The Pouring Vessel

Finally this piece is finished. It seemed to take forever, getting it just right. I created this piece from a mold. I made the mold last week and I from sculpted clay that was surrounding foam. Which ended up being kind of a bad idea. the clay kept wanting to shrink and kept cracking. I ended up using oil based clay to fill the cracks enough to take a mold from it. Of course I had to do touch up work on the mold afterwards, but today I casted the first piece out of it. I'm happy with the results, although it kind of makes me wanting to just get a 3D printer and design work on the computer and have the printer make it solid and then take a mold of that. Maybe in the future, hopefully the near future.

Slip Casting on the Road

I found myself doing some traveling last week and was trying to figure out how to work at the same time. Because as we all know, you can't do much with clay while driving. But then I had a wonderful idea. Since I'm casting it seemed to me that it was a perfect fit. With slip casting you spend a lot of time waiting, whether its for the piece to cast, dry or the mold to dry. While on one of my ventures I decided to bring 2 buckets, one of casting slip and one for reclaim. I also brought a mold. I found the timing to be perfect. I could pull off the road to a rest stop or just the side. There I would pour the casting slip into my mold. While I waited for that to set up I would use the restroom and since the casting slip I use has a fast cast Kaolin, by the time I got back out it was time to pour out the excess slip(about 3-5 minutes). I would then let it drain while i ate something and got a drink( about 4-5 minutes). Then I would set the mold back in the van with the buckets and be on my way.
Around the time the next rest stop would come up, I would then open up the mold and place the piece in a damp box. The rest stop after that would be enough time for the mold to dry enough for another cast. I mean all in all it made my trip about an extra 20 minutes, but I also created some work and got to post on my blog for someone to read hopefully.

Still trying...

Just a quick one. This is mainly a test. Trying to blog from my new blackberry. Can't figure out the picture upload yet though. Stay tuned.

The Mono Kettle

The Mono kettle is designed to save energy and time when preparing hot beverages for single users, eliminating the possibility of pouring more water than needed by featuring a kettle with an isolated mug that can be used for both heating and drinking. Heating is done by the incorporated induction system that turns on by turning the mug to its desired heating level. After heating, the control ring will get back to the off mode. The kettle features two modes, first one is up to the boiling point for preparing tea and another is called eCO mode where water is heated up to 80 degree Celsius that is enough for preparing coffee and most other hot beverages. The mug can be safely hold right after the drink is prepared with the safest holding position indicating contours on the ceramic surface.

Holy crap Batman, its a sculpture

Ahhh.. finally stepping into the sculpture realm of ceramics. I was always skeptical of those sculptors, but have realized they are just as cray as potters. This piece is a cast from a mold I made. It is influenced by futuristic design and architecture.

New Casts

This a a manipulated cast from a one part mold I made last week. There is also a top to the mold so I can get double usage out of the form. :)

Sorry for the absence

Finally 2 weeks later I am back. I spent a week down in the Philadelphia area going to ceramic conferences celebrating my birthday and spending time with my lovely girlfriend Michelle( she is the one in my profile picture). Anyways Monday and Tuesday I attended the Pre-Conference at MC3. It had simultaneous demonstrations by Christa Assad, Ron Meyers, Ellen Shankin and Andy Brayman. Along with dialogue about the sustainability of ceramics. It was a good workshop to attend with alot of interesting discussions and views on contemporary pottery. Then Wednesday thru Friday I attended NCECA in Philadelphia. It was good to see old friends.I guess I never really achieve as much out of NCECA as I anticipate. I never really find too many lectures interesting or helpful, but the galleries always turn out great. This year was no disappointment as well. I saw a lot of great work from new artists as well as familiar ones. My favorite show was at the Art Alliance on 18th and locust. Alot of clean lined and industrialized looking work. I also got a chance to eat at a great restaurant on Broad, Osteria. Michelle and I treated ourselves to a nice dinner and we were not let down in any fashion. All in all it was a good and entertaining trip, but now back to the studio where I'm supposed to be working. New pics soon. :)