We spent Friday morning practicing design strategies by using india ink on greenware and bisqueware. The idea was to practice what we've learned in a commitment-free way, since the ink will burn off in the bisque kiln. We started by painting line drawings of our pots on newsprint. We turned up some music and all settled in to the rhythm of drawing the same pot over and over, until a certain jesture developed in the image, and we became comfortable with using the brush and the ink. After that, we took the whole pot image and painted it directly on the pots. I tried to use the jesture of my lines, because my pots were too small to fit an entire image. This was a very freeing exercise for the whole class. Knowing that the decoration wasn't permanent really allowed us to experiment more freely.After a final lunch together, we discussed an assignment Chris had given us earlier in the week. He gave us a handout with a list of questions about how we work in clay. There were technical questions about clay bodies and firing atmospheres, and then questions about scale, intended location of finished work, and time use and management, among other things. This workshop was called Architecture of the Pot, but I think it should be renamed "Throwing the Dart," because so many of the exercises were about throwing a wrench in the works of what you've been doing by selecting a design strategy at random (hence, throwing the dart) and seeing where it takes you in the progress of your work. As Chris said many times, "All of our choices in clay are arbitrary. Change one thing and you change your work."
While I'm glad to be home, I will miss the immersive, supportive atmosphere of this workshop. It was a terrific experience and I'm already thinking about going back next summer!
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