Custom CNC-Carved Texture Mats for Slab-Built Forms Benjamin Buchenot

While teaching ceramics online in 2020, I was inspired to create new work using the handbuilding methods I taught students online. The work I envisioned featured raised designs that wrapped around and interacted with the form of each slab-built piece. At first, I created cuneiform-style roller stamps. These large cylinders took hours to create and didn’t allow for the quick refining of ideas. This led me to develop a way to carve my designs into unmounted linoleum using a CNC (Computer Numerical Control) milling machine (1).

Using the Mat and Beyond 

With some experimentation, any type of slab roller can work with the texture mat. Even using a rolling pin, with some flat sticks on either side of the slab to control thickness, can work well. If you have trouble with the clay sticking to the mat, use a cooking oil spray on the mat as a release agent. The oil also helps the mat last longer, as the clay will begin to dry out the linoleum, which causes it to crack easily. The cracks will show in the impression, which can be undesirable depending on your design. If the clay is not tacky and the texture mat design is open enough, a release agent may not be necessary. 

I use a clay slab that is larger than the texture mat (2). I find this helps to ensure an even pressure across the whole texture mat. I also start with a clay slab thicker than what I want in the end. This initial thickness will take some trial and error to determine. 

With the texture mat on top of the clay, roll the texture mat and clay through the slab roller, pressing the mat into the clay. Next, carefully peel the texture mat from the clay starting from one corner (3). I find peeling it halfway from each side can help it release more cleanly. Finally, use your newly textured slab to create your desired final work (4). 

I create mats specifically for each vessel that I am creating, which allows the texture to interact with the shape. I also include cutting lines in the design of the mat to ensure the slab is cut to the same size every time. I sometimes include the lines for darting the form. The design can even follow arc shapes to create tapered forms (5). Creating and refining these very specific details into bespoke texture mats can take a great deal of time. However, once complete, the mats will allow uniquely textured, slab-built forms to be created quickly and uniformly. 

the author Benjamin Buchenot is a potter and teacher living in Naperville, Illinois. He makes his work out of his home studio where he lives with his wife, stepson, and their two dogs. He opens his studio yearly as a host on the Northern Illinois Pottery Tour. To see more of Buchenot’s work, visit his Instagram @BuchenotCeramics or his website www.buchenotceramics.com.