I've been having an amazing season of creative play in my studio, working out ideas that have been brewing inside for a while. I can never figure out exactly why it takes so long from the idea to the finished piece, but when they're ready to happen, they do.
Using the hand-carved tile moulds that I've made over the years, I've impressed clay slabs with different parts of the designs from my inventory of 100's of patterns. Then I take my smaller hand made stamps and add details and diversions to the image.
These pieces actually made their first appearance in my
"Flying Carpet Trays" almost 2 years ago now (!), and although I really liked the trays, it never felt as though that's the form I wanted them to take.
I usually work with a very fussy porcelain body and, sorry to say, I lost more than 1/2 of the pieces I first made. But I'm so happy with the final product that there are more on the way.
These initial 3 pieces were entered into a show called "10x10 = $100" at the Mimosa Gallery in downtown Saratoga Springs. I'm thrilled to say that they all sold on opening night!!
Actually, these pieces never got the finishing touch on them, which are laser decals that I print from my new laser printer. The base glaze I used didn't hold the decals and they disappeared completely. Not a problem, as I have MANY glaze bases to use in my shop.
I've started throwing pots again and my next post will show the results of some small bowls, with decals intact!!
Labels: art tile, carving clay, ceramics, L'esperance Tile, linda ellett, mimosa gallery, new work, saratoga springs
