Backwards and forwards with laser decals

Yes I have heaps on Katrina Chaytor to tell you but I may not get that done this weekend, stacks going on family wise.  As I compose my thoughts on the huge amount of information gleaned watching Katrina in action at POTober - I want to mention a hint or two about laser decals that I may not have shared before.  It may influence how you go about your decal work.  Please excuse if I blogged this already.

Here are a couple of slipcast  bowls (Keane's JCast I think) onto which I applied laser decals post glaze firing, taking the decal firing to 1060 degrees C, way higher than normal onglaze decals which are usually around 750-800 degrees C (can't remember how to find the degree sign without getting distracted).  Can you see the difference?  One bowl has far clearer images than the other.  The least clear image is from the decal that was applied in the normal waterslide manner.  You trim your decal, soak it in water, apply it to the glazed ware face up and slide the cream card backing away from under the printed image leaving behind just the black laser printed image on fine transparent plastic, squeegeeing it into place and removing air or water from behind.  Easy right?  It really is exactly like those toy tattoos you used to play with as a kid.

bowls and decals by Elaine Bradley, drawn design of decals by Emma Vinkovic

Below the left hand bowl has a better, clearer image than that on the right - why?  This happened when I applied the decal onto the ware 'back to front' - face down, i.e. TONER side down, without relying on the waterslide effect to put it in place, and without the gummy layer between the decal and the backing paper to help it adhere to the ware.  I sometimes put a lick of gum arabic betwwen ware and decal on to get a bond going.  It seems to have kept more of the print/toner that was printed on the decal than the other bowl.  I think it is worth that teeny bit for effort for such a more defined result.

Below is a collage of laser decals applied to a store bought plate - before and after firing.

Right now I am experimenting optimistically with printing with cobalt in the toner cartridge.  I'll post the fired results when they are ready.  I doubt I'll get to finishing my post on Katrina's work.  So tired ... a local party kept my whole street awake and I am a yawning wreck.  See you soon, possibly over at 

Mud Colony blog where all the best clayfolk gather with their blogs ... come on.  We love feedback, so talk to us.  

PLEASE NOTE:
All text in this blog posting is copyright of Elaine Bradley, Ceramic Artist, Western Australia unless quoting from another source.  All photographs in this blog posting are copyright of Elaine Bradley unless otherwise stated.  No responsibility can be taken for external links.  Please report any errors in crediting photographs, sources or facts to the author in order to allow her to rectify the matter.  Your response or feedback is welcome.

Where are the doves?

I remember as a child in Dublin,
playing in my friend's house and being shown her new teaset.  It was a ceramic one, in my memory it was a scaled down child size replica of a Willow Pattern dinner set and, confusingly, it was in a deep Mulberry colour.  Well to me, this seemed wrong, although our home had no Willow Pattern I somehow knew it should be blue, but more than that I experienced real envy as my own toy tea set was made of plastic and was white and lime green, uber-modern with its square plates in its context of seventies design and clearly, even as an unsophisticated eight year old, it was an inferior product compared to my pal's set.  We laughed when I reminded her of this decades later.

Now, as  a ceramic artist who teaches Print On Clay techniques I amuse myself recalling little things like that.  I am a Willow Pattern enthusiast, not that I collect and use the ware much, more that I am enthralled by the decorative elements of the classic china pattern, the pagoda's, the boats, trees, bridge, the sweet little doves and the borders.  My lovely husband Henry went to an auction last weekend to find himself a project,  a clock in particular, something to dismantle, tinker with and work out how to make it good again.  He'd grown up with a beautiful antique Grandfather clock in the family home and it was through his boyish ingenuity and curiosity that  it was mended it and given life.  So, now that his various bike and motorbike phases are at rest (no really, I'm not rolling my eyes here, much) somehow the desire to fix a clock has reawakened.  For sure this man will have a very busy retirement when the time comes, he will never be idle.

