More works found new homes this week!

A week has passed so quickly. Poor Mike caught flu. He had terrible headache and fever. I almost caught it; I had muscle aches on shoulder and headache, but somehow got away. I haven't got time to be sick. There are so many thing to be done! My shop has been busy; I'm packing and posting everyday. I had jobs to finish on the sculptures I would take to Brighton tomorrow. I have just finished everything today. 

Early this week these three angels were posted to the Cupola gallery, Sheffield. We had to make special boxes for them for safe delivery.  Delicious exhibition at Cupola Gallery starts on Friday 28 November 7:30 pm.

Their ceramic section including my work is here.

Three angels at Cupola Gallery, Sheffield. 

This lovely reduction fired vase with ears found a lovely home in Devon. The gentleman who purchased it used to helping make glazes for well-known ceramic artists. 

Vase with ears - Sold

And this mini-chicken is for his mother. How lovely! I still have a few mini-chickens in my shop, if you fancy a hen or two!

Mini-Chicken - sold

This greyhound went to a lovely lady in London. Because of thin glaze in tiny parts, I re-fired her. Then the kiln was over-fired, and most gold disappeared. So I asked her permission, and fired her again. It was all worth it. Don't you think? 

Greyhound - sold 

Both Angel Christmas/Greeting cards are out of stock now. They should be in stock by the end of the month. So if you are interested, please check my shop.  £2.75 for each, £10 for 4, and £12 for six. They also look great in frames, of course!  

Christmas/Greeting cards

Christmas/Greeting cards

  

Fresh from the kiln

Hello everyone. There had been lots of news over the world last week. Although I was aware of the headlines, I only read them in detail on Friday when I finally found time at home. Then another earthquake happened in China. I hope rescue will make progress to save more lives in both Iran and China. I'm Japanese. I know how devastating earthquakes could be.

My reduction firing went well. I had two and a half hour sleep the night before, so it was a long tiring day. After I came home, I had dinner and shower, and then went to sleep early. I had slept nine hours. I went back to the studio to unload the kiln after lunch. Most of them were experimental. They looked promising. There were several pots re-fired. They have improved in general. One of them, a plinth, became so attractive and seductive, I have to make something to go on top. (It was initially made for 'Witch without name', but the colour unexpectedly turned to olive green. So I had to change a plan.)

Yesterday morning, I went in the studio to prepare glaze tests for a couple of hours, and caught a cold again. The heater has not worked properly since the power cut a week ago, and it was very chilly in the glazing room. The term will start tomorrow, and it will be even more hectic. So I have rested yesterday afternoon and today very well. Mike has also caught a cold. We kept catching something for the last four weeks.

These are reduction fired sculptural pieces and parts. One of them, which looks like Pompeii's bread that we saw in the Pompeii exhibition, is half baked. Some parts of the kiln don't get reduced well, they are not always the same place which makes it difficult.

Reduction fired sculptures

I made this pot in hurry. I had problem with clay (too soft) and it was knocked around while I was removing excess clay from its lower part after throwing it. But I liked the shape and ancient feel, so I fired it. It is not symmetrical, as you can see. It will be my Ikebana vase.

My asymmetrical Ikebana vase

After reduction firing was scheduled, I became off-colour again. It was not only a long day from nine to six, but also I had to endure fever and discomfort. But when I came home, Mike pointed the sky. There were beautiful double rainbows. A half of tiredness disappeared. They were the most beautiful ones we have seen for a long time. The sky gave me a lovely gift.

Double rainbows

  

Ready for reduction firing

Hello everyone. I spent a nice afternoon in the studio. I have finished everything I had planned in good time. I felt much better after resting for three days. 

My cracked pots are ready to be glazed.

 I will do a reduction firing tomorrow. This time, I didn't put any work in the ghost part of the kiln where reduction is weakest. Reduction firing takes about seven hours and I will have sit near the kiln, and record data every 15 minutes. It will be a long day. The studio has no WiFi; I will not be able to do any day-work. So I am planning to finish off some bisque pieces.    

 A nicely packed kiln! 

Final year undergraduates were back, but they have been quietly working today. Good for them! You can't make art whilst chatting.  

I was delighted to see Claire's ink painting. Ink painting is my hobby. She was using Indian ink and ordinary brushes. I would suggest to her to try Japanese/Chinese brushes and ink, also with red or green as an accent on it. It would take some time for people who have never used Japanese brushes to get used to them, but they would be more suitable for her style, I think.    

Claire's ink painting

Next to Claire, Carolyn was putting a corset together. Her work is unglazed porcelain and very delicate. She looks feminine, so does what she makes.

Porcelain corset

Claire gave me a little box of sweeties today. How nice of her! Of course, I gave them to Mike. He was the one who carried the logs for her. I only pointed to them!

Mike's sweeties. 

   

Too much is as bad as too little

Hello everyone. We are still in a dark, cold, damp spell. I have stayed at home except for short dog walks. My work got busy and I need to focus on it.

Today, I will show you porcelain fired in reduction. They are my test pieces. Although I had known that porcelain become blueish white in reduction firing, I didn't expect they become this blue!  Those we used to use in Japan were not this blue in my memory.

I decorated these porcelain pots just before I finished packing the gas kiln. I ran out of ideas of decoration; I don't like repeating same design. As I was moving the brush, I thought, 'Umm, is it too much?' but I kept going. Alas, it became OTT!

It started ok.

 

Somehow I felt more was more at that time. 

Ah-oh. Too late. I did too much!

Back is still nice, though! lol

This is yunomi (tea cup). Despite the mistake with the bowl above, I somehow carried on. There is too much cobalt decoration all over, even inside! I soon remembered Japanese saying, 'Too much is as bad as too little'. Aghh, too late!

Yunomi with too much decoration!

Last one is something I cherish. I love the pine ash glaze. I make it myself; I burned the pine branches found on the campus nearby, washed the ash about 50 times, and made the glaze. But the problem is that I don't have enough pine branches to make lots of ash, so the ash glaze is only a small quantity. I poured inside, but I had to brush outside. I love the colours. It has the atmosphere of early spring. 

Inside is natural celadon. Ash has higher iron content than other trees easily available In Japan. So when they make celadon glaze from scratch, Japanese use pine trees.  

Pine ash glaze, natural celadon colour

   

A message from a lovely customer and reduction firing

Hello everyone. How was your day? I went in the studio 8:50 for reduction firing and came home at five. The day flew by! But, first I want to share my joy of reading a message from a lady who bought a little rabbit I made. She wrote; 

"Really reminds me of this little mouse I made as a child but dropped it and broke it, I suppose the rabbit can be his replacement! ( and I can assure you I won't be dropping it again )

Really lovely, I love it, Thanks a lot!"

This made my heart warm. I know the rabbit will be loved. I feel so happy for him and the lady. I feel as if I were the mother who sends her child to the big world for the first time.

The little rabbit

One of the reasons why Etsy and other similar shops are popular is because artists and makers can connect with customers via what we create by hand with love. It is true that we put our love and joy into what we create. I do. So I get worried if my work has traveled safely, or whether they will be loved in their new homes. I also give them nicknames even though it would make me more difficult to part with them. That's why you feel warmth when you touch handmade work, be it art or craft. That's why they are still popular in this digital age.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have taken a photo of the packed kiln with my nexus, so the quality of image is poor, but here it is.

A nicely packed gas kiln. 

During reduction firing, I have to record temperature and other details every 15 minutes, so there isn't much time to do anything much, but in the afternoon, I did some glazing of this chap, 'Waiting for the next bang II'.

 

Waiting for the next bang II'

    It was a productive day. I hope yours was too!