Studio Saturday

A stoneware firing -

 ... my little pots among the big impressive ones -

 No shards this time - though some of the 15 had small imperfections - small, but imperfections none the less -

After photographing each one, the next step is to record and analyse -

 A bit of fun with pots-among-the-limpets ...

 And gathering some groups -

Before an after - except that one hasn't been fired yet. This shows how much they shrink -

 More fun with the broken pots - combined with woodblock prints?

Wrapped in thread but pieces keep crumbling away - perhaps dip it into wax... see what happens ...

 I invested in some gilding supplies and found some paperclay potlets to practise on -

 Midweek, I felt that things were starting to sort themselves out -

But on Monday the electrician who is hooking up the new kiln will need access to the fuse box above my desk, so the fragile pots have been put out of harm's way, after yet more sorting and list-making and some vague thoughts about The Way Forward ... but Action can wait till after the Open Studio, 24 November, has been prepared for and experienced.

A few dipped pots have been waiting to be "fixed" for weeks now. The tall ones have holes in the base, unfortunately, but other than that they're almost ready to fire -

 Here's a "before and after" ... dull, dull, dull ...

This little one has lost it's data sheet - or never had one - or there's been a mismatch ... it can get very confusing!

I've not been entirely systematic, and indeed the main aim of "my system" has been to identify the pots in terms of how they were made from fabric and what materials were used, and to match the ephemeral fabric pot (Before) with the end product (After). Keeping a record encourages close looking and identification of the problems - and good points! - through which I'm starting to find out what I want and don't want to carry on with. Gradually you get into a sort of rhythm and feel calmer and bolder, striding out into the unknown, hopefully - rather than going around in tiny fussy circles.

One of my plans for next week is to do some gilding of broken pots; this will include a good rummage among Old Work and possibly some culling. Even thinking about it makes me uncomfortable ... smash my pots?? ... well, we'll see....