So many pieces broken on their way to the kiln. So many botched glaze jobs. Once a student told me to straighten up when I walked around the studio. I laughed out loud because when I'm there I'm deep in thought. Maybe that puts a scowl on my face but I'm smiling inside.
As a scientist all of my work is experimental. That statement is easy to make but expensive to live up to. The time and hope you put into a piece may not pay off. But it might.
At Medicine Hat, many of my fellow ceramicists took assiduous notes on the glazes and underglazes they were using. Maybe they were right. Finding just the perfect finish could be replicated and put into production.
Either I was too lazy or too impatient to do anything like that. I just wanted to keep making art and seeing what worked, evaluating the results and noting winning combinations in my head.
I tend to keep alot of "records" in my head too..when something works really well, it tends to stick. Maybe too much note-taking can stifle creativity..encourages an approach which is too prescriptive..and I enjoy the serendipity which comes from ad hoc experimentation.
ReplyDeleteLove that sandy glaze third up from the bottom!