newsletter of ceramics sa eastern cape

summer 2013

Letter from the chair 1

Notes from my studio 2

A visit by David and Sarah Walters 3

Dinner for one (in pictures) 5

Information on the Regional Exhibition 7

The pomodoro technique 8

Design capital of the world 10

Antoinette Badenhorst visit 11

How to……an easy way to copy 12

Andy Bowls 14

Tips and tricks 18

all contact details on the back page

Front cover: Billy MacNaughton

Index page: Delphine Niez

Letter from the chairWe have had a great start to 2014! I was very sad to miss the AGM, but can ascertain from the minutes that we had goodparticipation by members and views and ideas were discussed.

This being a year of the Corobrik National Ceramic Exhibition, this time in Cape Town, I am hoping that you all have yourthinking caps on and will produce fantastic work for the exhibition. Off course we need wonderful work for the Regional Ex-hibition in Grahamstown first. We have been able to secure a popular venue and we are hoping for many entries from ourmembers. By now you have received your “Call for Entry” and will know what it is all about.

In this issue we also have feedback from the David and Sarah Walters workshop and a number of images from our ”Dinnerfor One” exhibition. Did you know that our members have sold well in excess of R130,000 worth of work through ART gal-lery since the inception of our partnership? Worth a thought.

We have a delightful article from Gavin Cox in East London in this issue, it is always interesting so see how people get intoceramics and to share their excitement.

Ruthanne Tudball will be here soon and I do hope that you have booked. Even if you are not a wheel thrower, her interest-ing ways of altering work could be adapted to your own type of construction. Never miss out on an opportunity to learn.We are extremely lucky to have such a generous donation from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University which affords usthe opportunity to offer the workshops at very good prices.

With Antoinette Badenhorst arriving towards the end of June we really have a full programme ahead of us. We also need tofit a social evening in, but a date will follow later. These social evenings are well worth attending - good food and wine anda chat about ceramics - another opportunity to ask the experts. We are lucky to have sharing members.

Please feel free to raise any issues with me regarding our organisation,the Argilos or workshops - Feedback is more thanwelcome - at least I know someone is out there!

PS: All our web addresses in this magazine are hyperlinks. Just click on them!

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Notes from my studioRecently I have been thinking about why I am still so passionate about clay after forty-odd years. What is it thatkeeps me going back to the studio, month after month, year after year? When I started my journey in clay Isomehow thought that eventually I would know it all, that somehow I would reach a pinnacle and stay thereforever.

Gladly the more I learnt, the more I realized that I would never know enough; that the pinnacle was an illusion.There are mountains and valleys, some hillocks as well. The ups are great, the valleys not so good, but it is fromthese valleys that I continue to learn. These are not personal failures but part of the learning process. They callfor harder work and a better understanding of how to improve. I like to look back occasionally, to remind myselfof how far I have come. It is also important to take risks now and then. Sure, there will be some disasters, butalso some success. It is important to keep looking and keep asking “How can I improve my work?”

Many people have helped me on this journey. Some helped directly, by giving freely of their time, listening tomy technical problems, and giving advice. Others helped indirectly, via ideas stimulated by workshops, demon-strations, books and informative articles. Maybe, because we all fail at times, people in ceramics give so gener-ously of their knowledge.

The bottom line is join Ceramics S.A., and meet and mingle with as many potters as you can. Attend workshops,where you will always learn something new. Become part of our community, and help other people by sharingknowledge and ideas generously. But, mostly enjoy the journey, for this is a journey that will last a lifetime.

2.

A visit by David and Sarah Walters - Margie HiggsThe most fun you can possibly have with your clothes on is… (according to Mas-ter Potter and Fellow of CSA, David Walters)… throwing a pot ! Well, lots of funwas had by all who attended the workshop presented by David and daughterSarah recently at the Ceramic department.David very ably demonstrated throwing both large and small vessels with theminimum of effort, tools, only two to three “pulls” to bring your clay up, butplenty of chatty wit and tips along the way.He uses a rib inside the vessel to perform three functions: to shape, to thin andto smooth. His rib is an expired credit card, cut to shape. His other main tool isan all metal turning tool (seen in the picture below) given to him on completionof his ceramic studies.

