Shouldn't form come first?
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I like the idea of making pots that blind people could
enjoy. This could be a beautiful round moon jar such as those I drooled over in
Korea or it could be a pot of mucho tactile quality such as those of Ronnie the
Rat. Can you imagine the glee on the face of a blind person to have their hands
discover a pig, a cat, a rat or some such critter on a tea bowl.
I am often in awe of some of the fired surfaces that I see
on Facebook. I look at the great surface and wonder why on such an
uninteresting and "so what" forms. It seems there are potters that are
interested with experimenting with the form and the tactility of the material
and there are potters that are interested in the glazes and the colours
achieved in the firing. Yes, there are potters that achieve both . It seems the
wow factor of glaze and firing seem to be the rage right now. I must admit I
really haven’t wanted on that train.
I like to think form comes first. Imagine a blind person embracing a large 100
lb moon jar made by one of the Korean masters. To wrap their arms around it and
imagine they were holding on to the moon. Reach for the moon and embrace it!
I’m off to the Shadbolt Arts Center in Burnaby, BC on Monday
to fire a beautiful train kiln built by Ted Neal. It will be a treat to drive a Cadillac. I
made some moon jars with a twist. A
twist of the handle that is! I’m
enjoying messin’ with them. I haven’t much thought of the glaze. I figure if
the form is strong enough and the pot is interesting enough then it will speak
well enough for me. Check out the beauty of a unadorned beautiful moon jar- form, form, form!
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