Terra Incognita (Underglaze)

Jul 4

Written By

Terra Incognita

Roman cartographers first used the term in mapmaking to identify land they knew existed, but that was yet-to-be explored and so unknown. So much of life and making art can be described with this helpful term.My socially engaged art of the project Who Is My Neighbor? captured the personal narratives of my neighbors as they moved through the unexplored reality of a global pandemic. The interviews I gathered made a sort of social-emotional map of specific lived experiences during a particular time.Since concluding the listening and writing work of WIMN?, I've noticed a pattern in my material work. Most of my making practice has been, and continues to be, exploratory. Yes, I work with the familiar: quilting and embroidery.Quilt making began for me over 30 years ago and embroidery began even earlier. Here are my mini-quilts made from fabric face masks (thank you, Suzanne!) and the embroidery on the quilt collection. Beyond these known ways of making my studio practice involves a plethora of new-to-me techniques.[gallery size="medium" ids="9236,9237,9235"]Clay tiles, collage, and needle-punch for starters. An online class in mosaics gave me new skills that await employment for my obsession with Sixteen Houses.[gallery size="medium" ids="9238,9239,9240"]

Play with Clay

Alongside mapping my neighborhood in various material ways, I’ve also been playing with clay in a fun(ctional) way. Remember the egg carton? Side note: What if I made 20 or 30 of these for an installation of multiples? Think: walking on eggshells. Or, putting all your eggs in one basket? Fun, right?Back to more functional clay. I’ve taken ceramics as a college-level class. I learned to use the wheel; the mugs and bowls from that adventure are in my kitchen today. However, thanks to Myasthenia Gravis, wheel throwing is no longer a great choice for me and I’ve moved into hand building. Make work. Glaze it. Nothing so new there. But how I glaze my work—well, that is a whole different thing.

Beginner’s Mind

The term beginner’s mind, with origins in Zen Buddhism, means “having an attitude of openness, eagerness, and lack of preconceptions when studying a subject”, experience or person. The trick (or Zen practice) being to engage this openness even and especially in familiar settings rather than getting bogged down in the rut of routine and certainty.But I’ll start by noticing and naming it where it is most evident for me—in processes where I use new techniques, new materials or a combination of both. My studio equivalent of venturing into terra incognita.I literally have a beginner’s mind in the majority of my practice. For example: using underglaze.

Celebrating (un)certainty

Certainty was highly valued in my family of origin. I’ve written about my early experiences with certainty before so I’ll just say that learning to dance with mystery has taken time and a heap of therapy. (All worth it!) And this dance now guides my creative work.Underglaze is my new friend and uncertain ally in the ceramic studio! Underglaze kind of works like paint in that it stays where you put it, instead of (over) glaze which works like melted glass that drips and moves. Choosing to work with underglaze can be labor-intensive, and since I’m learning how this material behaves the outcome is not a sure thing. But here is what I know:

*I have permission to explore, figure things out, and find my way.*

None of this effort is certain, but neither is it wasted or foolish.

Here’s a start-to-finish video of my exploration with detailed underglaze on a platter. CLICK on the image to see things move!

You may be wondering: Did the work turn out as envisioned? Nope. I thought the leaves themselves would be less brown and more green.Is the work still lovely? Yes!

Process steps FYI:

Roll out clay to even thicknessPick and arrange fig leaves on surfaceRoll/press leaves into clayFlip slab with leaves onto hump mold (plaster)Smooth outer surface with silicone ribAllow to sit/dry until clay holds formPress my maker's stamp into base of vesselFlip over and remove leavesSmooth edges Begin underglaze on greenware (drying clay)Work on underglaze for a million hoursComplete glazing and documentBisque fire (will it survive?)Yes!Coat surface of bisque ware with clear high-fire glazeGlaze fireReveal!

And that's all I've got for now. I'm happy to reply to your comments and questions this week.Then True Love and I are taking a summer break for a couple of weeks. I have more Process Junkie Confessions to share on my return.May you have courage to explore the unknown,