The inspiration for my work comes from the body/vessel comparison, clothing, the clothing-making process, and feminine aesthetics. I am drawn to porcelain because it captures fine details and makes colors pop. To me, choosing a clay body is similar to choosing silk or chiffon rather than cotton or polyester. If I am representing laces and sequins, it makes sense to me to use a comparably luxurious clay body. I choose to use Laguna’s Cone 6 Frost porcelain.
Although a beautiful bright, white, and translucent porcelain, this clay body does present some challenges when handling. I approach working with clay like working with fabric and am naturally drawn to the slab-building process. I have recently begun combining slab building with wheel throwing to work more efficiently in the studio. Slab building generates a lot of waste and like working with fabric, I came across the problem of what to do with my scraps. My dessert plate design was created to use up the slab remnants and to reduce the need to reclaim.
Printing and Texturing Slabs
To mimic fabric-like surfaces, I use two techniques to decorate soft, porcelain slabs. The first way is to screenprint one or more layers of underglaze onto a soft slab. I use EZscreenprints (www.ezscreenprint.com) to create my own screens from images of patterns on clothing, and I use Amaco underglazes as the ink.
The second way consists of monoprinting texture from a plaster slab. I do this by creating a low-relief plaster slab from a section of fabric. I can layer colored slips into the texture recesses and by using wet slip, I transfer the colored slip layers onto a slab of porcelain. I build with the slabs once the texture or print is dry enough to not ruin the design, but still wet enough to handle and bend into shapes. Both slabs are rolled out by hand with a rolling pin on a smooth sheet of drywall to about 5⁄16 inches in thickness and compressed on either side with a rubber rib.
Creating a Patterned Rim
Patterns are key to replicating forms. When designing the dessert plate form, I determined that the rim of the plate would be the best place to add slab components because rims are typically decorative and flat.
Begin designing a pattern for your plate rim by first making a template from craft foam. Using a compass, draw one circle with the same diameter as what you want the interior diameter of your plate to be. Then, without moving the compass leg with the point, extend the compass leg with the pencil out an additional inch or two and draw another circle larger than the first. The width between these two circles will be the approximate width of the your patterned rim.
Next, cut a section from the ring to create a single shape (1). This shape will be repeated around the plate rim to create a circular motif. Tip: If you are interested in using up scrap slabs like I am, cut your pieces on the smaller side so you can fit more of them on a slab with less waste. Diagonal seams work best for attachment because they distribute tension well and provide ample surface area to score and slip when joining. Additionally, they add a nice decorative touch.
Arrange the cut craft-foam shape on a scrap of pre-decorated slab to strategically fit as many as possible. Use a needle tool to lightly trace the outline of the foam pattern piece (2), then use an X-Acto knife to cut the seams of the piece at a bevel in opposite directions. This allows for maximum surface area at the attachment point. Finally, score the seams on each piece.
After you have a bunch of shapes cut out and prepped, choose enough of them to make a compelling composition as the rim around one plate (3). Apply a layer of slip using a small brush on one side of the seam. Excess slip will squeeze out and potentially ruin the design, so be careful to not add too much.
One by one, attach the seams bevel to bevel to create a patterned ring, then and carefully press them together, pressing from the top down (4). Leave the last seam open, flip the whole ring top side down, and, using a sponge and your pointer finger, press down at an angle to soften the harsh line the straight-cut slab creates (5). Then, use a serrated rib to score a ½-inch section around the interior of the ring where the ring will attach to the wheel-thrown base (6). Now, flip the newly formed slab ring over and attach the last seam (7).
Throwing the Base
Throwing the slabs on the wheel helps prevent warping and cracking issues. By compressing and gently stretching the slabs on the non-printed side, it helps change the memory of the porcelain and holds itself in a circle rather than unfurling back into the slab it came from.
To begin, throw a basic plate form to serve as the base. The base needs to be roughly ½–1 inch wider than the interior circle of the built-rim pattern, although it can be made larger and then cut to fit.
