197. Jeff Abney, mug

197. Jeff Abney (Red Gate Pottery Studio), mug “with tractor-tire texture”

 

For Abney, see item 138.

Stoneware, coarse gray clay. “Hamada” glaze showing dark red with black streaks; bottom unglazed. Weight 490 g (17.5 oz). Height: 9.2 cm (3-5/8 in). Diameter at mouth: 9.7 cm (3-7/8 in); Width with handle: 13.2 cm (5-1/4 in). Capacity: 428 ml (15 fl oz).

This sits on the flat base, which has been scored with concentric circles. The walls slope outward from the base, reaching the widest diameter 9.2 cm (3.5/8 in) about 2.5 cm (1 in) above the base and then move gradually inward to the narrowest diameter 8.8 cm (3-1/2 in) about 2 cm (3/4 in) below the rim. The walls then flare outward at a slight angle to the rim. The walls would be very irregular in cross-sections. The artist’s marks (2) have been impressed into the walls just above the base. Two horizontal rows of chevrons (the “tractor-tire texture") were impressed into the walls just above the widest diameter and at the narrowest diameter. They appear to have been made with a roller device. The top of the handle is attached over the top row of chevrons; the bottom is even with the base.  The texture is smooth except over the chevrons.

This was glazed in what Abney calls the Hamada glaze, a dark reddish brown glaze with black streaks from the wood-firing reminiscent of those used by Hamada Shōji. The base and a narrow portion of the walls just above the base were left unglazed.

The mug is heavy but easy to hold.  Simple yet effective decoration.

Purchased from the artist in September 2022.

 

196. Anne Maraviglia, mug

196. Anne Maraviglia (Flying Plumtree Studio), wood-fired Tenmoku-glazed mug

For Maraviglia, see item 126.

Brown clay. Tenmoku glaze showing reddish brown colors; grays and blacks due to ash deposits from wood-firing; melted ash glaze on some surfaces showing as a golden sheen. The bottom was left unglazed and unexposed to the ash flow. Weight: 440 g (1 lb). Height: 10.7 cm (4-1/14 in); Diameter: 8.4 cm (3-5/16 in). Width with handle: 11.3 cm (4-1/2 in). Capacity: 426 ml (15 fl oz).

This sits on the flat base; the sides of the base are beveled at about a 45 degree angle up toward the walls of the cup. There is a slight groove just above this bevel. The glazing extends down to the groove. There are two horizontal bulges roughly 40 and 60 percent of the way up the cup. The handle is attached just above the bottom rim and just above the uppermost bulge. The artist’s mark was impressed into the clay just above the groove and next to the handle.

This was wood-fired. One side of the cup shows a large patch of black and gray ash deposits. The opposite side shows less impact from the wood-firing. Melted ash glazing left a gold-hued sheen over much of the exterior surface. The rim is black and gray on the exterior. The interior is a dark reddish brown. The surface of this is smooth.

The mug is well balanced. The lower placement of the handle makes it easier to hold even when the mug is full despite the depth of the cup.

Purchased from the artist in September 2022.

 

195. Cara Taylor, Vase

195. Cara Taylor, Vase, “Pyramid No. 1”

Taylor is a potter in Easthampton, Massachusetts. For more of her work, see her website, carataylor.com.

White porcelain clay; wood-fired with cream color on exposed sides, with some brown speckling, especially toward the base; base is orangish pink. Glazed through salt-firing. A lining glaze in a light blue color was applied to the interior. Weight: 620 g (22 oz). Height: 14.3 cm (5-5/8 in). Length: 16.3 cm (6-1/4 in). Width: 11.4 cm (4-1/4 in).

This was hand-built, apparently of two pieces of clay. The piece sits on a flat, three-sided base 15 x 12.5 x 12 cm (6 x 5 x 4-3/4 in). The two longer sides meet in an arc; they meet the shortest side at about 90 degree angles. The shortest side bows outward slightly. The marks where the small posts used to separate pots in the kiln were attached are visible as grayish spots on the base. This same piece of clay was bent upwards in a triangular shape with the apex 12.5 cm (5 in) above the base (here referred to as the back piece). The other piece of clay forms the two long sides of the piece, meeting the back piece as right angles and curving around on the opposite side. They join at the top in a sharp line that rises slightly from the back side to the mouth. There is a slight indent at the seam where the two pieces meet.  The mouth is an oval 3.2 x 2.3 cm (1-1/4 x7/8 in) in size. It is located on one of the longer sides. The surface of this is mostly smooth; the brown speckles protrude slightly.