the backstamp on my new old plates

While I was off at my clay fest in Perth last weekend, just a few blocks away Henry was at an auction house bidding for a hanging pendulum wall clock to fix, and also scored a couple of old Royal Worcester meat plates he figured I'd like.  As a Print on Clay bod, I love them!  It was a really thoughtful thing to buy for me. I think Hen was waiting for an 'attaboy' but I was absorbed immediately by the pale blue printed pattern and the differences between it and the classic cobalt look we associate with Willow.  The design is more ornate and developed than commonplace Blue Willow images, the trees are so pretty, the print very crisp.  I was taking in the engraved look, the sense of the print transferring from the tissue, the onglaze print is perfect.  I've checked the backstamp and our acquisitions are from 1893, though they look identical to those made forty years later from the same factory due to the quality control and consistency in place at the factory.   The glaze is also perfect, no crazing, no scratches on the surface to indicate decades of carving and serving.  Have they ever been used, or have they spent their lives on display or hung on a wall?  I'm pretty sure they've had a gentle life.

But HANG on ... where are the doves?    Look at the first photo.  Those teeny little birds are the doves!  I almost want my money back.  The trees and the doves are what I adore in the Willow Pattern, I draw and print them  all the time.  On these plates the doves are relegated to miniscule blue silhouettes.  All the exquisite detail is in the tree foliage and the textures and forms of buildings and the little men in boats and on bridges.

Do you know the myth associated with the pattern?  The Willow Legend

There was once a Mandarin who had a beautiful daughter, Koong-se. He employed a secretary, Chang who, while he was attending to his master's accounts, fell in love with Koong-se, much to the anger of the Mandarin, who regarded the secretary as unworthy of his daughter.

The secretary was banished and a fence constructed around the gardens of the Mandarin's estate so that Chang could not see his daughter and Koong-se could only walk in the gardens and to the water's edge. One day a shell fitted with sails containing a poem, and a bead which Koong-se had given to Chang, floated to the water's edge. Koong-se knew that her lover was not far away.

She was soon dismayed to learn that she had been betrothed to Ta-jin, a noble warrior Duke. She was full of despair when it was announced that her future husband, the noble Duke, was arriving, bearing a gift of jewels to celebrate his betrothal.

However, after the banquet, borrowing the robes of a servant, Chang passed through the guests unseen and came to Koong-se's room. They embraced and vowed to run away together. The Mandarin, the Duke, the guests, and all the servants had drunk so much wine that the couple almost got away without detection, but Koong-se's father saw her at the last minute and gave chase across the bridge.

The couple escaped and stayed with the maid that Koong-se's father had dismissed for conspiring with the lovers. Koong-se had given the casket of jewels to Chang and the Mandarin, who was also a magistrate, swore that he would use the jewels as a pretext to execute Chang when he caught him.

One night the Mandarin's spies reported that a man was hiding in a house by the river and the Mandarin's guards raided the house. But Chang had jumped into the ragging torrent and Koong-se thought that he had drowned. Some days later the guards returned to search the house again. While Koong-se's maid talked to them, Chang came by boat to the window and took Koong-se away to safety.

They settled on a distant island, and over the years Chang became famous for his writings. This was to prove his undoing. The Mandarin heard about him and sent guards to destroy him. Chang was put to the sword and Koong-se set fire to the house while she was still inside.

Thus they both perished and the gods, touched by their love, immortalised them as two doves, eternally flying together in the sky. 

Love, drama, a good chase scene and a tragedy - what more does a story need?   Well yes, but call me petty, I am mortified that the doves have been so dimunitised on these old plates.  To me they are the essence of the story, the spirit of the tragic lovers and all that jazz.   Here are two examples of Willow Doves, the background one on an old plate with a hint of nice brushwork and one as a modern decal on a porcelain brooch I made.  Do you see what I mean?  The sense of survival, freedom and that 'only have eyes for you' kind of look.  

A classic ornate backstamp on a Burleighware plate

A contemporary backstamp, rather lacking in the traditional feel, I think.