David uses a lump of clay and a long paintbrush to gauge the width of the potwhen throwing repeats - the tip just lightly touching the rim.He demonstrated the throwing of the beautiful agateware teapots on show atthe Legacy exhibition. He precisely shapes a piece of stained clay to the samewidth of the prepared lump which he cuts in half, and sandwiches the colouredpiece in between the two halves. He then places the clay on the wheel headwith the stain vertical. This ensures the colour forms concentric rings from thebase to the top of the vessel. He proceeds to throw the lid and spout, off thehump, before the body of the teapot.

David consciously strives to create both useful and beautiful work. His interac-tion with customers before buying his elegant dinnerware where he establishestheir entertainment style and preferences, leads directly to the choice of vessels

Agate ware - teapot

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and style he goes on to create for them. His dinner-ware is used in many top restaurants in the county andin stylish private homes worldwide.

Next came Sarah…………………while she follows David’slead of making high quality porcelain ware it is with adistinct feminine touch. Sarah threw a vessel, pausingen route to randomly thin the rim and then continued tothrow - resulting in the rim becoming delicately une-ven.She then painted a design, both inside and out, on theleather hard vessel, in coloured cold wax. She carefullysponged away the clay between the waxed design.

While this method has a high casualty rate, the result-ing vessel, once fired, is wonderfully translucent and it

magically appears to hold both light and shadow at thesame time.

These washed away vessels, the organic enhancementson her teapots and the carved designs through black slipall speak of her happy involvement with clay.

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Bianca Whitehead Nicole Kingston

Chantal Martin

Sarah Walters Lisa Walker Delphine Niez

Dinner for one celebration (in pictures) Margie Higgs is writing an articleabout our last 5 years as an organi-sation for the next NCQ, so you canread all about it there. Here aresome images from our celebratoryexhibition.

5.

Nicole Kingston Margie Higgs

Lydia Holmes

Lee Hensberg Donve Branch

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We are privileged to have our RegionalExhibition at the National Arts Festivalin Grahamstown this year. Make sureyou enter!

Remember: If you would like to enterfor the Ceramics SA National Exhibitionin Cape Town in November, you have tohave had work accepted for a RegionalExhibition at some stage.

We have kept our entry fees reasonableand students may enter at no cost.

Sponsored by

7.

The Pomodoro TechniqueEver hear of this? It is a time saving technique developed by Francesco Cirrilo in the 1980’s. The technique derives its namefrom a kitchen timer shaped like a tomato (pomodoro - Italian).

The idea is to set the timer to 25 minutes and then take a short break. (3 - 4 minutes) So your work time is divided up intomany Pomodori. After four such 25 minute Pomodori, you take a longer break, then start again.

This method is said to increase mental agility and it also give your body a rest.

An essential aim of the technique is to reduce the impact of internal and external interruptions on focus and flow.

Before the process is started, you can plan you work time (a morning for instance), then take note of your goals for the timeperiod. As you complete the different Pomodori, you can note down what you have accomplished and where you are going togo from that point onwards. It allows many breaks which you can use to stretch or just blink you eyes! At the same time it

allows you time to look at your work and note what your next step would be - for in-stance whether your ideas are working, or whether you need to start again, what un-der glaze you might use to emphasize something or ultimately whether you want topursue the shape, carry on with the clay you are using, glazing, decorating or the bin!

It is a low-tech technique : Winding up the clock confirms the user’s determination tostart work. The ticking externalises the desire to finish a task and the ringing an-nounces a break. Flow and focus become associated with the physical stimuli

So let the lowly kitchen timer work for you!

Just click on the link to read more and watch the video athttp://www.pomodorotechnique.com

8.

