Craftsmanship In Clay : Decoration (1951)

all Pottery both ancient and modern derives its shape from the simpler the cylinder the cone the sphere and the oo these forms have been used for thousands of years with each civilization developing its own variations and its own particular style of surface decoration decoration is used for added visual interest there are many different kinds of decoration one way to group them is according to the materials used the Potter is using the simplest Mater aterial the clay itself soft clay can be easily worked by incising by imprinting or by modeling on in modeling on the added clay must be firmly joined to the moist clay surface the clay can be left smooth or imprinted with a tool after the clay is dry the entire surface will be covered with a glaze of The Potter's choice and the piece fired fresh spontaneous effects can be achieved by incising in the soft wet clay of a freshly thrown piece sample textured areas can also be enzed with a piece of a comb imprinting with coarse materials such as burlap will produce interesting textures for these textured or modeled surfaces glazes have been chosen which further reveal the surface patterns and make the piece more colorful soft clay can be easily imprinted with an embossing wheel made of fired clay single stamps can also be made of fired clay many original designs can be invented with these simple units but a mechanical and monotonous effect should be avoided sharper tools are needed for carving designs in leather hard clay the stiff clay takes a much cleaner cut than the soft clay and more precise results can be obtained many special cutting tools can be devised for a variety of effects working on and in the clay itself is only one kind of decoration glaze applied to the surface of the clay can be used for another kind of decorating applied to the dry clay the moist glaze can be carved a hard dry coating of glaze can be marked with a ceramic crayon a non-flowing glaze can be trailed on the glaze coating and colored glazes can be stippled sponged or painted on the dry glaze surface glaze painting is usually done with different colors of the same glaze with which the piece is covered for best results with the glaze carving glaze is applied to a green piece and the carving is done while the glaze is still damp to retain the design a nonflowing glaze was used to take the mark of a ceramic crayon the glaze on this plate was mixed with corn syrup this produces a hard crust-like surface when the glaze coating dries and with a non-flowing GL Blaze this texture will not be lost in firing two or more methods are often combined to produce a richer effect glaze trailing is most easily done on a flat or nearly flat surface with a thick bed glaze a third kind of decoration makes use of a clay slip applied to the clay piece and later covered with a transparent glaze slip is usually applied to a green piece for better adherence it must be applied thickly to withstand the solvent action of the glaze after the clay design has been applied it is covered with a coat of colorless or colored transparent glaze glaze can be applied to the unfired slip painting or if desired the piece can be bisque fired before glazing clay slip can be trailed on for strong line patterns the consistency of the slip can be varied from a fluid to a paste depending upon the effect desired slip can also be brushed into in sized lines this is an old Korean technique called Mishima when the surface is scraped clean the design is clearly revealed one of the most effective use of slip is a method called grao slip is used to cover the entire piece and when it is dry enough to handle the design is scratched through it in the wax resist method the design is first brushed onto a green piece with melted wax or a wax Emulsion when the wax is hardened a clay slip is brushed over the entire piece a great variety of effects can be obtained by using different colors in both the clay slip and the glaze in this method the piece must be bisf fired to burn out the wax before the piece is glazed white clay slip can be colored by the addition of powdered commercially prepared underglaze colors here colored clay slip was used under a transparent glaze these underglaze colors can also be obtained in the form of chop or paints imagination and courage to try new combinations as effects from these ageold techniques