mel jacobson on sun 27 may 07
paul and rick...i am going to get you both a
guest pass to teach high school for a year.
get a taste of the real world.
`mel, can you make a blue/green sorta off blue
that is really shiny?` oh, can we have blood red too?`
and that is repeated from 180 kids a day. they all have
a desire for that perfect glaze. and, i should make it.
my take is:
if you are going to teach glaze....teach layering, one glaze over the
other. work with a limited pallet.
i know you both are pulling my chain. it is ok.
paul uses 831 glazes a day.
he can handle that. he is not boring.
mel
from: mel/minnetonka.mn.usa
website: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/
Clayart page link: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/clayart.html
mel jacobson on mon 28 may 07
what is so interesting about this thread is that
each of us finds ways that work for us.
i have dozens of glazes that i have used over the years.
probably 100. think of the iron saga alone...dozens.
black shino was 35.
i have used rhodes 32 altered for 40 years.
it takes years to learn a glaze...years.
when i teach, i simplify. keep it simple, teach the
theory...not 80 glazes.
once folks get the idea that two glazes can be made to
look like twenty....you move forward.
richard, paul and rick are professionals. they get to
do whatever they want. i have no influence over them
in any way. i admire their work and their input into this thread.
as a teacher of kids i fought the fight for years against
all kinds of flashy glazes. so many are just that...`flash`.
elegance and simplicity are still admirable qualities.
it should be taught. flash is never long term...it is always
here today, gone tomorrow.
as i have said here hundreds of times...look at a ron roy temmoku
plate with a simple wheat pattern. timeless.
mel
from: mel/minnetonka.mn.usa
website: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/
Clayart page link: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/clayart.html
Paul Lewing on mon 28 may 07
On May 28, 2007, at 1:47 PM, mel jacobson wrote:
what is so interesting about this thread is that
each of us finds ways that work for us.
when i teach, i simplify. keep it simple, teach the
theory...
A very wise approach.
richard, paul and rick are professionals. they get to
do whatever they want.
Another wise pronouncement. What it boils down to is that eventually
you come to the work that is the only kind that you personally can
do, the work that only you can do. Every detail of your personality,
from patience to curiosity to wit to physical abilities goes into
it. You weed out what doesn't feel right and go to any lengths to
pull off what does feel right. If that means that you need 40 glazes
to pull it off, and you need to invent some of them yourself, and it
takes 40 years to learn how to do that, that's what you do. If what
you were born to make is shown off perfectly every time by one
perfect glaze, and what you need to do is spend decades eliminating
everything else, then that's what you do.
elegance and simplicity are still admirable qualities.
it should be taught. flash is never long term...it is always
here today, gone tomorrow.
Now here we get into semantics. It depends on what you mean by
flash. Subtle colors or lack of decoration does not necessarily
translate to elegance and simplicity. And bright colors and
intricate detail do not necessarily translate to flash.
Most American potters of this generation are enamored of Japanese
pots. And when they think of Japanese pots, they mean Seto, Tamba,
Bizen, Shigaraki, etc. My favorite Japanese pots have always been
Kakiemon, Imari, Kutani, and especially Nabeshima. Flashy, elegant,
and timeless, yes. Simple? No.
I do admire subtlety in other people's work, but I've never been able
to pull it off very well myself. I like flash.
Paul Lewing
www.paullewingtile.com
David Beumee on thu 31 may 07
Thanks very much to Paul for his excellent and accurate comment. I am naturally drawn to the same kinds of Japanese wares; Kakiemon, Imari, Nabeshima and Kutani, but what I am yearning to see is how twenty first century Japanese porcelain artists have looked to these traditions and carried them forward with their own pottery. Can Paul or Lee or anyone direct me to catalogs or books with lots of pictures of porcelain pots by contemporary Japanese potters?
David Beumee
www.davidbeumee.com
Lafayette, CO
-------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Paul Lewing
>
> On May 28, 2007, at 1:47 PM, mel jacobson wrote:
>
> what is so interesting about this thread is that
> each of us finds ways that work for us.
> when i teach, i simplify. keep it simple, teach the
> theory...
> A very wise approach.
>
> richard, paul and rick are professionals. they get to
> do whatever they want.
> Another wise pronouncement. What it boils down to is that eventually
> you come to the work that is the only kind that you personally can
> do, the work that only you can do. Every detail of your personality,
> from patience to curiosity to wit to physical abilities goes into
> it. You weed out what doesn't feel right and go to any lengths to
> pull off what does feel right. If that means that you need 40 glazes
> to pull it off, and you need to invent some of them yourself, and it
> takes 40 years to learn how to do that, that's what you do. If what
> you were born to make is shown off perfectly every time by one
> perfect glaze, and what you need to do is spend decades eliminating
> everything else, then that's what you do.
>
> elegance and simplicity are still admirable qualities.
> it should be taught. flash is never long term...it is always
> here today, gone tomorrow.
> Now here we get into semantics. It depends on what you mean by
> flash. Subtle colors or lack of decoration does not necessarily
> translate to elegance and simplicity. And bright colors and
> intricate detail do not necessarily translate to flash.
> Most American potters of this generation are enamored of Japanese
> pots. And when they think of Japanese pots, they mean Seto, Tamba,
> Bizen, Shigaraki, etc. My favorite Japanese pots have always been
> Kakiemon, Imari, Kutani, and especially Nabeshima. Flashy, elegant,
> and timeless, yes. Simple? No.
> I do admire subtlety in other people's work, but I've never been able
> to pull it off very well myself. I like flash.
> Paul Lewing
> www.paullewingtile.com
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
| |
|