Reader do you think this is all a little weird?  There are squillions of folk inspired by the blue willow pattern, one blogger elected to draw elements of the pattern on paper by hand over weeks for the challenge and enjoyment of it.  I totally understand that.  Plus, if you are interested you could look at the work of contemporary ceramic artists Paul Scott and Robert Dawson, homage and subversion all at once in some pieces. I love a subtle politican dig in art sometimes, when it is as well done as Paul does it.  Both artists have had their work blogged and discussed a great deal.

Robert Dawson plate

detail of Paul Scott's plate A Willow for Ai WeiWei
altered to refer to Chinese Artist Ai WeiWei and his Sunflower Seed Installation at the V&A London
Image from article http://sciencenordic.com/politics-blend-art-modern-protest-old-chinese-platter - read it and maybe this too http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/arts-entertainment/object-factory-art-industrial-ceramics-21369.html

I mean seriously?  How could anyone say that pottery is boring, although I realise that this little blurt is focussing on the surface decoration and history therein,  and to think, this entire posting is a diversion from the posting I am composing about the three day POTober clayfest last weekend in Perth, WA.  So many pix to sift through, you should watch out for it.  Lots to share!

Let's click here and pop over to the fabulous MUD COLONY to see what all the other clayfolk are up to.  

http://howtodrawawillowpatternplate.blogspot.com.au

PLEASE NOTE:
All text in this blog posting is copyright of Elaine Bradley, Ceramic Artist, Western Australia unless quoting from another source.  All photographs in this blog posting are copyright of Elaine Bradley unless otherwise stated.  No responsibility can be taken for external links.  Please report any errors in crediting photographs, sources or facts to the author in order to allow her to rectify the matter.  Your response or feedback is welcome.

Henry says ...

A useful discussion took place recently on the discussion list for TACA - The Australian Ceramics Association.  It was about wheels and how to tweak, service and generally look after them.  Lucky me I have a husband who steps in and fixes things as they break.  Although I am capable of having a go at such things, well, it makes him feel valued and needed to allow him to fix my wheels when needed.  Why rock the boat?  A response to the initial query about fixing wheels, Venco wheels in particular I think gained a massively useful link here.  Check it out and store it somewhere handy - ain't potters just great?!

Venco wheels are built to last but their grommets and collars get a bit dodgy with prolonged use and these are easy to purchase and replace (well thats what Henry says).

http://ceramicsnepean.westernsydneyinstitute.wikispaces.net/Wheel+Page


PLEASE NOTE:
All text in this blog posting are copyright of Elaine Bradley, Ceramic Artist, Western Australia.  All photographs in this blog posting are copyright of Elaine Bradley unless otherwise stated.  No responsibility can be taken for external links.  Please report any errors in crediting photographs, sources or facts to the author in order to allow her to rectify the matter.  

Oh Mary! MARY WALLACE ON PORCELAIN AT PERTH STUDIO POTTERS

Most potters tend to be generous in sharing our knowledge and enthusiasm but this weekend  I encountered that and a little bit more.  Mary Wallace of Spiral Studio in Denmark, Western Australia (about 400km from Perth) presented a well planned, super workshop on throwing and working with porcelain at Perth Studio Potters in Cottesloe.  In fact I have never left a workshop with a 'goodie bag' before, a trend I'd love to see established.  We each received a handmade ramekin dish, a razor sharp carving tool, Mary's business card and publicity postcards and picture cards from the Ganjin Celadon festival.