Cape Pottery Suppliessponsors of two regional exhibition awards

Kiln Contracts Building, 11 Celie Road, Retreatinfo@capepotterysupplies.co.za

021 7011320http://www.capepotterysupplies.co.za

From African Earth - Our National Exhibition willform part of the celebrations of Cape Town as the

World Design Capital 2014.

Make sure you are part of it!Make sure you are part of it!

Start working now and be sure to have yourStart working now and be sure to have yourbest work ready by October !best work ready by October !

More details will be available later in the year.

......an extract from a letter by Ralph Johnson,Western Cape Chair regarding the theContemporary/Heritage Exhibition at the IzikoMuseum in November 2014 - Month in Clay

The contemporary exhibition running alongside the Her-itage exhibition is open to all CSA members. The onlycriteria is that these pots must be in the same genre asthe Heritage vessels which are smoke fired. So potsmade by Nic Sithole, Michelle Legg, Donve Branch,Christine Gittens, Gabrielle Koch and of courseMagdalene Odundo, whose work is so closely inspired byAfrican pots yet has a 21st century contemporary look,all fit into this genre.

The pots can be thrown, hand built, slip cast or whatev-er, be cutting edge modern or look like Ukambas butthey must all be smoke fired; in pits, bins, braais, sag-gars etc. They can be burnished or not, slipped or terrasigillata but no raku or glaze. They can be decorated orplain. Any clay, red earthenware or porcelain etc I wouldencourage people to look at ancient African vessels forinspiration.

These pots will be selected at the same time as selectionfor the National Exhibition and be sent as per pots forthe National. I cannot tell you at this time how manypots can be accommodated as Esther ( Iziko ) and I arestill discussing the exhibition and gallery space.

10.

Antoinette Badenhorst workshop late in JuneAntoinette Badenhorst, is a South African ceramist who now lives and works in America. Her distinctivewheel thrown porcelain pieces glow with translucency. This is a technique which she has researched anddeveloped over a period of time and now even presents an e-course which has been very popular. She hasstarted a blog and has a Facebook page for interested ceramists. She will be here to demonstrate exactlyhow she throws, then manipulates the pieces while still wet , scraping down and inserting details. She willalso share her knowledge of how porcelain behaves and her different glazing techniques.

Antoinette’s visit to Port Elizabeth is sponsored by the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University. Because ofthis sponsorship our workshops fees are low. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn something new.

You can read more about Antoinette and her exploits by clicking on the link below.

http://www.porcelainbyantoinette.com

11.

How to……Easy transfers of patterns or images to your ceramic work

Free hand drawing is not for everyone… This does not mean that you cannot do a bit of cheating to get your image onto theclay. This is NOT to do a final transfer, just to use the image as a guide so that you can trace it off on your clay.

Choose your image, manipulate in Photoshop or similar pattern. Print it onto paper with yourINKJET printer. You can now add writing (rememberin reverse) with water based markers. You can alsoadd to your drawing with water based markers.

. Remove the paper and the image will remain on the clay - now you can use a scratch tool of yourchoice to scratch the image into your clay.

. For a painterly effect use stains or oxides mixed with pen medium (for good flow) to copy it. If youuse stains, remember that you will have to glaze over itto retain the image as stain has no fluxing properties ofits own.

. Turn this upside down onto leather hardclay. Spray with a little water and polish on withthe back of a spoon or rubber kidney.

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Finishing off. Apply wax resist to areas to remain unglazed. Glaze and fire to full temper-ature.

Use under glazes to colour in

Remember writing has tobe in reverse! Use water solublemarkers.

Lesson plan condensed form Ceramic Arts Daily.Are you a member - get your daily free lessonand information from their archives.

http://www.ceramicartsdaily.org

13.

My wife and I have always wanted to try our hand at pottery and the opportunity finally came as we explored possible futuresfor our significantly disabled son. We typically describe Andrew, all six-foot-three of him, as twenty-one on the outside andfive on the inside. A nicer chap you couldn’t hope to meet, by the way.

