot? To the fingers?

The relationship between the lid, the lugs and the handle.

The lugs: Are they far enough apart to allow easy access to the lid? Are they in harmony with the overall design of the pot? Should they be? Do they sit up or out or in? Are they a different design/material than the usual lugs? Do you want them to be obvious or to "melt" into the body of the pot? Check out this great handle by Nils Lou.

Or this wonderful pot by Stephen Hill.

The spout: Large or small? Is the angle right? Does it dribble? What about the finish of the end of the spout? Rounded? A sharp, flat cut? Is the tip high enough to keep the tea concentrated at the spout and not leak from the lid when the tea is poured?

How the pot functions and handles: Is it too light or too heavy? Does it have a balance when you use it? Does it "feel" right when you pick it up and pour? Does it work on a purely functional level--is it really a working teapot? Does that matter? For instance, you can look at this one by Mel Jacobson and just know it will work well.

The consideration of additional forms to accompany the main form of a teapot such as a tray, creamer and sugar, mugs or cups. (I wish I knew who made this snuggley grouping of a pot, creamer and sugar.)

Or this great assemblage by Matt Wilt.

And here's a great pairing of a pot and cups by Diana Angel-Wing.

What firing method will be chosen? Wood or electric? Raku, reduced or oxidized?

What kind of finish for the outside? Glazed or burnished, poured or dipped, brushed or sprayed, carved or applied, printed or any other treatment?

And finally, after all these decisions and executions, the big question:

And does it work aesthetically? Is it an artistically pleasing unit?

Does it answer the questions of the eye?

Take a look at this absolute symphony of a teapot made by my friend Gail Bair. It's a virtual juggling act of many strong elements and skills melded into a wonderful balance and strong statement that happens to be a teapot. She does more of these and other great work.

You can see more of her work on www.claybair.com.

Look at this wonderful sculpture by Lisa Qualls from The Texas Teapot Tournament website www.cameohouston.org/pages/events/teapot.html

The 2010 show should be up soon. (previous shows in the gallery)

Sequoia Miller makes great teapots: www.sequoiamillerpottery.com

As does Ann Hirondale: This rather large pot on the left is surprisingly lightweight. Check out her amazing new work by googling her name.

There are lots of books on teapots and of course, the wonderful 500 series from Lark Publications of 500 Teapots.

The web is loaded with images of teapots.

Check out a blog devoted exclusively to teapots at: www.teapotsteapotsteapots.blogspot.com.

And for a really great tour of teapots and more, check out www.flickr.com/people/gusstiffpottery.

Or see www. strecker -nelsongallery.com/Artists_nu/Teapot/teapotSlideShow/index.htm, includes one of my favorite makers, Yokhi Ikeda.

The last 3 years of the Strictly Functional annual show,including teapots can be seen at www.art-craftpa.com/exhibit.html,

Buying Handmade

I just found this great lamp. I walked into the used furniture place and it screamed my name the minute my foot was inside the door.

I'm quite aware of why this happened. I recognized it as a woven backpack from the Philippines. As a matter of fact, I have one already only it's bigger. I bought it in a street market in Bagio.

It's about 50% bigger and I can actually wear it. The backpacks are made by the indigenous tribes. They are a fascinating people to look at: tiny, lean, fine features.

Anyway, it had crossed my mind to make a lamp out of the basket, but I just couldn't bring myself to alter it in any way. So now, it can be a companion to the lamp.

Having made a few baskets myself, I have a weakness for any that are well made. The more knowledge you have of something, the more you can appreciate it.

Terra Sig

Terra Sigliata, meaning sealed earth, is a pot finish as old as clay. It's really clay on clay, a slip made with a fine-grained mix of earth and water. The mix is allowed to settle out until only the top layer with the finest grains of clay remains.

I've only done a couple of terra-sig pieces and that was in a workshop using gas reduction. It was interesting,

The blue flashes on this tile were the result of an application of a final layer made up of a mix of chicken feed and chicken poop. Who knew?

After the tile came out of the kiln, I applied brush strokes of black paint.

And now for something completely different......

Here's a fruitcake your friends won't "re-gift" or use as a doorstop.

Every year I bake it for my children's families and ourselves. It's not the kind you make in October and keep pouring the Napoleon brandy into every so often, although you can do this if you want.

It all started because I can't eat the multi-colored citron you find in stores at this time of year. They are all preserved with sulfur dioxide. I'm allergic to that. It gives me migraine.

A few years ago, I discovered non-sulfide mango spears. I had experimented with substituting dates, prunes and nuts, apples. They were all good, but not quite the texture I was looking for. So, one year I put in the chopped mango and Voila! --perfect fruitcake.

So here it is.

I don't give this recipe to just anyone, mind.

Dark Fruitcake

3 c. raisins

6 oz. orange juice concentrate, undiluted

1/2 c. molasses

1/2 c. sugar

1 link (1/2 c.) butter

3 eggs

1 1/4c. flour

1/4 t. soda

1/2 c. chopped walnuts

1 teaspoon each of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, mace, coriander, ginger and allspice

1 c. diced, dried papaya

In a saucepan, combine orange juice, molasses and raisins and heat until bubbly. Simmer 5 minutes and cool.

In a bowl or mixer, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs.

In another large bowl, sift dry ingredients. Add butter, egg, sugar mix and blend. Add nuts and then citron/molasses/orange juice mix. Blend all well and pour into:

2 loaf pans, greased and floured, or one large tube pan.

Place in the lowest shelf of the oven and bake at 275 degrees until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. --About 1 hr. for tube pan, 45 minutes for the loaf pans.

Cool and put in air-tight container (add brandy if you choose after 1 day) or wrap in plastic wrap until ready to eat.

