Category:

The Art of Yunomi

5/26/2010

So early in my ceramics experience, an assignment that we did was focusing on cups and learning to throw different style cups. It was an interesting experience was we realized that being able to throw a cup exactly the way is harder than it seems. In addition to the cup, the potter needs to keep in mind the type of handle and the placement of the handle. All for a cup. But what I find intriguing and beautiful is the way that different potters make a cup.

Recent on Akar Design, they hosted a show in the Yunomi form. I love looking at the hundreds of yunomi cups that people had made and picking ones that I personally liked and then looking at ones that I didn't like.

The Yunomi Invitational is incredible. Here are some of my favorites.

Ted Adler

This is my favorite out of the entire invitational. I love the color and the texture of the yunomi and the undulation is beautiful. But I also see where the hand goes when holding the little cup. Yunomi cups are used in the Japanese tea ceremony and need to be both elegant and simple. This is the accomplishment by Adler. It has the right amount of change while still maintaining the form of the cup.

Alisa Holen

What I like about this cup is the lichen glaze and the colors. It is fairly obvious from my ceramics portfolio and my favorite picks that I love earth tones for pottery. I think it is because I think that the pottery should look like pottery and not like the a cup that you bought from the store. I needs to stand apart from american commercialization. Holen definitely accomplishes this with her work. She uses the simple and natural colors. I also like the added base. Even it seems out of place for a yunomi and a bit martini glass reminiscent, if you follow the lines of the shape the line is beautiful.

Harlan House

Simple.
Regal.
Precise.

Harlan House is one of my favorite potters. He can use both volume and size while still keeping the yunomi to look light. If I were going to perform the tea ceremony, House's yunomis would be without a doubt my first choice. I love this one.

Stanton Hunter

This again is an amazing cup. What I look for in potter is the artist to be able to maintain a sense for what the vessel is for and to combine it with their own perspective. I guess that would be interpretation but with recognition of the origin. The clash of east and west can be interesting but it can very easily become tacky or inappropriate if it is not down in a tasteful fashion.

On this yunomi, I love the black and white and the small dimple of the side of the cup.

This is asking to be held.

I want to try to do some yunomis like Hunters. The left are vessels that I made with a similar style. Black and White matte black with undulation.

Matt Long

Speaking of the clash of east and west, this is what Matt Long accomplishes. His piece has a southern and down to earth appeal but does not push the boundaries of the additives. In addition, his color choice is incredible. I had the opportunity to take a class with Matt Long and I would to here his theories on form and function. He makes things that have an aesthetically beautiful form while still maintaining the function of the piece...victory.

Alleghany Meadows

One of my favorite potters as well. Elegance and simplicity and he should know. For those of you who do not know, Meadows apprenticed under Takashi Nakazato which would be where I would like that he gets his beautiful form and simplicity. I also had the opportunity to take a class with Meadows and it was incredible to see how relaxed he was as a potter. I love the repetition and the uniformity in his work.

So those are my picks as my favorites of the invitational. For my final presentation last year, one of my pieces was my yunomi sets. I love this piece. But for some reason, I do not have that picture. Once I get it I will post it. It is one of my favorite pieces.

29 Comments

Commercialism in America

9/25/2009

3 Comments

     If you are a potter with an emphasis on functional then you undoubtedly know that commercialism in the United States has hit the very core of functional pottery. Although it has been around for ages, it has become readily apparent that the idea of producing just to gain a profit. Americans do not generally want to dish twenty bucks for a handmade mug when they could easily go to the nearest "Dollar Store" or "Wal-mart" and buy something for a couple dollars. This is the main concept of it all. A few general definitions:
Commercialism: excessive on making profit (Merriam-Webster)...pretty straight forward
Art: is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions. It encompasses a diverse range of human activities, creations, and modes of expression, including music, literature, film, sculpture, and paintings. The meaning of art is explored in a branch of philosophy known as aesthetics (Wikipedia I generally would not use Wikipedia but because it is a public forum it helps to show what people consider art to be)
Functionality: a style of pottery in which the finished piece is intended for use

Perhaps people would better appreciate a handmade mug if they knew some basic concepts of a wheel thrown mug.

The first thing to consider is form. What style of mug are you going to use that will appeal to your audience and will be functional and aesthetically pleasing. The fact is that no person has the same favorite mug that is because none of our hands are the same. A mug in my mind should fit right in my hand so much so that I barely even have to use any pressure in order for the mug so stay in place. In addition, the mug needs to have a big enough handle that all four of my fingers can fit underneath it.

The second thing is the glaze. This is tricky because it seems like you would just choose a color and then go with it but there is more to it than that. For instance, you would choose a cranberry glaze cone 10 reduction, the outcome could be beautiful with the rich red however, and if there is not enough oxidation then the result will be a brown. The second factor to consider is whether to use matte or glossy. I think that matte glazes feel great; like a smooth river rock and that’s how I want my cup to feel. However glossy looks beautiful and the sparkle is eye catching as well. However, the most important thing to realize is that the glaze must be natural for the mug. Do not use Raku glazes or lichen in my opinion.

That’s just the planning part of making a mug. The rest becomes much more complicated as the plan becomes executed. It is very easy to draw a picture of your intentions but being able to finish your plans is another story. There are a few steps in throwing the mug form. First, the clay must be chosen. There are many different types of clay to choose from all with varying amounts of elemental/chemical compositions which will affect the coloring of the glaze. The main clay body that I used was bee mix which is a white clay with low amounts of grog (large clay particles) in the clay. The more grog that is in the clay the easier the clay is to throw with however it additionally has a higher concentration of iron that will make the glazes turn different colors. Most noticeably will be with my white cone 10 glazes. These will be a faint marshmallow white with specks of green throughout.

     After the form is thrown from the desired clay body, the handle is attached. The handle can be many different styles including, extruded and pulled. I practiced the pull handle because the handle will have more aesthetically pleasing look to it compared to the extruded handle. The attachment place and the finishing are key in both of these steps.

     That is the basic way to make a mug and the steps that are included in doing so. Given this information, the mug becomes much more than the mass produce ideas that come from the commercial America. The mug is an extension on the artist to the start of a new day. In that mug lies, energy, hope and strength. A mug: more than just glass and clay…

Matt Long:
Beautiful wheel thrown mugs that hug the hand and fit to the shape of the figures.
(http://www.fullvictory.com/gallery/cup1.html)

Commercial Mug:
Serve the purpose but does not have the charisma and character that the Matt Long mugs do.

(http://www.mmsholding.com/mugsblank.gif )