This semester was full of exploration with shapes and carvings. I began with a small bowl with geometric carvings.  The design was meant to appear as though there had been a surface that ”slid off” to reveal a different one underneath.

While I was creating the bowl, I also began to explore the idea of geometric shapes as sculptural forms. I have an affinity for geometry and in particular, the dodecahedron/pentagon due to it being uncommonly found in nature. When it is found there, it’s in some of my favorite places such as the stem from a morning glory seed pod, the fuzzy remains post-bloom of a clematis flower, and the stem of a tomato. Five. Not six. Hexagons are much more common. You have to actually look for pentagons.

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From here I became curious about the idea of geometry in my work and began fabricating geometric forms.  The dodecahedron and stellated dodecahedron were what made the most sense to me.

 

 

 

 

 

This is where I began to diverge from the surface design with some of the works. The first two pieces were interesting to make and carve. Quite a complex process to sort out the surface design. There is a meditative quality to designing on a circle shape of a bowl. At first, I struggled to visualize the designs. Eventually they came to me and the carving poured out.

The dodecahedron was chosen as the first form to explore given its basis in the pentagon and my initial draw to that shape. It also felt like 12 sides would not be overwhelming.  At first it was, but once I started the carvings, I soon realized the way I work was not different.

 

The stellated dodecahedron was like a really wonderful puzzle. There were bursts and swirls, accents of the form, varied line to unify the design with the complex form. But man oh man these take time to fabricate. 60 individual triangles, beveled and assembled.

With the creating the dodecahedrons I was left wanting to see where creating these geometric forms could go. I have always loved fluid forms found in nature along with the hidden natural geometry. I began to alter. Tendrils began to grow out of the forms. The first image is like a seedling, starting out small and careful, then growing. There were many failures during this time; broken tendrils.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is one that had some breakage. It had been based on the clematis, with long tendrils, but became too fragile. This is where I stopped working in porcelain and began working in red stoneware then white stoneware as well.

 

 

I began to think about the idea of humans vs nature. These geometric forms that are fabricated are found in nature mostly on a microscopic level. It’s all around us. So much beauty and balance in these forms, yet we destroy. When the world became quiet due to COVID, nature started to move back into the vacancies, to take it back. Humans destroy what nature creates what humans leave behind. And on and on until one wins or loses.

I wanted to take these thoughts and put them into a visual expression.

After this one, I decided to go bigger. I went inside, creating texture, and growth moving inside and out.  This piece is about  2 feet tall.  

I then began to look at light, shadow, and the idea of multiples. I really enjoyed creating the small “bite-size” pieces and giving the forms cut-outs. The idea was briefly explored. At some point, I may revisit this.

 
One more shape to explore. This is about 1’tall/across. 

This is where I started to reflect on everything I was learning about myself, my process, the work, and where I wanted to go with what I knew at that moment. I created a small, dodecahedron and began to carve it using a flower as the inspiration. I am always finding geometry in nature and the pentagon. The spirals in the clay were created by adding and subtracting the material. I aimed to capture the pillow effect of the purple pentagonal flower pictured. I found satisfaction in this pattern but was looking to get back to wheel throwing after a bit of a hiatus. I threw some closed forms. Some thicker than others, ready for carving deeply.

I began to realize I was also craving the simplicity of the round of a bowl so it was time to revisit the familiar and see what growth there had been.  The emergence of Op Art in my work.  A new lens.  

 

 

 

 

 

12-20-2020

 

 

I am now working on both paths simultaneously. There are the bowls with the optical illusions I aim to push to include the inside and outside working together as one unified design and the small carved dodecahedrons which I look to the gypsum/barite desert rose for inspiration. These crystallized forms are fascinating to me. It’s taken all semester to suss out these two pathways but I can now see the work ahead.

 

 

Pictured here is the most recent exploration with different lenses. There are three in this one. It was after I finished carving this one that I realized I want to add the outside into the design for a full piece.

 

The image to the right, are pieces one and two in this series.  Looking at the first one, I would like to add texture to it. I will likely do that in the next piece I create. The base is already assembled in the damp box. The piece on the right was more ambitious carving to try and find movement.  The pieces below are where the inspiration to research gypsum/barite desert flowers has come from.

 

What’s Next?

The next pieces I will be using this for inspiration.  I’m really excited!