Another paddled gal. Built realistic, smashed into basic forms, then built out again.
Thin Man
This guy had some charm as a long wet drink of water. Below he is unfired but drying. Fired, he looked like he needed something. I tried an experimental glaze treatment I’d learned from Cristina Cordova using a Shino glaze. Ugh. Looks awful. Poor guy. His best days are behind him.
Texture and Noses
I like a rougher skin texture because it picks up oxides and other surface treatments so well. First one on left is made by pressing a tool repeatedly (so many times!) into the form. Next two are made by pressing onion bags into hardening clay heads, brushing with slip, then peeling it off before firing of course. The last I pressed burlap on the original plasticene head, then cast it in iron. Oh, and noses. You can see I love to make a nose! The bigger the better. Love a good honker.
Egg Heads
Two in a row came out like this. I had no plans on making egg-shaped skulls, but there you have it. I added some texture and left the surfaces kind of rough. And yes, you can see I use a plastic onion bag to get that texture. Here they are dry but unfired. Now they have been bisqued and on one I applied manganese oxide and on the other Spanish red oxide. I’ll post the final look when they’ve gotten their second firing.
Two Sides
This figure has gone through some stuff! I kept trying to make a more abstract form, but every time I put my hands on it, I began developing detail and features. Then I’d smash it with a paddle to get back down to the essential forms, then I’d work on it, and voila, more detail. Finally I gave up and let her have a face since that’s what she clearly wanted. So it’s neither here nor there. Realistic or abstract. But I like where she ended up.
Doll Face
This piece exploded in the kiln, and I decided to practice repair. It was literally a pile of pieces that I reassembled as best I could using epoxy, air drying clay, joint compound, gesso. But once it was reassembled and repaired, it couldn’t go back into the kiln, so for a surface treatment, I had to go with paint. I’m not really into realistic painting of faces on clay sculpture, but I thought I’d give it a go. I felt like I was painting a doll face, which I hated, so added a final treatment with oxide, just to kind of blacken and de-prettify the surface.
Surface Variations
Still experimenting with surfaces and with color and texture. Often I feel that the wet clay pleases me more than anything that I do to it after it is fired. In this case I tried three different surface treatments — each one required a firing. Number 1 is wet clay. Number 2 is an oxide treatment — cool, but too busy. Number three shows an application of porcelain slip and some underglaze, with leftover oxide underneath it all. Too white, too pasty. In number 4 I mixed underglazes to get a kind of burnt orange, then added highlights of a complementary green. Though as I look at this quad photo, number 3 looks best to me, in reality the last one I did, number 4, I like best. The color and texture are good and work well with the rock-like base I made.
Intense
A second firing gave this one more color and depth. First firing I used copper oxide and most of it burned off. Second firing, black iron oxide. It stuck! Plus added some warm reddish tone.
Another One Bites the Dust
I have to learn a better way to mount these wall pieces. The epoxy gave way and it crashed to the cement floor of my studio. In pieces and unsalvageable. This is the third or fourth piece I’ve lost this way. I took the remaining ones off the wall.
Lost and Found
I was wondering where this sculpture was. Then remembered — she’s in Mexico! Where I want to be (and hope to be) in January. She was in a show in Oaxaca last March and I left her in my apartment there.
All together now
Hard to tell if these two are getting along at all. I had hoped for some ambiguity and I think the tension between them is there.
Curvy
This gal is all curves. Out of proportion, giant butt, crazy twist, but she’s got her charms.
Leaner
Defying gravity, the Leaner has held this impossible pose through hollowing and various other indignities. I have been making bases for the latest figures, big piles of rocklike things. I like seeing how the figure interacts with the base — both form and texture.
Big Bend
Why do I torture my people so? This extreme bend just kind of interested me. Getting the clay to remain upright was a challenge, as was making this position look even a little possible.
Capped
This sweet old dude isn’t entirely figurative. His back is semi-abstract. I was going to smoosh his front and make it just planar, but I kind of fell in love with him so had to leave him be. After firing I’ll experiment with some surface finishes.
Sitting on Stones
This abstracted figure has been twisted, delimbed, and is sitting on stones. Very pleased with it! Actually I’ve been experimenting with making bases for the figures lately and it adds a whole other design element that I like. Cap man below is perched on three uneven “stones” as is Purple Pain, also below.
Purple pain
This convoluted form was just about the twist.
Color and form
No matter what you do with color, if the form isn’t a home-run, the piece won’t sing. I like her, but don’t love her.
Close-up
Her head is getting interesting. The rest of the body, hmm.
Color Continues
This kind of androgynous person has been through the kiln 3 times now. I keep trying to like her-him. Getting closer.