Once the plate is formed, allow it to stiffen up enough that the cantilever of the plate is stiff enough to hold up the slab rim, but the base is soft enough to wire off the wheel. After the base is removed from wheel, gently place the assembled slab ring on top of the base plate. Mark where the interior circle lands with a needle tool, remove the rim, and begin trimming straight down from that line (8). This carved line creates a channel that the plate rim will fit down into. Use a fine serrated metal rib to score the channel, then apply slip (9). Carefully place the slab ring over the slipped area, then use your pointer finger and thumb to gently squeeze the slab ring and base plate together (10). I use a combination of sponging and compressing with a Mudtools Yellow Rib (shape 3) underneath the slab rim (non-printed side) while the wheel is spinning to secure the pieces.
Next, add handmade sprigs made from pearls, flowers, or rhinestones to reinforce the beginning and end of each seam and add extra embellishment (11).
Finishing the Form
Allow the plate to firm up until all the parts are leather hard and then use the side of a needle tool (12) or back curve of a sculpting tool (13) to compress the seams. Next, trim a simple foot (14) into the bottom of the plate. Tip: Insert a small 17-gauge nichrome wire hook to the edge of the foot ring to provide the option to hang the plate on the wall.
To glaze each plate, I apply Mayco Stroke & Coat glazes with a slip trailer and fill the seams between the slabs (15).
The Frost porcelain is an extremely vitreous cone-6 porcelain, so I leave the textured and underglaze-printed slabs unglazed. The remaining surfaces other than the slabs are glazed in a clear gloss liner glaze and then fired to cone 6. The very last thing I add are pops of premium gold and mother-of-pearl luster to the sprigs to add some extra sparkle. This little dessert plate design perfectly frames your favorite sweet treat. Personally, I like to pair mine with French macarons in corresponding colors. Enjoy!
Process photos: Matt Nierenberg.
Sam Briegel (she/her) is an artist and educator based just outside of Baltimore, Maryland. Briegel splits her time between making pottery for shows and sales and teaching part time at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, and Montgomery College in Rockville. She has exhibited her work across the country and enjoys teaching workshops on her techniques. To learn more, visit www.samanthabriegel.comand on Instagram @sambriegel.
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The inspiration for my work comes from the body/vessel comparison, clothing, the clothing-making process, and feminine aesthetics. I am drawn to porcelain because it captures fine details and makes colors pop. To me, choosing a clay body is similar to choosing silk or chiffon rather than cotton or polyester. If I am representing laces and sequins, it makes sense to me to use a comparably luxurious clay body. I choose to use Laguna’s Cone 6 Frost porcelain.
Although a beautiful bright, white, and translucent porcelain, this clay body does present some challenges when handling. I approach working with clay like working with fabric and am naturally drawn to the slab-building process. I have recently begun combining slab building with wheel throwing to work more efficiently in the studio. Slab building generates a lot of waste and like working with fabric, I came across the problem of what to do with my scraps. My dessert plate design was created to use up the slab remnants and to reduce the need to reclaim.
Printing and Texturing Slabs
To mimic fabric-like surfaces, I use two techniques to decorate soft, porcelain slabs. The first way is to screenprint one or more layers of underglaze onto a soft slab. I use EZscreenprints (www.ezscreenprint.com) to create my own screens from images of patterns on clothing, and I use Amaco underglazes as the ink.
The second way consists of monoprinting texture from a plaster slab. I do this by creating a low-relief plaster slab from a section of fabric. I can layer colored slips into the texture recesses and by using wet slip, I transfer the colored slip layers onto a slab of porcelain. I build with the slabs once the texture or print is dry enough to not ruin the design, but still wet enough to handle and bend into shapes. Both slabs are rolled out by hand with a rolling pin on a smooth sheet of drywall to about 5⁄16 inches in thickness and compressed on either side with a rubber rib.
Creating a Patterned Rim
Patterns are key to replicating forms. When designing the dessert plate form, I determined that the rim of the plate would be the best place to add slab components because rims are typically decorative and flat.
Begin designing a pattern for your plate rim by first making a template from craft foam. Using a compass, draw one circle with the same diameter as what you want the interior diameter of your plate to be. Then, without moving the compass leg with the point, extend the compass leg with the pencil out an additional inch or two and draw another circle larger than the first. The width between these two circles will be the approximate width of the your patterned rim.
