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slam wedging and air

updated thu 6 jan 11

 

mel jacobson on tue 4 jan 11


one thing i have observed over 50 years of teaching
clay...many people add air pockets and poor clay
product as they wedge...they actually destroy the
quality of the clay by working in air and or scrap
material on the wedging table.

i use cut and slam to make sure all air pockets are
gone. my walker pug mill makes clay loose, as i like
it...i do `not` prefer de/aired clay...it seems far too tight
for my work. but, the walker sort of `fluffs` the clay.
most of you would cringe as you see me throw clay
fresh from the box into my walker. then add stuff.

a few cuts and slams makes the clay perfect.
then a spiral wedge...left handed (as that is what
i am.) seems to make the coned clay perfect for
throwing.

i will let ivor work out the left or right handed spiral
wedge for us. counter clock wheel, left hand spiral.
seems to make sense to me.

all i know is: i can throw anything with my clay, any
size, any shape. seems easy. almost never cracks.
but, i think years of doing it trumps anything else.
a system for success is in place.

and like when i visited a potter in madras, india...working
on a ox cart wheel set on a stone in the ground...clay
that was mined as is...dark red. the wheel had about
a one inch wobble....and he threw perfect water jars.
he sort of knew how to make pots with his materials
at hand. and on a 500 year old system of throwing.
not bad.

often we take things much farther into science than
need be.
get some clay, a wheel and make pots. then build your
own kiln and fire them. the voice that is singing loud and
clear is your own...i like to think it could be `madam butterfly`.
some make it `row, row, row your boat`, and never get
past it. and, then they look for excuses about the quality
of the clay, how to fire, bad kiln....bosh. the major concept
of `craft` is: control your materials...learn them, demand excellence,
and, no excuses. don't apologize, demand excellence of self.
it up to the individual. it is not a group activity. when your pots
are lousy, point your finger at your own nose. then figure out how
to make them better.
mel

from: minnetonka, mn
website: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/
clayart link: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/clayart.html
new book: http://www.21stcenturykilns.com
alternate: melpots7575@gmail.com

ivor and olive lewis on thu 6 jan 11


Dear Mel,
A Happy New Year to you and you Lady. May you both prosper, stay healthy an=
d
continue to be creative.
You need to use a more elaborate fly to catch me rising to this one....
counter clock wheel, left hand spiral. Seems to make sense to me.>
Lewis Carroll (The Reverend Charles Dodgson. Christchurch College,
Oxford)would have been the Mathematician to help you sort that one out Mel.
All the patterns I have exposed are on the Macro scale, that is, they are
clearly visible to my naked eye. I have yet to see any illustrations of
structure in prepared clay magnified to the Micro or Nano level.
Sincere regards,
Ivor