Work In Progress

May 29th, 2024

This was the only day this week I could come in and work on my projects. I did a lot of work on both bowls and am proud with the progression I've made in a few hours.

This is my eye bowl, which I finally finished the inside. The inside has black eyes that are bleeding. The middle says "stop staring" because its supposed to be uncomfortable. The eyes are constantly staring while telling you not to. The outside of the bowl is light pink to not show the themes of the inside. It will have butterflies and flowers on the outside to catch you off guard when you look in the bowl.

I had no idea what to do for the second bowl. I decided to add cats on the rim with different expressions, just because I wanted to do something fun. The outside is purple and will have cat toys on the outside. This one is more fun compared to the other, and I just wanted something else to do.

May 28th, 2024

Since it's the end of the year, I have to finish my ceramics projects and take them home. I'm coming in tomorrow to come work on the bowls. My oil paint was taken because it was cleaned up for me. Hopefully I can get a lot done before the end of the year, so I have less to do when I come and work on them next year.

January 30th, 2024

I know its been a while but I'm back with some progress! I fixed some of the paint on the orange cup as well as started shading it. I also started painting the blue vase on the end. I just started with a base color of blue. I'm going to add highlights when some of the paint has dried. Next I'll put the base color of the middle base down. 

Other news, my eye bowl is in the kiln and is just waiting to be fired. I'm so excited to glaze it. I'm also designing how my other bowl will look. I'm planning on a classic bowl pattern but I'm not sure what type of pattern.

January 18th, 2024

Since we've been snowed out almost all week, today was the only day we had ceramics. I finished my eye bowl! I only had a few more eyes to add anyways, so I quickly finished it and put it in the kiln. I can't wait to go and see if it's finished because I am so excited to glaze it!

January 12th, 2024

At school, we usually don't have to re-purpose our own clay because we own a pug-mill. Recently it broke, so today we learned how to recycle our clay! I wasn't very good at it, but I think as I do it more, I will get better. I then used some of the clay to make more eyes for my bowl.

January 11th, 2024

Today I started painting my bowl! I'm going to try to match it to the bowls we have in my house. They outside of the bowls is usually a solid color like red with white patters and the inside color being white with green patterns. I made the outside purple and the inside white. I'm still deciding on the patterns for the inside and the outside.

January 10th, 2024

This is my cracked bowl. I put this glue on the crack as a way to reinforce it. Hopefully it won't break again, but it is totally possible. I am going to paint a design on it, like a regular bowl you would use. I'm planning on purple because I don't own any purple bowls and its a beautiful color. I'm planning the design later.

January 9th, 2024

Today I put the rest of the eyes I made yesterday in the bowl! I mostly worked on putting details in the eyes and then making sure they were securely on the bowl. That took all my time in class. Next class I'm going to try to fix my bowl that came out of the kiln, since it had a pretty big fracture down the middle of the bowl. I'm going to put this type of glue on the crack and hopefully it will survive the kiln again.

January 8th, 2024

I put the eyes in the bow today! I was originally going to do two rings of eyes, but I realized I had three different sizes of eyes. I made three rings instead. I needed to make more eyes, so I spent the rest of the class making eyes for the bowl.

January 4th, 2024

Today I fixed the rim of my bowl and the fractures in the outside. Some parts of the rim were thin, so I re-enforced them and fixed the rest of the rim. I smoothed out the marks on the outside and some of the little problems. I added a foot just before the end of class. I also worked on the eyes. I took some clay off at the middle to look more like an eye. Next class, I'll add the eyes on.

January 3rd, 2024

I worked more on making eyes for my eye bowl today! I tried to put a foot on it and fix the outside. The bowl was still wet so it started to bend when I tried to work on the rim. I waited for the bowl to dry more and made more eyes.

January 2nd, 2024

Today I tried to finish my eye bowl, but unfortunately it didn't go well. The bowl was really dry before break and I managed to revive it. I hoped it would survive break but it totally dried out when I got back. All the eyes started falling off, so I decided to take them off and just fire the bowl. While I was taking the eyes off, the bowl cracked in half. I managed to fix the bowl and I put it in the kiln. I started making another bowl and the eyes. I decided to redo the bowl because I really want to keep the idea.

