Rules to pot by...

Pottery was a fabulous time last night. At one point during all the levity I reminded my brother that there are rules for those who play with clay. He cited rule number one, which is the most important rule of all. I’ve emphasized this one to him over and over during the past few years that he’s been involved with the studio, probably because it’s been a hard one for me to reconcile to.

We continued to joke around, but it made me think that although I refer to them humorously as rules, they are really a compilation of the lessons I’ve learned in my quest to become a potter. Somewhere along the line I was either crushed with disappointment or I simply absorbed the knowledge from the fabulous studio potter I study under. Hopefully you’ll get a little chuckle from some of these and perhaps others will help to prepare you for the inherent trials and tribulations of everything pottery.

And so here they are, (disclaimer: this is by no means a complete list, but simply the things that stand out in my mind):

Rule number one: Never get too attached to anything you’re making. If you do, you’re in for heartbreak, because some of your pieces are bound to get ruined. That’s life.

Rule number two: Wedging clay is important, it builds a potter’s biceps…no wait, just kidding there…the clay is made up of organic particles that need to be aligned, and it removes insidious air bubbles.

Rule number three: Compress, compress, compress. This also helps in the aligning of the clay particles and is the best way to ward off cracks. When throwing a pot you’re compressing as you pull up your wall with your rib and hand, and to achieve this in hand building you should also compress slabs with a rib.

Rule number four: Clay has memory. It wants to shrink back to the way the organic clay particles are aligned. So when working with slabs and tiles, once you’ve compressed your pieces, try to support your slabs and tiles so they don’t flex too much and warp as they dry.

Rule number five: Its going to shrink. If you want a large piece, plan accordingly. A piece, from a lump of mud to the final firing, will shrink about 12%, depending on the clay body. Plan for the final result or plan on something smaller than when you started.

Rule number six: As things shrink cracks may occur, I have found that you can alleviate/minimize cracks at every stage, except after the glazed stage, by compressing the clay/crack. Use a flexible rib on wet clay, use a hard rib on dry clay, use the beaded end of an embossing tool to compress hairline cracks in a bisque fired piece. Now if the cracks are gaping fissures, then you’re out of luck.

Rule number seven: If you make five pieces the probability that all five will come through to completion without so much as a blemish is next to nil. Refer to rule number one.

Rule number eight: People make mistakes, so if someone inadvertently stacks a glazed piece in with a bisque firing, you can be 95% certain that it will adhere to your current masterpiece. Refer to rule number one.

Rule number nine: Again, people make mistakes, so if someone inadvertently loads a not quite dry piece, needing to be bisque fired, in with a low temperature glaze firing, you can be 95% certain that it will explode allowing a fine layer of clay particles to adhere to your glazed pieces (the result is similar to having the piece flocked). Refer to rule number one.

Rule number ten: If you throw a porcelain vase and glaze it in one color, you can be 95% certain that there will be an errant spec of iron in the clay that will show up like a black eye on an otherwise pristine piece. Refer to rule number one.

Rule number eleven: Never roll a full five gallon bucket of glaze (especially if one of the ingredients in the glaze is iron) across an uneven cement floor without having both hands placed firmly on it.

Rule number twelve: NEVER breath clay dust, it contains silica particles which, if inhaled, over time can lead to silicosis of the lungs. The following URL will take you to an “information sheet that was produced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) (UK government). It contains advice for small and medium-sized potteries on the risks from dust containing respirable crystalline silica (i.e., from clay and glazes) and the precautions necessary to minimize exposure.” http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/ceis2.pdf Personally I never carve a piece of pottery without continually spraying the air and the piece with water. Buy a cheap spray bottle from your local grocery store, fill it with tap water, use it, you’ll never regret it.

Rule number thirteen: See rule number one.

Rule number fourteen: If you need something completed by a date certain, its best to start on that project six months in advance, because invariably at least one of the rules is going to come into play to throw off your schedule. And always make twice as many of whatever you need, just in case.

Rule number fifteen: When in a classroom situation, never discuss politics or religion. This is just common sense after all.

Rule number sixteen: Learn by others’ mistakes. If they don’t slip and score adjoining slabs and the piece falls apart or cracks, you’ll know enough to slip and score when you hand build something.

Rule number seventeen: Listen to your teacher, they’ve been potters for years and have lived the heartbreak of lost pieces and mistakes, if you heed instruction you may avoid a lot of the pitfalls and failures as you grow to be a potter in your own right.

Rule number eighteen: See rule number one..

Rule number nineteen: The slower and more evenly you allow something to dry, the less likely it will crack and warp.

Rule number twenty: Imitation is the greatest form of flattery. If you’re creating something and someone wants to try it, encourage them, nine chances out of ten it won’t look anything like yours anyway.

Rule number twenty-one: Along the same line as rule number twenty, as potters we should look at other’s work and be inspired. I don’t think one should necessarily copy an artist, but looking at other’s work will potentially provoke our imagination to envision the limitless possibilities. I’ve been greatly influenced by Elaine Coleman’s carved pieces. When I held one of her vases in my hands I fell in love with it. Now none of my carved porcelain pieces are anything like Ms. Coleman’s, but it opened a door for me to challenge the surface of the wheel thrown pot. So, go to shows, galleries, look at different artists’ work on the internet, be inspired.

And so these are my poignant lessons learned through my experiences and through the instruction I’ve heeded. If any other gems of wisdom [eyes rolling] come to mind I’ll amend this post. In the mean time, I hope you’ve gotten a chuckle out of these and perhaps even see the glimmer of truth in them as well (especially rule number twelve!).

Happy potting!

CD