Unfortunately the pottery has not turned out to be the answer to the rather difficult questions Andrew’s future poses, butexploring the option led to us establishing our small home studio complete with wheel and kiln in 2008/9. All equipment ac-quired had been pre-owned, and we enjoyed the ceramics community from the get-go, with folk open and helpful. Andy stillhelps out in the studio but by far his greatest contribution was the invention of the Andy Bowl – a half-spherical terracottastoneware bowl 15 cm in diameter and half as deep, brightly under-glazed in a wide range of colours on the inside and thenclear glazed all over. We sell these tissue-wrapped and cardboard-boxed, the closest thing to a perfect gift, and Andrew still

andy bowls and other ceramic ramblings

14.

participates in the production of each and every one, at the very least hand-signing his “inventions” on the bottom. Let it besaid that in this his ceramic aspirations seem to be fulfilled, although his interest perks up sporadically.

As you can glean from the above, for Estelle and I a thought became an interest - became a hobby - became a passion, andwe’re now attempting to establish our little studio with a measure of commercial viability; at the very least we’re aiming for ahelpful income stream from our endeavours. And this is where things get really interesting!

How do you develop a small home studio into a small business that at the very least washes its own face and provides a littleon the top? An excellent question which as yet awaits a satisfactory answer. In the mix is the acquisition of skills. Thank youto John Steele for the lessons, the advice and the ongoing encouragement. In the mix is the inevitable opening of the studioto others who would like to give pottery a go. Thanks to those who did so, and thanks to those who will yet do so. You’vehelped us learn a great deal. In the mix are family and friends who graciously accepted a steady stream of unmarketablehome-made pottery as gifts. We occasionally bump into our earlier work in a social context and cringe quietly. In the mix ishours of Internet surfing and You Tube viewing. And in the mix is experimentation; plenty of it; endlessly. And in the mix isthe slow gravitational pull of expressions of the art which draw you as an artist and allow the craftsmen in you expression with somemeasure of competence. (I would love to say mastery, but I’m not sure we’ll get there in this lifetime).

The learning curve continuous at suicidal gradient. We’re now members of Ceramics SA. Glean, glean, glean. I’m tickled pinkto be writing for Argilos. Influences into the ceramics scene in the Eastern Cape in 2014? – why, it’s workshops by David andSarah Walters, Ruthanne Tudball, Antoinette Badenhorst and Magdalene Odundo, and a highly informative article by, well –me! I guess every publication needs a humour piece! We’ve also joined numerous Facebook groups and discussion forums;we’re even starting to understand the terminology used on some of them. Any and every opportunity to learn, and they’remany. And of course we’re experimenting.

A trip along the Midlands Meander introduced us to Ian Glenny and Lindsay Scott. And tea bowls. Captivating! A chat hereand a nudge there (thanks John Steele) and I’ve started throwing porcelain tea bowls and experimenting with layering glazes(all at stoneware temperatures). And absolutely loving it! What that means is that friends and family our now in our tea-bowls-as-gifts phase. Fortunately they’re a gracious lot and even seem to be enjoying their new tea bowls. Some have even

15.

shown off their chawans to others and so we’re selling a few here and there.Nice.

Yet the great experiment of the moment is pit firing. Looking back it is evidentthat we would inevitably start probing options beyond our electric kiln. Some-where between researching wood-firing kilns and briefly contemplating slappingup a small Roman kiln (Jeremy Dubber’s fingerprints are also all over our jour-ney, as are his clays and other supplies), the idea of pit firing started to takeroot in the recesses of the mind. The first few pots tossed into the braai firedied unenviable deaths, but eventually the good old Weber kettle braai provid-ed a reasonably successful pseudo-barrel-firing experience. One look at thebeauty of the flame painted wares and we were hooked. Our first full-scale pitfiring came several weeks later. Learning curve – vertical! Too much wind, so45% breakage. A little too little sawdust (pit not deep enough); significantlytoo little wood, so temperatures high enough but not for long enough; addcomplications with smothering the fire; result – less reduction than desired. Atleast this is what we think. Disappointing – no! Some beautiful pots – yes! Wecan hardly wait for the next firing.

