Sweet Inspiration

Do you see what I mean? Maybe it's just a Japanese archetypical shape. Funny how the mind works,no?

Lantern Show

I threw a whole collection of parts for the lanterns yesterday,largely by guesswork,but referring to pictures I took in Japan and net sites,using my rough tough [but soft] stoneware mix. This morning I got to play with them [top picture] ,and had a disgracefully good time re-arranging elements,trimming,squaring and assembling. One of the beauties of these lanterns is the lack of attachment - nothing is stuck together [except the knob on top] so you can keep playing with them. Looking at them now,the more rounded one,inspired [I thought] by some ancient lantern spotted in an Imperial Park in Kyoto, suddenly reminds me of a strange device I noticed on "Akihabara News" just before I sat down to throw...let's see if we can find the picture...

Mixing Clays

Helen wafted through the studio and remarked on how nice the clay looks in this state: she's right [as usual] and reminds me of one of the original motivations for this blog- to show some of the behind-the-scenes beauty normally reserved for the observant potter in his studio.
Here I'm mixing a very rough red stoneware with a slightly milder version of the same clay and a bag of my regular stoneware with a view to concocting a Japanese Stone Lantern mixture. Ever since Sydney and I got back from Japan the shapes of those lanterns have been floating around in my mind,and I think it's time to have a go at a few,and see what they look like transposed into clay. Now to wedge this lot up until it has a uniform colour. Maybe throw in some different grog,maybe some Shigaraki feldspar,and probably a pinch of Mashiko dust,for that authentic Eastern flavour.I'm supposed to be doing something else today,but this activity suddenly burst in and asked to be taken care of [I think the trigger was checking out a website where someone tried casting a lantern from a cement mixture].

Fancy Feet

A quick click on the title should whisk you to the brief [low-quality,no fancy transitions] video showing how to make those feet.

Lugged and Legged

There was a low shelf left to fill in the bisc kiln,so I made some square bakers: then I decided that they would look nice with feet,and by the time I'd added those,they no longer fit under the low shelf...
Just in case you don't know [or can't work out] how to do these feet,I'll attempt a swift video...

Shvil Israel

Louis and Esther are taking a year or so to walk this public path from Dan [north] to Eilat [south]: young folk [whom one meets on the path,carrying bedrolls and heavy-looking backpacks] do it in 6 weeks non-stop,often after army service. I joined them for a short but varied section of Wadi Dishon,in the area of the Circassian village of Rehania. What a beautiful country we live in! Shabbat Shalom!