New series - Floral calendar

I had wanted to make new series of works since early 2017. But due to commitments and deadlines I was unable to start it; new types of works take a long time to be completed. There are several steps of trying, experimenting and working out how to make technically and, often failures. In January 2018, I allocated a block of time for it. They were Landscape girls. From there I branched out to Floral calendar, they are those I will share today.

The first ones took several months to be completed. But once I found out how to make one after technical problems were solved, I was able to concentrate on making details. Even so, the record hot summer caused headaches during making. As I have shared photos of work in progress, The first four were spoken for before completion. They all went to a nice homes. As I am typing this, June drop is only one available. Details are here.

Floral calendar. I made one by one when I saw those flowers during walks. They are those give me enormous joy during walks around our house, in the garden and in the woods nearby.

Cherry blossom - April
There is a small cherry tree I like very much. It grows in front of an ugly building. But it has the prettiest warm pink flowers of all cherry blossoms. I visit it and talk to it during walks.
 

Cherry blossom - sold

Cherry blossom 

Lily of the valley - May

These beautiful poisonous flowers are in the woods we walk. The scent is so lovely. I also have tender memory of them seen in Hokkaido in Japan when I was about six.

Lily of the valley - sold

June drop - There are lots of tiny applets that fall from apple trees in the garden in June. I feel a bit sad when I see them even though I knew it is good for the tree.  

June drop - Available

Kikyo, Balloon flowers - July

Kikyo is the flower of Japanese summer. They are on summer kimono, wind chimes and lots of things used in summer. When I came to the UK, I missed them so much, I grew them from seeds. They are established now, and come up every year. 

Kikyo - sold

Fairy rings - September
Mushrooms are fascinating. They are closer to animals than to plants, they say. There are lots of various types in the woods. They never fail to amaze me.

Fairy ring - sold

Confirmation mask for a young lady - commission 4

She is my second confirmation mask to create. It was commissioned by the family friend for a teenage girl in Norway. My first confirmation mask was for a gentleman. I made his mask from his life story, so far. This time my focus is current and future. I made the mask for her to look back when she reaches her important points in her life. And I hope she would show it to next generation.

After discussion, the client sent me several photos. I also checked the place on Google. From there I imagine what kind of life she has. I also check the types of trees and plants growing there.

This time, I made a face slightly similar to the girl. 

Until the mask is finished, I needed to concentrate. I also have to work quickly. All parts are thin and small, so they dry quickly. Drying was difficult when the thickness of clay varies so much.  I usually dry masks very slowly in a cool storage room. 

The first bisque firing. As it was a secret gift. I made sure that it was not on the images I shared on social network. 

Bisque firing was done. There was subsidence around the building. After sanding, she went to another bisque-firing. Buildings are not easy to add as the surface of the mask is curve, but the bottom of the building is not.

The second bisque firing. 

Colours were added. She is ready for glaze-firing. Her expression changes in different lights. 

Glaze-firing went successfully. 

Now the last process. I added porcelain paint. After firing she was completed. 

It took me four months to complete her. I had to stop working on her for a month while I had prepared for CAL. The client was often somewhere exotic, but despite that, we had good communication over emails.

Girl with quince flowers - commission 2

Another commission for the first half 2017 was a Girl with red shoes. You have seen them before, but this time she is large, larger than my usual big masks.

The lovely client has spotted smaller Girl with red shoes at PikaPika, organised by Creative Clerkenwell, last year.  Then she visited me at CAL, and and we discussed her commission.




Here is the comparison of shoes. The red pair is ordinary one

Bisque-firing

Retail shows like CAL and Hatfield are great occasions for visitors to see all ranges of artists' work. Especially if you are interested in a special piece to be made just for you. You could see the size, colours and other details in person. 3D work looks bigger in person than on the photos.

Ready for glaze-firing

She also requested the girl will either have quince flowers or a ribbon. I thought the flowers would suit her best.

Ready for glaze-firing on a different background

These two images were sent to the client. Different backgrounds give different impressions.

