Some Recent Finished work

Here are some of my recently finished works that I just photographed. I've been working a great deal lately on my photography and it looks to be paying off!

Amaco's Tenmoku under Seaweed

The above piece is fired to cone 6 and is Laguna's misfire b-Mix clay. The ceramic piece was first dipped in Amaco's Tenmoku, then the piece had Amaco's Potters Choice Seaweed brushed on towards the top. I've really enjoyed this combo, as the below piece was also glazed with this combination.

I also very much enjoy how the Tenmoku accents the sodium silicate texture that was applied when I was throwing this piece of pottery.

 

Thanks for reading!

- Mark Barta

 

New Series of Work!

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about pottery and defining a personal style, and I would like to share my thoughts on this and a new style I am going to be trying with my work.

After much pondering on my ceramic work, I have come to the realization that to get to the next level in creating ceramics art, I need a style. Style, in my opinion, is the unifying design that distinguishes your work from other artist and adds a little bit of yourself into your work. I believe that personal style is important to any artist and helps distinguish yourself as an artist to the rest of the community. It is the style of the artist that makes your work stand out from other potters and carve out your own personal space in the art world.

In developing this new style, I spent many of hours thinking about what I want to convey and emote with my ceramic work. After many hours sketching out ideas and then throwing them away, I settled on a style that I think reflects myself. So, what's the style that I have decided to start using...

Minimalism!

As a little bit of an Apple fanboy, I was inspired by there redesign of there new iOS that powers there mobile phone. The use of black and white and a single color really struck a cord with me, and make me think how I could apply this to my work. Also, I have always wanted my ceramic work to stand more for the form than extravagant glazing techniques, so this fit in line very well.

Below is an example of this style and how I am going to apply it to ceramics. I will display the finished piece once it is fired!

 

"Through the Window: Barnyard Owl perched at Midnight"

By Mark Barta

 

Ok, here we go! Each piece of pottery in this style will be only glazed in the inside of the piece, on the top of the piece and in the circles inside the "window" with the same glaze. The lines I have drawn on the vase with black underglaze will contrast nicely with the white clay body and create a sense of simplicity. Inside the "window" I want to only use lines and circles to convey an abstract, but minimal scene. I have to say that I feel my creativity flowing through these pieces of work greatly and am having fun coming up with names for the work, something that is usually more of a hassle than anything.

 

I can't wait to show you the finished results!

Thanks for reading!

-Mark Barta

 

 

Raku!

Brackers hosted a Raku firing event this past weekend and I want to share the results!

The first of two pieces that I raku fired is a 1 foot tall bottle form. When performing a raku firing, you superheat the piece of pottery to a couple thousand degrees, then while it is red hot and glowing you open the kiln and pick up the piece with tongs. Once you have a good grasp of the piece, you place the piece into a bin of combustible material and it instantly ignites into a fireball. While the fire is going, you place the lid on the bin to create a seal, all the oxygen is then burned out of the bin and the fire goes out, this creates a reduction environment. Once cooled, you pull the pot out of the bin and quench it in a water bath, solidifying the metallic results. As this was a rather large piece, you can imagine how nervous I was to drop the piece when it was molten hot and break it, but luckily all went well and I got a great piece out of it.

 

 

 

Another view of this piece is on the right.

 

 

 

 

The second piece of pottery I Raku fired was a platter. I especially like the teal tones that came out on the piece.

I hope you enjoyed these two pieces!

-Mark Barta

 

Throwing a Bottle on the Potter's Wheel

Today I am showing a YouTube video of me throwing a bottle on the wheel.

In throwing a bottle on the potter's wheel, many challenges can be incurred in the process.  For instance, as seen in the video above, buckling can occur while you are bring the cylinder from being wide to very narrow.  The most important thing when throwing a bottle is to not lose your cool and stay calm.  If you are throwing a bottle and notice that the clay is buckling, slow down the wheel and start a pull at the base of the neck to straighten it back out, using a throwing stick can aid in this.  

Bottles can be some of the most fun and challenging form to throw on the wheel.  In the coming weeks I will be uploading another video showing how I create my signature twisted bottle.

Thanks for reading

-Mark Barta

Throwing on the Wheel

Blog number two, here we go.  In todays blog I have decided to show some footage of me throwing.  In this video I will be throwing a large bowl that can be both functional and decorative, I hope you enjoy!

In addition to today's video, I have also decided to update my blog more regularly.  With the exception of this Sunday, I will still be showcasing new pieces of work on Sunday's and talking about the form and function, but I will be also now be posting a blog on Tuesday nights showcasing some throwing through a video on Youtube!

Above, is an example of a finished bowl I have made recently.  When making bowls, many conscious decisions have to be made both during the actual throwing and the finishing (glazing).  For example, in the video above, you will notice that much attention is paid towards the rim.  As the rim is the main portion of the bowl that the intended user will touch, it is important for it to be smooth so that it will feel good when the user handles it.  Also, like any piece,  the rim of a bowl is a finishing point for a piece, so it is best to have a good finish point to end the profile.

Another conscious decision that must be made when designing a bowl is the glaze used.  Whether the finished piece is supposed to be for functional or decorative from the potter's eye, one must remember that the buyer of the piece may use it for either.  With that in mind, when glazing the bisque piece, I prefer to use glazes that are non-toxic and labeled dinnerware safe.  This information can usually be located on the glaze bottle itself, if this information is not on the bottle, a quick check to the manufacturer's website usually will reveal this information.  If in doubt, don't use it.

Thanks for reading!
-Mark Barta