Rogier Donker on thu 3 jan 08
:-) Hey Fred!
Happy New Year!
What an incredible bit of advice!
I was somewhat amused by the guy who advised you to throw two bowls
and slip them together, then cut a hole and make a neck... It takes
lots of effort and practice to throw a pot and let the clay do it's
thing... Far easier to work WITH the clay than to try to MASTER the
clay...
I'm in the process of trying to get back into the routine after the
holidays, and still haven't begun to throw again, but damn if I don't
see what you're saying! Thanks -- a BUNCH.
Sounds like you "got" what I was trying to teach you! Either I'm a
good teacher or you are a good student! ;-)
I think I'll probably practice alone and keep quiet for awhile
before I say anything about doing the "blow jobs" in my studio,
however...
:-) I'll never forget doing a workshop with 30 nuns.... I
demonstrated the throwing of a bottle, did the blow job thing , all
of 'em Wow etc. etc. Then I said: "Yeah well that action has a name
too, but I won't tell in THIS company." Darn if some of the dear
sisters didn't break out in giggles....
Have fun! and don't hesitate to ask the "dumb and basic " question!
Rogier
See us on the web at http://www.donkerstudio.org
Hey Fred...
Bottles, eh? :-) Nice bottles, of the kind you want
to throw, are among the hardest forms to master because you have to
make the bottom part before the top is even in existence. You have to
develop a sense of being able to look into the future so to speak.
Begin with throwing a eight inch high tapered cylinder. Keep the top
as small as possible and ,with each draw, close it up some more.
Three draws should produce a nicely tapered cylinder, about four
inches in diameter on the bottom, two at the top. Wall thickness
about three eights... I know you want a spherical form, but let's
concentrate on making a neck first.... Two thirds up on the tapered
cylinder start a choke. The "six point choke" rather than the full
hand choke. Six point choke: index finger tip,thumb tip and below it
the middle finger center digit = three points of contact x 2 = six
points of contact. Tip your hands a bit so all six contact points are
about on the same level. You got the thing surrounded! The middle
finger center digit does the actual choking, the thumb and index
finger tips kind of "pre-choke" the neck... and as you choke, do
not constrict the clay laterally across between the contact points
but think UP, UP and away in a fluid non-stop upward motion... In
other words, don't hesitate! This will both constrict the neck, make
the wall thickness thinner and, if you do it right makes it taller.
Choke too hard and you'll rip the whole thing apart.... Give the clay
a chance to conform to your pressure... None of this operation is
easy! When the neck is too small in diameter for a six point choke,
go with a four point choke.... just the tips of index fingers and
thumbs... It takes quite a bit of practice... Once you have mastered
the neck forming, start again, but this time push the bottom part of
the cylinder into the spherical shape you really want before
proceeding to form the neck. Once the bottom is sort of spherical,
form the neck and THEN: to get that really nice spherical form, give
the thing a "blow job" (Yep that's what it is called.) Just before
you finish off the neck, put your mouth to the form, build up
pressure inside and give it another spurt of air. The form will "blow
up" like a balloon.... be sure and don't push DOWN on the form while
doing the blow job, or you'll ruin it. Also be sure not to blow too
hard, clay ain't latex! Afterwards finish off the neck... Of course
your wall thickness will have to be uniform and rather thin in order
to accomplish all of that.... Experience, experience, experience and
then some more practice! Have fun!
Rogier
P.S. See us on the web at http://www.donkerstudio.org
Michael Wendt on fri 4 jan 08
Rogier wrote:
"I was somewhat amused by the guy who advised you to
throw two bowls
and slip them together, then cut a hole and make a
neck... It takes
lots of effort and practice to throw a pot and let the
clay do it's
thing... Far easier to work WITH the clay than to try
to MASTER the
clay..."
I was the guy. Glad to give you a laugh,
but seriously, larger pots done by assembly
make sense. You only center 25 lbs of clay
and throw a nice 18-20" bowl 10" tall.
Then throw another 18-20" bowl 10" tall.
Throw a graceful long neck piece 18-20"
tall and voila, assembled, they weigh 65-70
lbs and stand 38-40" tall green.
Even after firing to cone, they are over
36" tall and weigh only 40-50 lbs.
Rogier, can you throw a 75 lb piece of clay
in one continuous piece into a 40"
tall pot? How long would it take a beginner
to get there versus doing simple assembly?
How Long?
I've done both and much prefer the lighter
weight of the assembled pots.
Regards,
Michael Wendt
Wendt Pottery
2729 Clearwater Ave.
Lewiston, Id 83501
U.S.A.
208-746-3724
wendtpot@lewiston.com
http://www.wendtpottery.com
http://UniquePorcelainDesigns.com
Lee on fri 4 jan 08
On Jan 4, 2008 11:11 PM, Michael Wendt wrote:
> I was the guy. Glad to give you a laugh,
> but seriously, larger pots done by assembly
> make sense. You only center 25 lbs of clay
> and throw a nice 18-20" bowl 10" tall.
Another way which is also traditional, is to coil and throw.
(Nobody threw Herculean amounts of clay all at once before the elecric
wheel.)
I will throw a bowl shaped base and then add fat coils after a
little drying of the bottom, and throw that. Makes for a lively
surface.
All of shigaraki ware was traditionally made with the coil
and throw method.
--
Lee in Mashiko, Tochigi Japan
http://mashikopots.blogspot.com/
"Tea is nought but this: first you heat the water, then you make the
tea. Then you drink it properly. That is all you need to know."
--Sen No Rikyu
"Let the beauty we love be what we do." - Rumi
Rogier Donker on sat 5 jan 08
Yo! Michael!
I wrote:
"I was somewhat amused by the guy who advised you to
throw two bowls..."
You wrote:
"I was the guy. Glad to give you a laugh,..."
Just to clarify: I was not laughing at you Michael, rather at the
circumstance. The original plea for advice was from a less
experienced potter than you or I. I simply thought to give some
BASIC advice. One would have to be a rather good and experienced
thrower to make and assemble wheel thrown parts. Like you and other
experienced potters I do/did it all the time, but to expect a
novice to be able to do that is a rather doubt-full assumption.
Didn't mean to offend and was well aware who "the guy" was ;-) Happy
New Year!
Rogier
P.S. See us on the web at http://www.donkerstudio.org
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