Next, cut a section from the ring to create a single shape (1). This shape will be repeated around the plate rim to create a circular motif. Tip: If you are interested in using up scrap slabs like I am, cut your pieces on the smaller side so you can fit more of them on a slab with less waste. Diagonal seams work best for attachment because they distribute tension well and provide ample surface area to score and slip when joining. Additionally, they add a nice decorative touch.
Arrange the cut craft-foam shape on a scrap of pre-decorated slab to strategically fit as many as possible. Use a needle tool to lightly trace the outline of the foam pattern piece (2), then use an X-Acto knife to cut the seams of the piece at a bevel in opposite directions. This allows for maximum surface area at the attachment point. Finally, score the seams on each piece.
After you have a bunch of shapes cut out and prepped, choose enough of them to make a compelling composition as the rim around one plate (3). Apply a layer of slip using a small brush on one side of the seam. Excess slip will squeeze out and potentially ruin the design, so be careful to not add too much.
One by one, attach the seams bevel to bevel to create a patterned ring, then and carefully press them together, pressing from the top down (4). Leave the last seam open, flip the whole ring top side down, and, using a sponge and your pointer finger, press down at an angle to soften the harsh line the straight-cut slab creates (5). Then, use a serrated rib to score a ½-inch section around the interior of the ring where the ring will attach to the wheel-thrown base (6). Now, flip the newly formed slab ring over and attach the last seam (7).
Throwing the Base
Throwing the slabs on the wheel helps prevent warping and cracking issues. By compressing and gently stretching the slabs on the non-printed side, it helps change the memory of the porcelain and holds itself in a circle rather than unfurling back into the slab it came from.
To begin, throw a basic plate form to serve as the base. The base needs to be roughly ½–1 inch wider than the interior circle of the built-rim pattern, although it can be made larger and then cut to fit.
Once the plate is formed, allow it to stiffen up enough that the cantilever of the plate is stiff enough to hold up the slab rim, but the base is soft enough to wire off the wheel. After the base is removed from wheel, gently place the assembled slab ring on top of the base plate. Mark where the interior circle lands with a needle tool, remove the rim, and begin trimming straight down from that line (8). This carved line creates a channel that the plate rim will fit down into. Use a fine serrated metal rib to score the channel, then apply slip (9). Carefully place the slab ring over the slipped area, then use your pointer finger and thumb to gently squeeze the slab ring and base plate together (10). I use a combination of sponging and compressing with a Mudtools Yellow Rib (shape 3) underneath the slab rim (non-printed side) while the wheel is spinning to secure the pieces.
Next, add handmade sprigs made from pearls, flowers, or rhinestones to reinforce the beginning and end of each seam and add extra embellishment (11).
Finishing the Form
Allow the plate to firm up until all the parts are leather hard and then use the side of a needle tool (12) or back curve of a sculpting tool (13) to compress the seams. Next, trim a simple foot (14) into the bottom of the plate. Tip: Insert a small 17-gauge nichrome wire hook to the edge of the foot ring to provide the option to hang the plate on the wall.
To glaze each plate, I apply Mayco Stroke & Coat glazes with a slip trailer and fill the seams between the slabs (15).
The Frost porcelain is an extremely vitreous cone-6 porcelain, so I leave the textured and underglaze-printed slabs unglazed. The remaining surfaces other than the slabs are glazed in a clear gloss liner glaze and then fired to cone 6. The very last thing I add are pops of premium gold and mother-of-pearl luster to the sprigs to add some extra sparkle. This little dessert plate design perfectly frames your favorite sweet treat. Personally, I like to pair mine with French macarons in corresponding colors. Enjoy!
Process photos: Matt Nierenberg.
Sam Briegel (she/her) is an artist and educator based just outside of Baltimore, Maryland. Briegel splits her time between making pottery for shows and sales and teaching part time at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, and Montgomery College in Rockville. She has exhibited her work across the country and enjoys teaching workshops on her techniques. To learn more, visit www.samanthabriegel.com and on Instagram @sambriegel.
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