I could be boring and relate the day exactly as it happened but this is just my little blog and not a magazine article.  Suffice to say, it was a very rewarding day.  Mary is a trained production potter, working in porcelain and she gas fires.  Production potters leave me a bit awestruck and envious of their skills.  They are so precise and decisive as they work and just get on with making - efficiently and well.   While she filled us in on her background, started at Perth Studio Potters in the 70's, TAFE, trained with Ian MacRae at Beaufort Pottery, moved to Denmark (the Denmark in Western Australia not the one in Europe) set up her own wonderful pottery and works there with her pretty great husband Daniel Webb, Mary was swiftly throwing repeat forms on the wheel.  She explained her interest in porcelain and celadons and her connection with Korea.  The day moved fast filled with demonstrations, quick slide shows, great explanations of clay bodies and how some behave when carved.  I had forgotten what the poster at Central Institute of Technology Ceramics noticeboard had advertised, I had just seen that Mary Wallace is coming to Perth, recalled her exquisite work - and signed up immediately.  I'd forgotten that carving was part of the agenda too - BONUS!  and we learnt how to make our own carving tools too and to temper the metal - double BONUS! and we got a goody bag - Oh I need a lie down.

Mary’s lotus tea set  (below) won the Judge's Prize in this years CAAWA Selective Exhibition as blogged here closer to the time.  She spent some of the day showing us how she carves these pieces having observed and learnt from Master Carvers and other craftsmen during her trips to Korea.  She made carving feel very achievable and worth doing. 

Image from CAAWA Facebook page.  Photographer, Cher Shackleton or Natalie Acton

Mary Wallace drawing the pattern of lotus flowers onto the leatherhard vase

A freshly carved outline ready for slip inlay (photo Elaine Bradley)

Coloured slip inaid into lines then trimmed away

Mary showed us how she inlays slip into carved lines in trays like the one below and several leatherhard trays for us to work on using our new carving skills.  There were about twenty two or more attending the workshop, everyone had a go.

Card supplied by Mary and Daniel

Perth Studio Potters aka PSP is an amazing resource for new and experienced potters without a studio or for the potter who likes to work in a bit of company.  There is a well equipped workroom, handbuilding table, slab roller, Venco wheels,  a brand new kiln shed out back and a glazing area.  This historical and important club which has been going for over fifty years has a small kitchen, a library and at the front of the building a modern gallery to show and sell work of the members.  A book on the club's history was authored by Janet Kovesi-Watt and which names many WA potters having had a connection at some point.  PSP runs day and evening classes and when there are no classes the members come and go using the place as their studio.  Neighbours on this suburban street often pass by and see club members sitting outside the gallery cheerfully sharing their lunch and clay tips.  As always at PSP workshops, everyone brought a plate of food to share and a delicious lunch was enjoyed with Mary outside in the springtime sun.

Peacock stained slip has been applied over the carved pattern and is being scraped away once firm.

I believe the Japanese term for slip inlay is Mishima, and I have used and appreciated the technique but now I've been told the Koreans were using it long before the Japanese or Chinese and the technique was adopted as a consequence of the many invasions of Korea down through the centuries.
I haven't mentioned Mary's husband yet.  Daniel Webb was with us all day too contributing in many ways especially when after lunch he demonstrated and advised how to make our own carving tools from umbrella spokes.  Golf umbrellas are made from better metal than cheapies are and the spokes or ribs inside can be cut out and adapted to make superb carving tools.  Daniel showed us how to cut the brolly spokes, flatten one end, trim with cutting pliers and grind to sharpen and then, bend into a useful hook all the better to carve with.  He used a variety of tools - pliers to cut, hammer on a metal block to flatten, tin snips or pliers to trim, some jewellers pliers to form the style of 'hook' desired, flat square edged, angular or gentle curve.  Fortunately I have all of these tools required, so tomorrow I will be hitting the Op Shops in Fremantle for an old golf umbrella.   I will also be plundering the garden shed and the retic risers to use them as handles for my new carving tools.  Thank you Daniel.

a mini tutorial card provided by Daniel and Mary

See how fine and sharp the carving tool is, the edges are razor sharp having been refined on the ginding wheel

I found a little more on the web about Mary, particularly here on the very informative pages ...

'Identifying Australian Pottery 1960s to Date' on Flickr.com.  

Mary's potter's marks, image from Identifying Australian Pottery Flickr.com page

NOW if you are  regular reader of my blog you will know that I always redirect my blog pals over to the Mud Colony blog where you can read more of the antics, lessons and discoveries of many other clay bloggers.  The numbers are growing, there are nineteen blog links there already.  Perhaps you blog occasionally and would like to join Mud Colony?  Give it a thought.  Meanwhile hop on over here to Mud Colony.  Ciao potter pals.  

