Workmanship and Risk: Exploring the Tripod Vessel Willi Eggerman

Appears in the Jan/Feb 2022 issue of Pottery Making Illustrated.

My tripod vessels are a signature form that I have developed over many years. I first became interested in the tripod when seeing Pre-Columbian ceramics at the Denver Art Museum. I drew some of the bowls and vases in my sketchbook, but had not attempted the form. While attending a workshop at Anderson Ranch Art Center, I encountered Sandi Pierantozzi’s work and was smitten. She had translated the tripod into unique and very usable tableware. The pieces I saw were wonderfully textured earthenware mugs, vases, and pitchers that she handbuilt with slabs. I wanted to make tripods and infuse the shape with my aesthetic. Over the next couple of years, I made the tripod my own. 

Breaking Down the Process

I start with a thrown cylinder. The added strength and integrity of the compressed walls without a seam allow me to stretch the clay farther when altering the form to its final shape. I love the differences that come from variations in the starting shape and how far you can push the clay. Some of my vessels are regal, some jaunty, others are a bit humorous. 

After digging into the process of making a tripod vessel and breaking it down, I realized most of the steps require repetition and practice to get them right. While practicing, I was reminded of David Pye, a British architect, writer, and craftsman of the 20th century. He defined craft as having two paths: the workmanship of risk and workmanship of certainty. In his book, The Nature & Art of Workmanship, Pye writes of the workmanship of risk in this way: “. . . the quality of the result is not predetermined, but depends on judgment, dexterity and care which the maker exercises as he works. The essential idea is that the quality of the result is continually at risk during the process of making.”

His words speak to my intentions with clay. Every step in the process is integral to the piece’s ultimate success and comes with the risk of loss. I hope you won’t be daunted by experiencing a failure or two as you find your way with the form. I still have failures and learn from each one. 

Making the Sculpted Tripod

Start the form on the wheel by throwing 1¾–2 pounds of clay into a bottomless cylinder about 6 inches wide. To make a bottomless cylinder, open the ball of clay down to the wheel head (1). When your cylinder is even walled, use two pliable ribs, one held against the inside of the wall and one held against the outside to compress the clay between them. Remove throwing lines, as they will interfere with stretching the clay evenly without tearing and will leave unwanted ridges on your form as they transfer forward. Next, collar the top of the cylinder for a lid opening. Adding an upright lip for the lid to rest on can help maintain a round opening as you alter the piece (2). 

Measure the lid opening size on the cylinder with calipers, then throw the lid to the proper width. It will be upside down on the wheel as you do this (3). Measure the lid with your set calipers, then trim it when leather hard to fit the opening on the cylinder and create a curve that complements the form of your jar. You can add a handle to the lid that suits the piece after trimming. Keep the lid leather hard and allow it to stiffen while on the jar to maintain the proper fit.

A specific clay consistency is crucial for the next steps. When flipped upside down, the neck created for the lid needs to hold without slumping, but the body of the pot needs to be soft enough to bend without cracking. It may take practice to get your drying just right, but note that the top will be drying faster than the bottom, which is beneficial. 

Altering the Wheel-Thrown Form

Once your form’s neck can hold its weight, flip the form upside down. Looking down on the bottom opening, use your pointer fingers and thumbs to push the walls into an equilateral triangle. You are finding the feet. Score the bottom edge of the cylinder (4), then press the edges together, starting at each point (5), working your way toward the center until you have an opening shaped like a triangle. Bevel the edge of the opening and score it (6). Cut a triangle the same size and shape as the opening, bevel its edges to match, and attach it to the bottom. Now, flip the vessel over onto its feet and smooth and fortify the inside seams with a wooden ball tool (7). You may need to add coils to the seams and blend them in as well. Support the area between the feet with your hand to apply enough pressure to seal the seams. 

Now it’s time to sculpt it further by pressing soft lines into the clay to define the form. Make a crosswise crease under each of the three feet to start. The crease should span across each foot, then head up along the wall to the rim, and stop just before the lip. To make the impression, rock a tool with a rounded edge into the form (8, 9). Use preliminary marks to achieve even spacing on the form (see 10). While altering, try to keep the lid opening round.

Once the lines are pressed in, stretch the clay from the inside using a wooden ball tool or something similar (10)—I use a spoon or small rubber rib on larger pieces. You will want to experiment. Slide the tool gently from the bottom up and out to create volume between all the creased lines. You may need to dip the tool in water to prevent it from sticking. Go slow. The thinning clay starts to act like thin skin where it has stretched the most. It’s easy to go too far and nearly impossible to shrink it back. You may want to tweak the form by pushing in on the creases or straightening a foot to change the stance of the pot. 

To get a good lid fit, it may be necessary to re-establish the lid opening with the jar back on the wheel. I center the jar (opening up) on the wheel, and secure the feet in place with clay. Gently, and limiting water to the rim and your fingers, re-establish that round opening. 

The Finishing Touches

When the form reaches a stiff leather hard, sponge away any little surface cracks and smooth it for the decoration you wish to add. I like to add porcelain slip dots to several sections to create visual interest. The porcelain slip dots are made from the same clay body as the piece, Babu Porcelain, which I fire to cone 10. I use the slip from my throwing bucket along with dried trimmings and mix them in a blender to make slip that is the consistency of whipped cream. Test different applicators to see what you like for your hand comfort and ease (11). Practice making dots before applying them to create the surface design on your piece. Think about how you will hold your pot safely. I had to move my hand inside the vessel to preserve previous dots as I moved around it. When the piece dries, I sometimes soften the sharp tips of the dots with a sponge (12). Finally, add a handle to the lid and dry the two parts together slowly. 

After a bisque firing, glaze the interior first with a liner glaze,  and let it dry overnight. For the exterior, you could use a transparent glaze that deepens in color where it’s thick or a glaze that breaks over edges. Both are good choices for textured surfaces. 

For this jar, I used a shiny white liner glaze on the inside and waxed over the top inch or so inside to prevent any exterior glaze from getting onto the white glaze. On the outside, I brushed a thin layer of a shiny blue/green glaze over all the dots, then wiped most of it off, leaving some glaze around each dot. Once it was dry, I dipped the entire exterior of the pot into a green matte glaze (VC20 glaze by Val Cushing (that I’ve tweaked to remove the barium) and Ferguson Green glaze) with the top side down and level so the glaze didn’t get into the interior. I fired the piece in a salt kiln to cone 10.

Every year I work to develop something new in my clay technique. I want to bring fresh work to my audience and more importantly to give myself new challenges. I make sure to take time to play in the studio, test new glaze palettes, and take classes in clay and other mediums to bring new ideas. These are the small adventures that are so important to keeping my studio practice moving forward.

Willi Eggerman is located in Boulder, Colorado. From her home studio, she creates and teaches small group classes. She salt fires at the Boulder Potters’ Guild where she has been a member for over three decades. Her work can be found in her home gallery, at art shows, and through her online shop. You can see more of her work at WilliEggerman.com, follow her on Instagram @willi.eggerman.art, and Facebook: Willi Eggerman Ceramics.