112. Sam White, West Cork Pottery, large lidded, Shino-glazed jar

 112. Sam White, West Cork Pottery, large lidded, Shino-glazed jar

 

 

 

 

 

 

White is a potter in County Cork, Ireland. According to his personal statement, he is not “a fan of ornate or overworked pieces and wants to make pots that blend into an environment and feel like they’ve always been there.” For more on him and other examples of his work, see his Instagram account @west­­_cork_pottery or his account on Etsy, WestCorkPottery.

Dark chocolate clay, Shino glaze; base, bottom of external walls, underside of lid, and three “fingerholds” on upper side of lid left unglazed. Weight: 1588 g (3-1/2 lb). Overall height: 19.3 cm (7-5/8 in). Bottom section. Rim diameter: 9.2 cm (3-5/8 in); mouth diameter: 8.3 cm (3-1/4 in); maximum diameter: 15.3 cm (6-1/8 in); base diameter: 8.5 cm (3-3/8 in). Height: 17.7 cm (7 in).  Lid. Diameter: 8.7 cm (3-1/2 in); diameter of flange: 7.7 cm (3-1/8 in). Height: 3.5 cm (1-3/8 in). 

This sits directly on the flat base. The external walls rise in a continuous convex arc to the rim, moving outward from the base in a shallow arc (almost a straight line) to the maximum diameter of 15.3 cm (6-1/8 in) 11.3 cm (4-1/2 in) above the base. The walls then curve inward to the rim. The underside of the lid is deeply concave and surrounded by a flange 1.8 cm (9/16 in) high. Above the flange, the edge of the lid juts out a little more than an eighth of an inch on all sides. The upper side of the lid is a shallow convex dome. The lid fits very snugly inside the bottom section.

This was coated with the Shino glaze on the interior and exterior walls. A band ranging in width from 3.5 to 4.3 cm (1-3/8 to 1-5/8 in) was left unglazed at the bottom of the exterior, as was the base. The top of the lid was glazed, with the exception of three places where White held the lid when he applied the glaze. The underside of the lid and the flange were left unglazed. According to information supplied by the artist, this was fired to cone 10 (around 1600 degrees C; 2300 degrees F).

This is a solid, well-conceived pot. The three fingerholds on the lid are a nice touch. Their spacing matches that of my thumb and index and middle fingers. It’s much easier to pick up the lid using these fingerholds than it is to remove the lid by grasping the smoother glazed portions.

The glazing on the pot is especially fine. White exploited the characteristics of the Shino glaze and produced the rusty red scorch marks against a white background and the pinholes for which this glaze is famous. I suspect that the shape of the pot (and perhaps its placement in the kiln) exposed the upper portions of the pot to more heat and was thus responsible for the preponderance of the rusty color on those areas; if so, it’s a good example of controlled interaction between shape and the decoration caused by the firing. Leaving the bottom of the exterior walls unglazed to show the clay created a good contrast in color and texture.

Shino glaze always has an odd feel—it’s both smooth and bumpy. It has a smooth, almost sticky surface, but the many pinholes pitting the surface break up the texture. The unglazed portions were burnished, but they are still rough to the touch.  All in all it’s a delight to hold this pot. 

Purchased from the artist in May 2021.