PLEASE NOTE:

All text in this blog posting are copyright of Elaine Bradley, Ceramic Artist, Western Australia.  All photographs in this blog posting are copyright of Elaine Bradley unless otherwise stated.  Please report any errors in crediting photographs, sources or facts to the author in order to allow her to rectify the matter immediately.  Thank you  

CLAY POWER

In the Cert IV class at CIT Ceramics Studio which focuses on investigating and experimenting, we've zipped through a really busy program of skill sets this term.  We've done handmade teapots, boxes and now we are pushing on with the subject of wall art.  Last week we had a short slide show via my iPad and the digital projector (so easy) to illustrate the diverse possibilities, looking at artists in working clay and other media.  Then we got started on our designs and clay models.  The purpose of this wall art project is to teach the students how to make a simple model from which to make a one piece plaster drop mould and then go on to make multiple copies to arrange as wall art.

Mel is working on a cluster form

At first I thought the students weren't keen on the idea of wall art and all the processes involved, but that gave way quickly to some enthusiastic sketching and planning.

 Zach was the first to get his model ready and out into the plaster area to form the mould.  Here you can see he's built up cottle walls with bits of MDF and recycled clay to hold the retaining walls in place.  He was at home with mixing plaster having used it previously in a sculpture unit and had worked in the trade at some point.  His clay model was not very big and the walls were firm enough to resist the pressure of  the plaster as we poured it in.  We were in and out of the outdoor plaster area in ten minutes while the sculpture class slathered plaster onto their self portraits behind us.  Then the rest of our class noted what Zach had done and followed suite with little direction from me.

One great thing was that the students were passing on the still soft clay with plaster in it for shoring up their subsequent moulds and the MDF walls were leftovers from the workshop area so the wastage was very low.  Meanwhile back in the classroom the students were working away on their models ...

Tanh, who has the concentration and determination of an athlete and works rapidly, was finessing her two cylinder model with a cool faceted surface texture, we may have to address some fine undercuts near the base though. 

Actually here is a little image transfer tip we used in class.  Rowan, below, had drawn his character in his visual diary and needed to translate it into clay.  We went over his drawing with a pen we'd tested to ensure the ink was water soluble.  We tried a couple of pens out to find the right one.  NB Must buy more!  

First we rolled two slabs of clay and placed them on top of each other, with no slip or water between them, the lower slab is about twice as thick as the top one.  When he pressed the image face down onto the top surface of the 'just rolled' slab of clay, the image transferred easily, a mirror image of the original  We'd also tested this simple transfer technique out with a printed 'inkjet' image earlier in the class to good effect.  For a curved surface such as a cylinder you'd just trim the paper to fit the curve.  

 

We used the print as a guide for cutting around it through the top layer of clay with a sharp knife and a with bevelled edge all round.  Some of the background layer will be kept as a foundation for the 2D image to enhance the sense of dimensionality.  The bevelled edge is to ensure we have no undercuts for when we make the mould.  Next week Rowan will be softening the edges of his clay character with his fingertips and brushing a small wet paintbrush into the cut edges to meld the two layers.  

Of course the ink lines that were transferred will disappear in the firing as the ink has no material content to withstand such temperatures but this transfer system works as a guide for carving, sgraffito or for painting on oxide or under glaze decoration.  I learnt most of these methods from Trudy Golley, Head of Ceramics at Red Deer College in Alberta, Canada while I was at ANU.   No photographic models were needed for this blog posting, I just happen to have a very good looking class.  

You may have learnt something new here or been enthused to try something out as a result of reading my blog, if so I would LOVE to get some comments from you.  Want more?  Pop on over to the Mud Colony Blog, we link our blogs up to Mud Colony between every Thursday and Sunday night - and there may be heaps more clay stuff there for you to enjoy.