It’s been a busy few weeks here. The best part of March was seeing my kids while they were on their respective spring breaks. Before, after, and in between, I did some clay work.
I’ve been back in design mode with a few new pieces. The pig face tile was in need of some companion tiles so I added a couple of wings and some legs to make a set. I liked the way the set came out so I used the flying pig as a feature for a new palette design.
The pig palette has presented some construction challenges. First, it’s the largest palette I’ve designed so there are issues like warping and weight to consider. It’s also thick due to the high relief carving of the snout. I’ve tried both pressing and slip casting but neither has been a complete success. I prefer the pressing approach for two reasons. First, porcelain slip is not always available locally. Secondly, the plaster molds are very large and slip casting is rough on plaster (it breaks it down quickly). The biggest problem with pressing palettes is the weight of the piece, especially with the pig’s thickness. The best solution I’ve come up with is hollowing out the back of the pressed palette at the thickest point. It’s relatively labor intensive but I don’t plan to make too many of these. I’m also in the process of experimenting with three new porcelains clay bodies to see if one is less prone to warping.
This past month, I’ve also designed the spring palette of my seasonal palette series. I tried a few designs and the house finch in a rose bush was the one I liked best.
Most recently, I designed a new sea otter brush rest. I’ve been thinking about this design for awhile and finally put it to paper (and subsequently clay). I think these will be especially cute paired with the octopus palette.
The next step will be to make finished pieces from each of these new designs. So far, just the pigs tiles have been glazed but I hope to be listing the palettes and sea otters in my Etsy shop very soon.