In the meantime the studio keeps ticking over – a few Andy bowls, a few les-sons, Estelle doing some hand building, a few commissions here and there, acouple of tea bowls, and a constant little stream of planters and vases throwndestined for the pit. All the while we’re also turning our attention to the great-est challenge in our immediate future – marketing. Having saturated the fami-ly-and-friends-brigade and having made a small foray into supplying local retailwe’re fast reaching the conclusion that best way ahead is to market directlysomehow. The initial plan is to build a collaborative with other artists and

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craftsmen in the East London area and together find ways to market our wares in East London and beyond. We’ve put outone or two calls and will yet make a few more. Any others who might wish to explore such collaboration with us are wel-come to be in touch.

In conclusion, then, a quote from our son Andrew, who is a young man of few words; this on one of his less favourabledays in the studio; said with great emphasis – “clay sucks!” And he’s right – some day’s clay can be the most frustratingand defiant of substances imaginable. But far more often it serves as one the most exciting of creative mediums. We’vecome to love it – its smell and its touch and occasionally (inadvertently) it’s taste. We admire what others are able to dowith it and are slowly more able to coax a semblance of obedience from it ourselves. What fun!

Gavin CoxEast London

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BELMONTcERAMICS

We supply:

Quality earthenware and stoneware clays

Exciting coloured clays

Wide range of glazes

Pottery tools and equipment

Contact us :

Danie 0719063313

Belmont@cermalab.co.za

Tips and tricksFor those who sculpt: Use drinking straws as armaturesfor arms and legs. Especially the ones with bendy bits forthe elbows and knees.

When drying slab or hand rolled tiles: Dry them upsidedown between two sheets of ceiling board. The board willabsorb the moisture from both sides and no warping willoccur. Once dry do not try to put them back. They willcrack easily.

For wheel throwers: Glue a grinding disk to a bat (espe-cially if you use pins on your wheel. Spin this to grind downexcess glaze or rough patches under bowls or plates.

To avoid cracks and separations at junctures in wetgreen ware, coat the outside with wax resist. This will stopthe water evaporating faster on the outside. (It will burn offin the bisque firing, off course).

To keep glaze particles in suspension, add smallamounts of Epsom Salts (1 or 2 tablespoons to 9 - 10 kg) toglaze, thus avoiding the rock hard lump at the bottom.

“A good pot is in the wallet of the beholder”

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Ruthanne Tudball

3 May 2014

NMMU

Full day demonstration workshop (subsidised)

R250 (non-members R400)

9 am to 4 pm

Ruthanne is known for soda firing her work, butthis workshop is about

her process of creating her ware.

“Manipulating soft clay on the wheel and feelingthe material respond to the merest touch is like setting

out on an exciting journey for me”.

“I do very little trimming as all my work is thrown andmanipulated while wet on the wheel”.

She will be demonstrating her techniques in thisone day workshop.

https://www.ruthannetudball.comBook at ceramics.easterncape@gmail.com

Antoinette Badenhorst

June 2014NMMU

2 day workshop (subsidised)R600 (non-members R900)

Antoinette works in porcelain and will be demonstratingher skills in throwing and then manipulating her vessels

into different shapes. She will be demonstrating differenttechniques in decorating and glazing.

https://www.porcelainbyantoinette.com

Book at ceramics.easterncape@gmail.com

lydia holmes - chair0835649430lydia@rgholmes.co.za

bianca whitehead084 257 3073bianca.whitehead@nmmu.ac.za

donve branch - v. chair0833262842donve1@telkomsa.net

eloise moggeast london rep0827565734moggspottery@bluebottle.com

margie higgs - treasurer0837279454margiehiggs1@gmail.com

lisa walker -workshop-coordinator0825169220deanlisa@mweb.co.za

Email address: ceramics.easterncape@gmail.com