A well thought out and nicely executed piece. It manages to be equally formal, elegant, flowing, and playful. 

Purchased from the artist in October 2022.

194. Andrew Sartorius, Firebox Sculpture 15, “Little Bird”

 194. Andrew Sartorius, Firebox Sculpture 15, “Little Bird”

 

For Sartorius, see item 143.

Elsewhere Sartorius refers to this as “Little Wing.”

Wild clay from North Carolina; mostly gray colors from the wood firing, with some dark reds and rust colors; some glazing from the ash melt. Weight 150 g (5 oz). Height: 5.4 cm (2-1/8 in). Length: 10.4 cm (4 in). Width: 5 cm (2 in).

This sits on a flat, round base about 4.2 cm (1-7/8 in) in diameter. The base was relatively untouched by the ash flow. The sides flow upward from the base in a complex series of contours. There are three sides. The smallest is a rough triangle; the artist’s mark was impressed into this area. The other two, longer sides are rough teardrops in shape. The top is another teardrop shape, with the opening toward one end. The opening is about 2.2 cm (7.8 in) in diameter and has a raised vertical lip about 0.7 cm (7/8 in) high.

This was fired in the lower front of an anagama kiln for four days. According to Sartorius, “it was dangerously close to the embers for such a small piece. It really developed the cooler ash surface of something insulated by the embers surrounding it.”

Purchased from the artist, July 2022.

193. Andrew Sartorius, Firebox Sculpture 4, “The Tower”

 193. Andrew Sartorius, Firebox Sculpture 4, “The Tower”

 

For Sartorius, see item 143.

Wild clay from West Virginia. Gray, black, reddish brown colors from wood-firing. Weight: 426 g (15 oz). Height: tallest side: 11.3 x 9.7 cm (4-1/2 x 3-7/8 in); opposite side 10.7 x 9.4 cm (4-1/4 x 3-3/4 in). Width: sides: 4.7 x 5.8 cm (1-7/8 x 2-1/4 in); bottom: 5.5 x 5 cm (2-1/4 x 2 in).

This is a four-sided column with curved panels and irregular sides. The base is flat, a three-sided figure with sides that curve outward and with curved angles where the sides meet. The base is roughly 4.8 x 2.5 cm (1-3/4 x 1 in). The base does not occupy all of the bottom of the piece. The rest of the bottom curves slightly upward toward the sides. The artist’s mark was impressed into the clay in this area. The opening at the top is 3.5 x 2.7 cm (1-3/8 x 1/16 in), roughly rectangular in shape. The surface is moderately rough and pitted.

This was fired in the lower front of an anagama kiln and was naturally glazed over a four-day firing period with a coating of fine ash particles, which melted and ran down the sides. The sides facing the ash flow became grayer than the other sides, which show up as a dark reddish brown color. There are a few brown spots.

This is meant to sit upright but the base is unsteady, and I position it on its side for safety’s sake.

Purchased from the artist, July 2022.

 

192. Andrew Sartorius, Firebox Sculpture 11

192. Andrew Sartorius, Firebox Sculpture 11

For Sartorius, see item 143.

Porcelain clay, grogged, and coated with a porcelain slip. White, pink, blue, brown, and gray colors from wood-firing. Weight: 1054 g (2.4 lb). Height: 13.2 cm (5-1/4 in). Length: 17 cm (6-3/4 in). Width: 10.7 cm (4-1/4 in).

This is roughly triangular in shape with curved sides. It sits on the flat base, a triangle with curved sides of the length and width given above. Traces of the three posts used to separate this from the shelf in the kiln are visible on the base. As with the other pieces on this series, this was hand-built. All sides are convex arcs, curving inward to the triangular top, which is 13.8 cm (5-1/2 in) long and 7.6 cm (3 in) wide. The top slopes downward from the height given above to 8.2 cm (3-1/4 in).  The front face of the piece has a small circular opening 2.5 cm (1 in) in diameter situated to the upper left portion of this side.

Wood-fired for four days near the front of an anagama kiln. In a note, Sartorius explained that the colors seen here are typical of those created by interactions between the porcelain clay and the molten wood ash.

Purchased from the artist in May 2022.

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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