It really IS for them. I like birds and almost all animals for that matter. I enjoy it when we get cardinals at the feeder, along with the blue jays and other assorted birds of the winter.
Then there are the eagles, no... not at the feeder, but on the shelf drying in the studio. Last post, I talked about experimenting with a slipped version of my clay body. I had this cool eagle mold that looks like an antique, and I like antiques, that I have always wanted do someting with. So I cast a couple of them and slab built a base for one with some patriotic American Pride, emphasising the American " I can " attitude.
Then there's some more birds again! A woodpecker/duck character with a big mouth and a duck that thinks he's an elk, or reindeer or something. That reindeer costume he put on isn't fooling anyone. He will be pulling a dog sled with the woodpecker/duck in it for that one.
I realized I needed to get serious again so I made a modified batch of "Tully clay" and made some things with that to try in my next firing. I added a little more stoneware and fireclay to hopefully relieve some of the small bloating and sagging issues I am still having in some zones of the kiln. I have a good cone 9 body but I want a "Tully clay" mix for cone 10 too. I have marked these pieces with a "T".
I get throwing a few mugs and find myself wanting to try a new combination of castings again.
A turtle with a mohawk (I have a couple of students with mohawks lately- one student, Dimitri, with orange-red hair, jelled straight like the turtle has), a masked mice hobo, another confused identity, reindeer/duck for another wheeled something... but no birds. Not for the moment, anyway... I have two more bird characters under construction... This IS for the birds. I have pottery orders to fill.
These little assemblages are just so so quirky sweet.
ReplyDeleteThanks LeAnn! They are a very different direction for me. It's more of a challenge to "see what I can do with these"... (I picked these molds up at an estate sale that was an almost spur of the moment thing) They are more like marquettes for possibly something bigger later. They provide me with a chance to try out glazing ideas when I wood-fire them. They also are a fun break from my throwing.
ReplyDelete