December 12th, 203

My snowman is still in the kiln right now and so is my mushroom bowl. They'll be out later today and they're be my first pieces of the year! I also did more work on my eye bowl today. It dried out a lot over the weekend, so I'm trying to finish it as soon as possible. After break, I will see if it hasn't dried out completely. Also after break, I hope to finish my oil painting.

December 11th, 2023

This is my snowman! I put clear glaze over him and put him back into the kiln. He'll be out by tomorrow!

December 8th, 2023

Today my snowman came out of the kiln today! I put some underglaze on it and it should be out Monday! On Monday, I will put clear glaze on it and give it to my friend.

December 7th, 2023

I started working on my eye bowl today! My snowman is in the kiln and will be done by next class. I took the bowl out of its mold and fixed the edges. I also started adding eyes to the bowl. I'm planning on how to glaze it after its done!

December 6th, 2023

Today I finished this little snowman that I was making. My second bowl is finished drying. I'm really excited to glaze it!

December 4th, 2023

I finished glazing my mushroom bowl today! I'm not just waiting for a glaze firing. I also started making a new bowl. This one is going to have a lot of eyes on it, so I'm trying to plan how the eyes will look. I was originally going to layer them, but the bowl might be smaller than I expected. This means the eyes will be smaller and I don't want to make the eyes low quality just to layer them. Next class, I think I'm making another bowl. The mushroom bowl was originally going to Empty Bowls, but I might keep it for myself. I also want to make a bigger bowl and throw on the wheel. We'll see!

December 1st, 2023

Today my mushroom bowl came out of the kiln! I decided to focus on glazing the bowl today instead of painting. The bowl will most likely go in the next kill firing!

November 29th, 2023

Today I finished the big yarn roll and I'm very proud of how it turned out! It looks amazing! I started painting the cup orange and I will work on the shading next class.

November 28th, 2023

Today I finished the brown paint since there were still some spots that were very light. I also painted the smaller yarn roll and started the larger yarn roll. Tomorrow, I'll finish the big yarn roll and start another object.

November 17th, 2023

I started the second line of vines! The bowl is almost done.

November 16th, 2023

Here is the inside of my bowl! I am going to have two lines of vines, which will intertwine. They will be two different colors since it will show up better, look nicer, and add more color to the bowl. I'm going to add mushrooms above them, but right now I'm trying to find with colors I should use.

November 14th, 2023

I've started painting the mushrooms on my bowls! The big mushrooms are brown, just regular mushrooms you would find. The tilted mushrooms are red and will have white spots.

November 13th, 2023

My mushroom bowl came out of the kiln! I painted the outside white and the inside green. Tomorrow I will work on the colors for the mushrooms and start designing the inside. I'm really excited for this bowl!!

November 10th, 2023

This is what my still life is looking like right now. I am working on the background. I printed out photos of my still life so I can start designing the background.

This is my sketch for the next bowl! I'm planning on having about three rings of eyes (joked to be the biblically accurate bowl). They will have "stop staring" in the middle. The eyes will be made out of clay and not carved into the bowl. I also want the outside to look cute to surprise the viewer then they see the inside.

November 9th, 2023

Today I started making my next bowl. I'm planning on making a bunch of eyes on it! I think it would be an interesting concept and I like drawing eyes as much as mushrooms. I also started making another fox because one of my lower-school friends asked for one! Hopefully tomorrow I will have a sketch done of the background for the still life. Then I will have the time to start painting it.

November 7th, 2023

Today I finished painting the table on my still life. I'm still trying to figure out how to paint the background because I want it to be complicated. My mushroom bowl did not go into the kiln today because it is still pretty dry :(

November 6th, 2023

Today I started painting my still life. I decided to go with oil paint because I felt like it would be a new challenge for me. The first thing I painted was the table because I wasn't sure how I wanted the background to look yet. I have this idea to make it similar to A Starry Night but I'm not sure. Tomorrow I'm going to put my bowl in the kiln, since it hasn't cracked drying!

November 2nd, 2023

My mushroom bowl is done! I'm waiting for it to slowly dry so the mushrooms do not crack and fall off. Next class, I will start painting my still life. I think I'm going to use oil paint instead of acrylic because the oil seems more matte and just cleaner.

