191. Andrew Sartorius, Firebox Sculpture 3, “Wing”

191. Andrew Sartorius, Firebox Sculpture 3, “Wing”

For Sartorius, see item 143.

North Carolina wild clay, a grayish brown color. Natural ash glazing in grays, blues, and creams. Weight: 620 g (1.4 lb). Height: 8.3 cm (3-1/4 in). Width: 7.9 cm (3-1/8 in). Length: 15.2 cm (6 in).

This is roughly cylindrical in shape, formed so that it slants upward. It is weighted and shaped so that it rests on a flat base at one end. The base is a rough U-shape, about 6.4 cm (2-1/2 in) wide and long at the widest points. The artist’s seal is pressed into the underside.  There is a circular opening on the top side near the weighted end, about 2.3 cm (7/8 in) in diameter. The smaller side (that nearer the opening) is a flat line at the bottom beneath slightly more than half a circle. This side bears slightly outward from the vertical from bottom to top. The other side cants upward from the base in an elongated U-shape convex  arc, roughly 9 cm (3-1/2 in) long, that becomes more and vertical as it nears the upper edge.

This was fired in the lower front of an anagama kiln for four days. A continual coating of fine ash particles melted into the surface of the piece. The only unaffected part was the base and one spot near the bottom on one side. The fire was hot enough to form glassy tears on the bottom of the piece. There was a build-up of rough ash deposits on the top near the higher end. The result, as in many pieces in this series, is a multicolored surface that looks like corroded metal with a variegated patina.

Purchased from the artist in May 2022.

 

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