Handbuilt ceramics by John Walthier
Curtis Benzle has focused on the interplay between porcelain and light for most of his adult life. His porcelain pieces, carefully constructed in a methodical way, reveal themselves when light is shown through the thin, translucent material. Read about Curtis’ creative process and inspiration in his answers to questions I posed. JW: How has yourContinue reading “Curtis Benzle – Artist Profile”
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Years ago I did some multimedia projects combining audio recordings and photography. I’m interested in getting back to this form, which I think can be very powerful. I’d like to profile some ceramic artists. This post is simply testing the upload of a .mov file format onto this blog. There’s a lot of technical mumbo-jumboContinue reading “Multimedia Test”
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In September 2020 I wrote an article on the Mimbres pottery collection at Western New Mexico University. I wrote the article during Covid, so I was unable to visit the museum at the time. Today, that changed. Although WNMU is a small university, their collection of Mimbres ceramics is outstanding. Simply outstanding. I’m told thatContinue reading “Mimbres Pottery at WNMU”
Here’s a short (7 minute) silent film from 1926 documenting ceramic production. Its a short watch and kinda’ fun: the story-line, the silent movie with musical soundtrack, and the documentation of ceramic production that really hasn’t changed all that much in almost 100 years (apart from bricking up the kiln prior to firing). That’s oneContinue reading “The Pottery Maker (Silent Film)”
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I recently completed a course in figure sculpture. Instead of the typical stoneware clay I use for ceramics, we used oil-based clay for the sculpture. After creating the sculpture in oil-based clay, one normally creates a mold and then either creates bronze or resin casts of the sculpture from the mold. I thought I wouldContinue reading “Mold-Making Experiments”
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Here’s an interesting challenge for yourself. Take a minute to see how well you do at throwing and decorating a vessel online. It’s not as easy as it looks! Here’s the link to try this out if clicking on the image above doesn’t work: https://artsandculture.google.com/experiment/3d-pottery/nwHg1D0riJ1ltA It looks like Google is just building this out rightContinue reading “Google Arts: 3D Pottery Experiment”
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Sally Walk is an Australian ceramic artist whose work I admire very much. It’s exuberant. It’s fun. It’s big and bold and makes a statement. I’m happy to have connected with Sally to ask her about her process, inspiration and plans. JTW: How did you first get interested in ceramics? SW: I went to aContinue reading “Sally Walk – Artist Profile”
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Puzzle jugs were used for drinking games in pubs and taverns from medieval times up into the early 19th century. Users had to figure out how to pour liquid held in the jug into their mouths or a glass without spilling fluid all over themselves or the table. So what exactly is a “puzzle jug”?Continue reading “Puzzle Jugs”
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Small votive plaques made of terracotta in Tibet and other Himalayan areas are known as as tsha-tsha. Typically, they were made in molds and carried by pilgrims to place in portable shrines or to be inserted into large commemorative monuments known as “stupas” as a ritual practice. Placing a tsha-tsha into a stupa was believed toContinue reading “Tsha-Tshas: Terracotta Votives”
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Terracotta is a coarse, porous clay used in as a sculpture medium, popular for its low cost, durability and versatility. Terracotta has been used widely in different locations and eras, including ancient China, Greece and Mesopotamia. In 18th – 19th century France, terracotta was widely used for figurative sculpture. Many examples remain with us today,Continue reading “French Terracotta Portraits”
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JTW Ceramics