26. Elise Chezem, pit-fired open-mouthed pot

26. Elise Chezem, pit-fired open-mouthed pot

For Chezem, see item 23.

Reddish brown clay, colors from pit-firing. Weight: 1188 g (2.6 lb). Mouth diameter: 12.0­­–12.5 cm  (4-3/4 – 5.0 in); maximum diameter 15 cm (6 in); foot ring diameter: 8.2 cm (3-1/4). Height: 14.3 cm (5-3/4 in).

Wheel-thrown. The foot ring is about 0.3 cm (1/8 in) high; the area within the foot has been shaped into a shallow concavity. The artist signed the pot on the bottom with an inscribed “Elise.”  From the foot, the pot arcs outward to the maximum diameter of 15 cm (6 in) and then narrows slightly before rising in a straight line to a sharp break at the shoulder, which is located 10 cm (4 in) above the base. At the lower end of the shoulder the diameter is 13.8 cm (5-1/2 in). The shoulder slops inward to a diameter of 11/8 cm (4-34 in). The rim has been bent outward, over the exterior of the pot, in a deliberately clumsy manner. What might be a pouring spout has been formed at one side, but it’s so rough that water would probably splatter if it were used.

The wood-firing resulted in deposits of colors in the black to brown range.  One side of the pot is densely colored; the opposite side is largely uncolored. The interior is uniformly a grayish brown.

The shape of this reminds me of a water jar, although water would probably seep into this because of the low firing temperature. The elegance of the body of this breaks down at the rim, which is deformed and intentionally crude. The pot looks deceptively utilitarian and everyday.

Purchased at Peninsula Potters in Pacific Grove, California, in the early 1990s.