Process
CERamics: Experimental surface treatments
For a studio art course taught by painter Jim Cogswell, I explored hand-built surface treatments and textures in a new medium, clay. My interest in the course was to gain experience with the making of ceramics tiles as they are a material I worked daily with in my job as an Interior Designer.
Despite no prior experience with ceramics I took to it quickly and fell in love with creating small tightly designed overall patterns with subtleties in the colors and textural variety.
Final Project: Terracotta Screens
For my independent project I explored the making of architectural ceramic screens. The technique of slip coating that I employed had never been used before so it was a new experience for both myself, Professor Cogswell, our TA, and even the seasoned ceramics studio coordinator!
Using a process of laser cutting chipboard, then dipping the cut pieces into terracotta slip, and then finally firing and glazing the pieces I was able to create lattice-like ceramic screens. The final pieces are extremely delicate. I am excited to continue to explore the technique and see how it may be developed into a larger-scale architectural element in the future.