Gary Jackson: Fire When Ready Pottery
A Chicago potter’s somewhat slanted view of clay & play
Categories: classes, platters, textures

Last night in class, I did a couple demos of plates & platters. One of the plates was kinda plain… so I decided to add some thick white slip & chatter through it with a rubber rib.

Categories: surface decoration, textures

Another “thick slip” demo this week… chattering while spinning to create some groovy textures & patterns. I usually do this demo on bowls… but it was kinda fun to do it a little larger this time on a platter! Can’t wait to see how the glaze pools & puddles in all the right places!

Categories: architecture, textures

Some crusty architectural flourish for another Texture Tuesday!

Categories: classes, process, surface decoration, textures

After my class demo, my SURFACE DECORATION students went off to start carving on their own pots. So much fun to see them using different techniques & tools to create their own special carvings, patterns & textures!

Categories: classes, process, textures

This week with my SURFACE DECORATION class, we tackled carving & slip trailing… okay, so mostly carving! We talked about carving textures & patterns into our pots with different tools to get different effects. Like some clean carved grooves using some of my DiamondCore Tools … and fun little circles with an old drill bit.

Categories: bowls, stamped, surface decoration, textures

So after Tuesday night’s “bowls-bowls-bowls” demo… I took my class demo bowls up to my studio. And there “just might have been” a bit more stamping & detailing done tonight. Just making my not-so-basic bowls even more not-so-basic-er!!! Allegedly…

Categories: soda-fired, stamped, textures

Some soda-fired fun for another TEXTURE TUESDAY! No glaze on the outside, except some tenmoku inlaid in the stamped impressions. All of the color & shine comes from some flashing slips & the soda-firing process itself!!!

Categories: textures

Early morning “ripples” through the glass block windows near the kiln room… it’s FIRING DAY!!!

Categories: classes, platters, textures, tools

While we’re in-between sessions at Lillstreet, it still seems like the perfect chance to show-off one of my Intemediate students and her handiwork! While sharing my MKM Pottery Tools with my class, Jen decided to make a “quick” handbuilt platter using a couple of my MKM hand rollers. Jen is normally a “wheelthrower”… so she assumed this would be a “quick” project to crank out. But quickly found out that handbuilding takes time & patience as well… with a lot of attachments & things to clean-up. But look at this textured plate… it’s AMAZING Jen!!!

Categories: hybrid mugs, mugs, process, production, textures

Texture, texture… TEXTURE. Yep, a lot of that going on in the studio today! Assembling my latest batch of “hybrid mugs” with great textures made with my MKM Pottery Tools! Wheelthrown bottoms with handbuilt sides… combining to make my “hybrid mugs”!