Taylor from Rockport on fri 1 jul 05
As promised the quote. I reproduce here only with the intent of
illuminating the conception of the term "throwing" among potters.
"These coils are pinched together with the fingers of both hands and then
patted flat to recieve the next coil. The motion set up by her finger-
pinching also rotates the puki. It is nearly like throwing on a potter's
wheel, except much slower and certainly more irregular. Yet note the
thinness of the small bowl she has finished, in front."
From page 277, the notes on plates 156-159 in Susan Peterson's book _The
Living Tradition of Maria Martinez_ New York, Kodansha International:
1989. ISBN 0870114972 (USA) 4770009518 (Japan).
Vince Pitelka on fri 1 jul 05
Taylor quotes the following from Susan Peterson's "The LIving Tradition of
Maria Martinez":
> "These coils are pinched together with the fingers of both hands and then
> patted flat to recieve the next coil. The motion set up by her finger-
> pinching also rotates the puki. It is nearly like throwing on a potter's
> wheel, except much slower and certainly more irregular. Yet note the
> thinness of the small bowl she has finished, in front."
Taylor -
I respect Susan Peterson, but she does occasionally make statements that
surprise me, and in this case I don't agree with her. I am very familiar
with the technique used by Maria Martinez. The only way in which it is at
all similar to throwing is that you are using the fingers on the inside and
outside to thin the clay, and because you do this as you add coils, it
occurs in a slow spiral fashion as the pot is constructed. The rotary
motion of the puki is the result of the pinching and thinning motion, rather
than supplying the force for the thinning motion as is the case in throwing.
Maria's technique is masterful coil building. It isn't anything like
throwing.
- Vince
Vince Pitelka
Appalachian Center for Craft, Tennessee Technological University
Smithville TN 37166, 615/597-6801 x111
vpitelka@dtccom.net, wpitelka@tntech.edu
http://iweb.tntech.edu/wpitelka/
http://www.tntech.edu/craftcenter/
Taylor from Rockport on fri 1 jul 05
Hey Vinceeroony:
I agree that her statement is surprising. I almost laughed out loud at the
chance reading of those words just when this discussion was raging on
clayart. I mean really, who else do you know would be reading the NOTES to
the plates in a pottery book during his lunch break?!
This same type of building is going on in those Thai videos. I was seeing
a potter lute coils on a turntable using the motion of the luting to spin
the wheel. The clay magically arose and shaped itself between her
fingers. I side with Peterson and see it "nearly like throwing" though not
the same.
When you do your paddling, do you get your turntables to move with the
rythem of your paddling, Vince. How about you Mike? For sure the dynamics
of the clay manipulation is different, but I see a family resemblance.
Pretty cool stuff.
Taylor in Rockport TX
http://wirerabbit.blogspot.com
William Shirley on sat 2 jul 05
> Taylor -
> I respect Susan Peterson, but she does occasionally make statements that
> surprise me, and in this case I don't agree with her. I am very familiar
> with the technique used by Maria Martinez. The only way in which it
> is at
> all similar to throwing is that you are using the fingers on the
> inside and
> outside to thin the clay, and because you do this as you add coils, it
> occurs in a slow spiral fashion as the pot is constructed. The rotary
> motion of the puki is the result of the pinching and thinning motion,
> rather
> than supplying the force for the thinning motion as is the case in
> throwing.
> Maria's technique is masterful coil building. It isn't anything like
> throwing.
> - Vince
Seems to me that there is a little bit of room for discussion on this
point. I've watched videos of Maria working and I use the same technique
when I make pots or start certain kinds of sculpture. I also have thrown
on the kickwheel a bit so I'm not totally clueless, but I can see where
you could find a similarlity, especially when you think about the
evolution of pot making. When you are really working along using the
puki it has a lot of the feel of a kickwheel action. If you think about
the idea of spinning a bit of clay and working with your hands to form
the clay, that is one way this is similar to a wheel. The position of
the hands and fingers is different but the product can be as thin and
regular as on a wheel, so maybe you could put both methods into a
"making symetrical forms by modifying clay in a circular motion" kind of
thing, as opposed to joining slabs or pinching bits of clay, or carving
blocks of clay. I think the puki method probably evolved eventually into
a wheel method. But then, not being a potter I may be a bit generous in
my terms.
William Shirley
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