November 1st, 2023

Today I worked on the mushrooms for my bowl! I am trying to do a more cartoon style for the mushrooms, much like my doodles. I'm praying that the bowl doesn't crack or the mushrooms don't fall off. The bowl is a lot drier than the mushrooms, so I'm afraid that they might break when they dry. On the inside, I'm going to surround the rim with drawn mushrooms, and maybe so vines. I'm super excited to finish this bowl!

October 31st, 2023

My still life came out of the kiln a few days ago! Today we put a primer coat on the tile since we will be using oil paints instead of underglaze/glaze. Mine cracked a little, its barely visible on the outside but the crack is much deeper on the backside. I should have hallowed mine out a bit more to stop this from happening. We can fix it but it still is a little disappointing. I'm really excited to work with oil paints thought! I'm not sure if I've ever worked with them, and if I have it definitely has not been on ceramic. I'm super excited to see where this project goes!

October 25th, 2023

My bowl now has its foot! I'll start building the mushrooms for it on Tuesday!

October 24th, 2023

We are working on building a bowl for Empty Bowls. Here is mine so far! I am adding a foot onto the bottom, which is why there is just a disk of clay on the left. I am going to paint the inside green with some mushrooms. The outside is going to have 2D, more cartoonish type mushrooms. When I usually build things with mushrooms, the mushrooms are large and very 3D. I want to try something new and working 2D gives me the opportunity to add a lot of diversity in the types of mushrooms. My still life is drying out on the rack, but I'm really excited to paint it next week!

October 16th, 2023

I'm almost done my still life project! This is how it looks right now. I'm adding a few mushrooms to the sides because it seemed fun. It's looking really good, so I'm excited to see it come out of the kiln.

October 13th, 2023

I'm almost finished my still life, I just have to finish some minor details in the yarn. I want to add mushrooms along the side, but I might not have the time. I think I might start my bowl, which is going to have mushrooms as well. So it would make more sense to just make all the mushrooms together in one day and just add them to both.

October 11th, 2023

So the school year has started again and so has ceramics! We have been working on a still life with clay (sadly I don't have a photo). Mine is almost done but a majority of my class has already finished theirs. The next project is making a bowl for Empty Bowls, which is a fundraiser to raise money for food related charities. We make bowls which are then sold; that money does to Empty Bowls!

Last Update for Spring!!

Ceramics for this year is over! Sadly there will be no more updates like these, but hopefully I can put some of my other arts onto this page. I had a really great time this year and I can't wait to come back next year and do some more ceramics.

May 31st, 2023

The last thing I was trying to finish really fast was this charm type thing for my brother. It is supposed to be the Pokémon Paldean Wooper, but it is unfinished. When I went to check on it, the whole thing had separated from each other. Everywhere I had put slip on just did not stay together. I decided to just scrap it and come back to it next year.  Also all of my cylinder seals are made! Next year I will also go back and finish the poem up!.

May 17th, 2023

This is my cottage bowl and my bird project! I am almost done glazing the cottage bowl and I just started putting underglaze on the bird. My inspiration for the bird is White-Breasted Nuthatch which is absolutely adorable. I finished under glazing my fox and hopefully it will be ready for Monday!!

May 15th

Today I started putting clear glaze on my cottage bowl. I'm not sure if I want to glaze the inside but I am definitely glazing the outside. These two (^) came out of the kiln today!! With underglaze, I started on the fox for my lower school friend. I will start the bird during the next class but I need to find a bird to paint it after!

May 12th, 2023

Currently I am making a small fox piece for my lower school friend because she likes foxes. I am also making the last pieces for my poem project. I also finished making the inside of my cottage bowl, but I don't really like how the flowers came out (below). Hopefully I can fix some of it and make it work.

May 8th, 2023

Today I worked on the bird for the end of the year! I also got the little cat I made and other cylinder seals out. I need to make more so hopefully I can finish the poem! I also want to hand build something big because why not? Also I am making a fox for my lower school friend. :)

Update 5/5

Yesterday, I finished more cylinder seals. I am almost done all of the seals but I need to make more. I also started making the bird for our bird project. Hopefully I can finish both of these before the end of the school year! :)

Update 4/26

Here are my cylinder seals for the poem project and the cat head I made.

Update 4/25

Today I came in early and finished glazing the last two tiles. I put them in the kiln room so hopefully they will be out by Monday. I had made a small cat head a few months ago that I never did anything with so I put some underglaze on it today. It also went into the kiln room today. I also made a few more words for my poem project. It still has a lot to go since I am only two lines in. Hopefully that will be done soon so I can start the bird project. 

