Look at this flowing decorated paper I just created. Its technical term is Sumigashi, or Japanese water marbling.
I attended a workshop with my local fellow bookmakers. We are always trying to learn a new technique to teach each other and apply to our handmade books.
This is a natural extension of my art as a Calligrapher here in Sedona, creating by hand the vessel to hold my handwritten words. There was also a lesson on how to create this diagonal Pocket folder, which can hold a hand made book or card. Now that was a lesson unto itself! We put on a backing to make it into this folded form.Back to the paper...
The process starts with a pan of still water. Into this container I put the tip of a Japanese sumi brush, or its equivalent, which has as nice pointed tip. Only touching the surface, it will spread out into a circular designs.
Using primarily black ink, we did a lot of experimenting with adding colored inks. They went in bright, but diluted quite a bit with the final rinsing process. I must add I was using a pink paper to start with since it seemed to hold up better than the thin rice paper, although that does work. Just be careful taking it out.
The paper is folded and lowered into the pan center first, then the edges at the end. It is the down side of the paper that will be the printed side we look at. This is a fun art and definitely Not for those who want control.
I think I will call it the art of the Surprise!
Here is one of my favorite art pieces I have created. Actually, this ceramic plate is the one that sold, but I kept the original for me.I used low fire glazes to create the bight colors, and it has a nice foot to stand on, or it can hang on the wall. I named it " A mer i ka", which was probably the pronunciation given by some of those early immigrants entering our country.
This seems such an appropriate choice considering I am writing this blog on July 4th, 2019 here in my hometown of Sedona, AZ. There are a lot of flags flying here today.
When I was young, on the kitchen wall above the vintage yellow chrome table and chairs where we kids ate, was a huge map of the world. Below were all the flags of all of the countries in front of us. Of course we played " guess which flag" with each other.
Maybe that's where my love of travel started. My conservative parents let us go off to all corners of the world when were still young. It was our education they thought, and so it was. I wanted to see those countries myself, and so later, if I had any money at all, off I would go! I liked seeing those flags flying where they lived!
Here I am years later making the flag I care about into a nice ceramic abstraction. But you know what it is when you look at it, don't you ?
Today is the day we celebrate all those heroic women and men who fought for our freedoms and independence from England. I know, that story continues.
But today, I celebrate the art of my flag.
Here is my little Goddess necklace. She is the smallest version of the much larger clay sculptures I have created.I thought this might be a more affordable and playful version for collectors.
This lady is about four inches tall,including her hair. She is made of smooth, burnished porcelain and then pit fired for that magic color.
I even created all the beads that are beside her. Two are the same burnished low fire style, but the tiny beads are high fired porcelain and stained with iron oxide. She is a real Sedona lady!
Hanging on a cotton cord gives her the flexibility to be a choker or flow into a longer version. I wanted to keep the whole organic feel to this jewelry creation.
I have always liked to sculpt the female form. Often I prefer to create in a more free form, even a bit abstract, so you, the viewer, can interpret her through your own eyes.
Un petit bowl. A small bowl that just came out of my last firing. The French have a nice way of saying small, but the word bowl stays the same. This is what I named this particular creation. I love that it can fit in the hand that made it.
You can see the decorative coils I have added to the edge. Why not create some interest? This is a high fired porcelain clay body, which means it can be heated in the stove or even microwave. Naturally, it is totally food safe.
The white color you see is the actual clay showing through a clear glaze. I use this color scheme often, as I think it shows off the form and highlights the contents.
I added an iron oxide to create the contrasting color on the outside, where I have added an organic pattern. Living here in Sedona AZ, we look up at he red rocks which are colored by this oxide. Inspiration from the outside in. I like the juxtaposition of the smooth inside and the textured outside. This is a theme I use on most all of my handmade pieces.
Today I share with you, le petit bowl. Comments are always appreciated by this blog writer!
Here I am standing in front of the large wood burning kiln at Reitz Ranch. This was the former home and studio of the well known ceramic artist Don Reitz.
I was fortunate to have known Don, in the casual way that clay artists see each other and talk shop.We both lived in the Verde valley for a long time and our paths would cross. He was a very funny man and really liked conversation. I took a workshop from him years ago, and as the wheel was turning, Don was talking.Neither stopped for long. He liked to work Big.He was probably best known for his salt and wood firings.Hence these kilns.
He can be credited as taking ceramics from the world of craft into fine art, along with his peers, such as Paul Soldner, Peter Voulkas, Dora DeLarios, and Michael Frimkess. I knew the latter two artists from my days in Venice, California.
Now Don's legend lives on. Another ceramicist, Sheryl Leigh Devault and her husband, Ted, have bought the ranch and intend to continue the world of clay to those who are interested. I feel Don would like this concept.
Here we have my latest Goddess figure, all smooth and sensuous. She stands about 14 inches tall, including her lovely hair.
I have always been drawn to the female form. Working with clay, I prefer a certain abstraction in my design. Everything does not have to be exactly like our bodies, and everyone is unique, to be sure. It is the concept and the different imagery with which I like to work.
This lovely lady is made from my preferred clay body, porcelain.That is especially useful when it comes time to burnish her to a fine sheen. I use horsehair for her decoration, and made a little beaded necklace for adornment.
The first firing is in my regular kiln. Lastly comes the pit firing, using wood to fire. The results are full of surprises. I am happy with the play of dark and light browns; the bronze tones; the hint of metallic flashing here and there . She's a Goddess, and she does what she wants!
Here are the gorgeous books created at a workshop I recently taught on the Art of Japanese stab bindings, using hard covers.
Mine are the two on the bottom left with the green trees, and under it, the cover with the fishes swimming. As a calligrapher, I got into making books by hand.That was the technique used long ago, before the printing press. Everything made with care and precision, the book and writing, both art forms.
My other book on the top right has the purple and green flowers. This has a more complicated form of stitching. Look at the contrast of the thread on the brown cover in front,which really shows the finished pattern. A lot more complicated than just two holes! These are experienced book makers I am teaching, so it is always a challenge to know more than your students.
Japanese stab binding has a long tradition, and were usually made of rice paper. Each hole has to be sewn at least two times, front and back, to complete the pattern. The sewing is always begun other than the first two holes to make the knot less obtrusive. For this lesson, I chose the hard covers, mat board covered in decorative paper.The six hole design is a real challenge. Therein lies the art!
