Ceramic art and exploration
I have often wondered why one of my great loves does not influence my ceramics. After all, my work is about vessels which carry a story. So why does my love of sailing not come in somewhere? The answer escapes me but, in a week where progress in the studio has been just that – progress – and we have had our first outing of the year in Annika, I decided not to write for the sake of it and instead to share with you the two aspects of my love for vessels.
Last week I spent a lot of time working on commissions. Several of these were for people who are particularly important to me – either because I know them personally or because they have become some of my best customers. It seemed to me that this had a strange impact on my work. I think that I was trying particularly hard to get things as good as I could get them and this proved to be a mistake!
There are weeks which go really well in the studio but this was not one of those. Trying too hard takes the spontaneity out of things and they spoil. Opening the kiln was not a good experience. Things had warped, discoloured, cracked or peeled. So after a flurry of emails to explain why delivery might be a bit later than planned, this week I am back to the drawing board – sun or no sun!
On the up side, I firmly believe that every error leads to a development and an improvement. The lucky people for whom these pieces were intended will shortly be benefitting from improved models. Well, that is the plan at least. So, if Sod is reading this, please could he go and upset somebody else this week whilst I rectify a few things
Bridget Macklin