Update 4/24

Although there was no class today, I went to try and finish glazing the last too tiles. They will go into the kiln later today. Hopefully, I can do more of the poem project tomorrow and start sketching for the bird project.

Update 4/20

Today the last two of my tiles came out of the kiln so I started to glaze them. I am also working on another bowl, which I am making a lot of progress on. We also got a new project for birds! I'm really excited for this project because I have so many ideas. I am trying to get all of these projects done without sidelining any by the end of the year. I also got a display case for our art show!!

Update 4/14

In class I carved another cylinder and got my first tile out of the kiln. It is beautiful combination of greens and it turned out so much better than I thought it would. The last two greenware tiles went into the kiln today and will be glazed next few classes. I also did some more work on a bowl that I'm making a scene on.

Update 4/12/23

I started glazing my tiles! This is the first one almost finished. The glazes are going to be several different greens, since I feel like I often use blue. I will try to glaze the rest and make my final cylinders for next class.

Update (4/5/23)

Here on my board I have two of my four tiles, my new bowl, and a handful of printing cylinders. Today I made the final two tiles and more cylinders. I still need to carve into them but I needed to make them first. Next class I plan on glazing those two tiles. Overall a highly productive day!

Project Update (3/20/23)

After the Mordechai Anielewicz Arts Competition my hand built bowl I was going to use came out of the kiln. I started glazing that and I am planning on making a scene of a cottage in a field. Some of my cylinders for my poem came out of the kiln too. Also two of my tiles were fired and come out too. Next class I plan on making more cylinders for the poem and making the final two tiles.

Project Update (3/14/23)

For the Mordechai Anielewicz Arts Competition, I am almost done the cup I made. The outside of the cup is supposed to look like the concentration camps. I think photo, the place is the crematorium. This cup is almost done!

Project Update (3/9/23)

Everything is on pause currently for a different project. My english class is participating in the Mordechai Anielewicz Arts Competition. I have hand built a cup and a bowl for this project; above is the cup. The theme I am working with is the children in the concentration camps. The inside of the cups it to show the life they lost and the outside represents the camps.

Work Update!

These are the test pieces for our poem project. I have done four, with two printing backwards, one printing the right way but being uneven, and one of just butterflies. I'm making more columns now so I can hopefully print them right this time. I've made one tile for the tile project and it is slowly drying for now.

Work Update

Theres no picture this time, but today (2/21/23) I started making tiles for the tile project, finished glazing my strawberry cup, put it in the kiln, and make something else. I started working on our poem project by starting to carve the name of the person my poem is about. Also, the dragon vase is fully finished and on the ceramics page! Sadly, the final glaze for the dragon was very dark and the eyes disappeared. Although it looks amazing, I am a little disappointed in my color choices. 🐉

Dragon Vase

The dragon vase is finally glazed! I only used glaze and no underglaze. It is now in the kiln room, waiting to be fired! I also but the first coat of clear glaze on my strawberry cup.

Tile Project

This is my finished block for my tile project! Hopefully next class I can start pressing this into clay sheets to make clay tiles. I also started glazing my dragon vase and put my strawberry cup in the kiln room!

Strawberry Cup 2

This is the newly updated strawberry cup! The strawberries now have their green tops and I added some yellow flowers. The yellow flowers are still very light even after 5 coats! Although strawberries have white flowers, I think the yellow ones are cuter. It also gives another color that goes nicely with the light pinks of the strawberries. This cup is almost done, there are a few small things to do and then it goes back into the kiln!

Strawberry Cup

This is my strawberry cup that I am working on! Right now I only have the white background and the base for the strawberries, which will all be different shades of pink. Next time I will add the leaves onto the strawberries!

Tile Piece

Currently, I am working one three projects (2/2/23). The dragon one which I put in the kiln today (photo below), this tile project, and a poem project. This tile project is where we draw a design and transfer it onto this rubber block (above). We then carve it out with the deepest carved points being the highest raised in the clay. This is the beginning of my carving.

Dragon Vase:

We are currently working on our animal project where we pick an animal with some significance and make something about it. This is my third thrown object on the wheel! Stick around to to see the final results!