Glaze-firing

As I had several commissions at the same time, I was able to do frequent firings.  After the mask and shoes were fired, I got a mask stand made for them. The larger the mask, the taller the stand.

Girl with quince flowers

She was packed carefully and posted to the lovely client. Thank you so much! 

Red riding hood for a lovely family in Germany - commission 1

I have spent creating special work on commissions for the most part of the first half of 2017. One of them is Red riding hood. A lady contacted me earlier this year after seeing the photo of CAL website. She told me it would be a birthday present for her husband. How lovely!

As I have made a similar mask before, I would be ale to guess how long it would take me to make one. First, I made the mask.

Second I added a story on her head. The wolf is difficult to attach. The first one was too large, so I had to make another one.

After the lady's approval, the mask was ready for bisque-firing.

Then I add colours. The colours before firing are not what you see after firing. That is the most difficult point. It is often a guess work.

She is ready for glaze-firing.  

I usually take a few days to pack intricate works. Then the packet was sent with tracking. This mask quickly and safely arrived at the family home, Germany. I have received a lovely message from the lady. That was, of course, the best part. Thank you so much.

Bevere Gallery, Worcester - Featured artists of June

I am one of the featured artists with Debbie Barber and Martin McWilliam, of June, in Bevere Gallery, Worcester. Do pop in if you can. My work will be there until the end of July.

Angels

Primula

Red Ridinghood

Whale sort of day

Answer was in the box.

Bevere Gallery, Bevere Lane, Worcester WR3 7RQ • 01905 754 484

A dream commission.

One day at the beginning of summer, a gentleman, whom I had made a set of figures before, contacted me to commission a work. I booked a slot for it in autumn. He sent me loads of photos. They were taken during his very special trip to see Northern lights in Norway, which changed his life. He sent me about twenty phrases to go with the photos. I thought they were like flashes of his memory.

He requested me to create a sculptural piece inspired by the photos and phrases with a generous budget, without a deadline. There were no conditions, except for one thing. The piece should be a surprise, so he would only see it for the first time when he would receive it.

Like other commissions, I started thinking about it whilst out walking. What the aurora would look like? How cold was it? What was like to be on dog sleigh? I have tried to follow in his footsteps, reliving the experience. This is the most important part for my creation. Unless I could imagine it, that is, I could re-live the moments, I can't make. So I took as long as I needed.  

After a while, I started researching images of landscapes, aurora and the important places of the client. Finally I got a vision.

Here is a photo record of the making. I usually share the images of my kiln shelves. It was not very easy to avoid any part of the mask being visible in any of the photos. But I managed it, and the lovely client didn't have any idea what he was getting through any images he had seen on social media.

The initial idea. I wanted it to be asymmetrical, to start with. I don't sketch because sketching will limit my feeling. 

However, next day, I realised that it will need a pair of horns. The vikings' bridge has gone, too. I have added more details from the client's life. They have fallen into place naturally. 

After a bisque firing. They all stayed on, thankfully.

I was not sure about the forehead. I took a photo and slept over it. 

I thought a triangle would go well with the theme of the mask. 

In the end, he didn't want the pointing corners. 

The first glaze-firing was ok, but he needed dark bluish tinge on the sky parts. This was taken just before the second glaze-firing.

The third glaze-firing.  It went well. I was happy with how he came out. I told the client that it was ready to ship.

An accident happened.  Whilst packing, a part got broken. Usual repair method failed. I bought a special repair concoction. And it went through bisque-firing and glaze-firing. It was finally ready to be shipped. The repair itself took a month. In total, from the very beginning to the end it took about 5 months.

It was a dream commission. All pieces came in places, and it was like a puzzle. I knew it was a good work because I was happy with it.

The lovely client was also very happy and he even uses the mask as his avatar. Thank you so much for your trust, patience and understanding. I couldn't be happier to create this piece for you.

The client named him  Jeg våkner' (I awaken).

You could see sleigh dogs behind.

The details of the church. And a walnut.