Just giving you a little insight to my working process.
Wild Walk Process
When making a piece of my wild walk collection it’s a slow process of hand drawing in the mould, back to front and a reflection of what will be on the surface of the piece. It’s then slip casting to absorb the drawing and some patience until the piece is ready to make its entry into being.
Wild Walk Plate
When an idea is in place and I know how I want to decorate, it’s necessary to work out how best to achieve that. In this case I threw a clay form on the wheel, took a cast from that in plaster, then back filled that cast with plaster to get a form in plaster. I can then make as many plaster moulds as I want from this form and can paint the design in the mould before slip casting.
A New Canvas
This is a large piece and the mould is designed to make removing the cast as easy as possible leaving the piece on a base to dry. It’s heavy when cast and I do not turn it upside down like other pieces because of its large base, just work on evening out of the slip. Hand-drawing and painting the design with water colours, getting it printed in ceramic ink, then firing into the surface of the piece after it’s glazed, allows for greater flexibility in the designs. Glazing a piece like this, using spray gun, allows for a more even and ‘plain’ colour, setting the back drop for the drawings.
In Studio
Just a little sharing of activities….
Dahlia
Drawing and painting always feels like a luxury to do, I find it calming. I never know if it will lead to a design for ceramics or not, that doesn’t matter as the process always helps me think creatively and leads me on. I had seen so many beautiful flowers in the garden I really wanted to look at the pictures I took and just respond loosely to them and in this case it lead to the Botanical design which is still a work in progress!