This term is used to describe the technique of centering a large amount of clay on the wheel before partitioning it into smaller sections one at a time to make numerous small pieces. Steve learned this technique at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts under Mutsuo Yanaginara in 1973. It saves some time and space in being able to continue throwing piece after piece without stopping, placing another ball of wedged clay on the wheel and centering that piece. Still each section has to be individually centered, thrown and removed from the larger mass. The trickiest part is compressing the bottom of the pot when it is not against the wheel head and cutting the piece off of the main 'hump' of clay. Steve uses this technique for throwing all the minis.
I have had this style of throwing explained to me, but it is really neat to see it being done! Typically, how many mini pots will come out of one pile like the one shown?
ReplyDeleteDepends on the size of the original ball of clay...generally 13-18 pieces...usually 13.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed the photo explanation. I opted for photos over a slide show so everyone could really see the detail.
cherie
Really amazing work. Thanks for sharing!
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