It smells heavenly while baking; is better after one day (if you can wait that long!)

My Gift to You! Merry Christmas

The Gilded Bowl

Is it utilitarian? Does it matter?

I suppose you could put fruit inside. Or pine cones. Or pot puree.

But why would you?

It's just nice the way it is.

So why do some artists feel they must justify what they make?

Big question. It comes up some times at shows. I must admit, I usually give the questioner a quizzical look because I just don't think that way. If something is nice, beautiful, pleasing, that's enough excuse to exist.

This large bowl is made of terra cotta. The gilding inside is fake gold. I did a workshop demonstrating the gilding technique and the bowl has been hanging around for several years. I'm giving it the time-test, I suppose. I thought it would fade with age and be a transient thing. It hasn't.

I never tire of looking at it; the contrast between the earthy, semi-rough exterior with the glory of the interior.

Think I can do another one. Now.

Late-Breaking News

Don't you just love it when the same old newscast comes on as LATE-BREAKING NEWS!!!

AGAIN?

heh

I got a message last week that my little terra-cotta teapot photo will be included in the PR postcard for the Texas Teapot Tournament in Houston, Jan. 2010.

Yeah!

White Bowl

I just finished photographing a bowl called "Contemplation".

It's a medium-sized bowl, 9 inches in diameter, 4 1/4 inches tall and trimmed so there is a little 'well' in the bottom of the foot. Inside the well are three perfect spheres. You can imagine them rolling around and around.

The design is my interpretation of what I do when I concentrate.

I try to open my mind up and make it totally blank, totally open to allow whatever I'm seeking to flow in.

Agnes Martin, a painter, said, "I paint with my back to the world." In other words, blocking out all of the press of the every-day.

In order for inspiration to come, there must be a completely open, blank space for it to come into.

Writers talk about "A book writing itself. Or the characters taking the story and going with it."

I'm fascinated by what goes on when an artist is in this suspended space; this bubble where the mind, eye, hand and process dominate above all other things. A kind of meditation with action. A state of being and doing. A convergence of the You of you with another power.

There are times when I feel like a pot makes itself while I just hold it.

Makes my head spin with wonder.

Clay "Riffs"

A "Riff" is a musician's variation or interpretation of a phrase or composition of music. Exploring. Expanding. Making musical expansions or comments.

A "Riff" to a comedian is taking an idea and pushing it until it spins off into something hilarious.

Steven Wright: "The other day I got my house key and car key confused; put the car key in the house lock. It started right up.

So I jumped in and drove it around the block. A cop tried to get me to pull over.

I put my head out the window and yelled: "Get outta my yard!"

That's really riffing.

"Riffing Clay" is doing the very same thing.

Well, it may not be Exactly hilarious, but you know what I mean.

I like to take a basic form and push it. Not only does it bring a new form idea into being, it gives new life to it.

Here's a basic rectangular slab-rolled baking dish that was oooched into a flowing form. (I'm sure oooched is a verb.)

Granted, I did not start with a square base--more of an old TV screen shape; oblong with rounded corners. I measured the circumference of the base with a piece of string, then cut out the side from one very long piece of slabbed clay. (only one join) I attach walls with vinegar water, slathered on with a brush, and compressed the wall base into the floor. This must be done with a very light, form-encouraging touch. Otherwise, the wall will be weakened and not stand up well.

I secure the inside wall at the base by using a clay worm, compress and round and smooth the inside join. Then I manipulate the walls. I might form a slight outward bulge at the bottom; a slight outward flare at the upper rim.

A turntable is a good thing to have here. You can work on the walls and easily check how the whole form looks as you manipulate it. I sometimes add clay to create an interest area. Whatever 'feels' like it's working. Depending on how the clay is acting, I either work while it is soft, or wait until it firms up before 'riffing' it. Every piece is different. It is very important for a potter to cultivate a light, clay-sympathetic touch that builds strength into the clay, and not weaken or overwork it.

*Note: Riffed pieces are sometimes really difficult to photograph.

Watch and feel the piece until it has begun to dance to your eye. Knowing when to stop is also very important.

Pie

Every year at this time when I make the pies for Thanksgiving, I have this thing I wonder about.

My mother always cut the top pie crust in a design that looked like either a Fleur de Lis or Prince of Wales feathers. For years, I thought everyone made their pies this way. Then I began to notice that none of my friend's mothers put distinctive designs on their pies.

I asked her once and she said that that's just the way the pies were cut. Her mother did the same design.

So, was it a Loyalist symbol? I know people who supported the Crown in England quietly signaled to others their political sympathies in subtle ways like this. Is the design the three Prince of Wales feathers? If so, who did this? Maybe it was from the Scottish side of the family in support of Bonny Prince Charles.

Or is it a symbol of the French Fleur de Lis? My mother's grandmother was named de Bord. Was she showing her French heritage? Maybe she was from a Huguenot family??

If you compare the Fleur de Lis and the Prince of Wales feathers, they are very similar.

Our genealogy traces her famly to the Sanford family and back all the way back to the Plantagenets. Their symbol came from a plant known as common broom. It grew wild and the founder of the French branch of the family liked to wear a sprig of the plant in his hat.

Could the family have held onto this design for generations?

A sprig of the broom plant that the name Plantagenet refers to.

Happy Thanksgiving

These are blueberry leaves.

For a brief time, they turn this glorious color; each leaf a variation of red/yellow/green depending on where it is on the branch, how much sun it gets and where the shadow of other leaves fall across it.

There is just no match with Nature.

Every year it's a wonder. Sometimes I pick them and put them into an old bookbinding press between sheets of blank newsprint. They keep most of their color.

This year, though, I just picked and handful of the prettiest ones and laid them out on the kitchen table.

Think I'll use this in our Christmas letter.