mel jacobson on tue 22 apr 97
i teach a method of keeping the left forearm, or elbow placed against the
center inside of the left thigh. the leg becomes a pivot..........the
strong muscles of the leg can literally push the wheel across the room. i
have seen students push the wheel several feet from left to right. we have
always used brents, shimpos, skutt dc1's and some pacificas......as the
students sit at the wheel their left leg is in the perfect place to brace
the left or centering arm. shorter people will often put a brick or even as
with lori in s. carolina she used a concrete block under her left foot.
center a cone shaped ball of clay any size as close as you can to center on
the wheel.....and as with others, sorta beat it into almost perfect center
before you apply speed. start at the top of the wedge and center
down.....get the top half centered almost as soon as you begin. then work on
the bottom half. as that leg pushes in the clay sorta self centers.
as i have stated before.....
i love to get a little girl to center big things the first few days of
class.......and she helps the big boys learn to center big stuff.......takes
all the wind out of their sails. and as all of us have learned.......BIG
UGLY pots are really ugly....lot more to look at ugly...so the next step is
to make little tiny pots.....they are much harder..........tiny teapots the
size of a walnut, with spout, cover and handle...it is one of my favorite
lessons with friends and good students.....and it makes a wonderful demo
with new students. when a potter cannot focus, or loses track of what is
important......just make tiny things. i really think that big for the sake
of big is sorta over done....it becomes a game of who makes the biggest pot
wins. really bored with that.
mel jacobson/minnesota.
Lynne Antone on wed 23 apr 97
In a message dated 97-04-22 07:27:35 EDT, you write:
<< i really think that big for the sake of big is sorta over done....it
becomes a game of who makes the biggest pot wins. really bored with that.
mel jacobson/minnesota.>>
I agree. But for me, anything over 3 pounds was big until I started doing
this full time, three weeks ago. Have my rythym going and it's exciting to
see what I can do now.
One thing I didn't see addressed with all the messages on centering, is the
consistency of the clay. I struggled so many times, esp. with my own recycled
clay, to get some of those globs centered, I'd have to stop and catch my
breath. Fresh out of the bag is best, but if you're a recycler, don't let the
clay get too dry. I try to wedge it when I think it's still a little too wet,
even sticking somewhat to the plaster. After it sits in the bag for a few
days, it's perfect. This works for the clay body I use, Alpine White cone 6
from Seattle Pottery.
Okay, mel, now I've gotta try some of those minatures before I start
teaching. Thanks for the tips.
Lynne Antone
Olympia WA USA
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