Thrown, Altered, Stamped and Sculpted Mugs Samuel Newman

Using a wooden knife, I make small marks at the wheelhead to quarter my cylinder (3). With my middle finger, I then push outward from the inside of the pot to create four nodes in the widest part of the bottom half of the form (4). These nodes square off the bottom, creating four distinct planes. I finish this stage by using a wooden knife to remove excess clay at the wheelhead and use a flexible rib to correct any disfigurations caused by stretching out the nodes.

Alterations

Once the mug reaches a soft leather-hard state, I begin trimming. With the narrow base, I can trim aggressively, accentuating the dramatic proportions of the hourglass shape. I use a do-all trimming tool to refine the foot and trim into the four nodes (5), giving the form its soft, pillow-like quality.

Next, I gently pinch the rim into a square, aligning it with the nodes at the base. Using a wooden rib, I run a line along the corners, from the foot to the rim (6), and create a cascading pattern on alternating panels (7). With a paring knife, I make swooping cuts on the rim (8) and foot (9) corners, smoothing the edges with a damp sponge and my fingertips (10).

Adding Coils for Surface Texture

At this stage, I roll out a coil about the width of a pencil. One by one, I lay these coils along each corner of the mug, folding them over the rim and smoothing them into a point (11). I then pull and smear the coils into the smooth panels of the mug with dry fingertips and then refine with a sponge (12) creating a raised texture that mimics a dissected and reconstructed appearance. This step gives the surface a dynamic, tactile quality, and the raised areas interact beautifully with glazes during firing.

Handles

To attach the handle, I roll out a tapered lug of clay, about 2 inches (5.1 cm) long and tapered from 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide to a half inch (1.3 cm) wide on the other end (13), and attach it to the leather-hard mug. The wider end of the lug is scored, slipped, and pressed into the concave section of the hourglass. With ample water, I pull the lug downward, elongating it until it reaches the rim (14). I then snip the handle at the rim and curve it naturally along the form’s contour (15) 

After the handle has set up overnight under plastic (16), I refine it by adding a finger-width coil to the bottom connection point (17) and a pencil-width coil to the top connection point (18), smoothing them with my thumb and forefinger. A final thin coil is added to the top corner of the handle (19), giving it the appearance of a bamboo joint that complements the mug’s overall aesthetic.

the author Samuel Newman, originally from Western Pennsylvania, found his passion for ceramics while studying business at Penn State, leading him to develop a studio practice in Portland, Oregon. His creative journey is one of continuous discovery—each piece of work builds on the last—revealing new ideas and directions for his process. To learn more, www.suayceramics.com.