Artist's statement
Green pots
Joe Childress
Elements of Ceramics
Class of 2022
I have had little to no experience in clay aside from this class, so these are my first pieces that have been put on display. The idea I had in my head while creating these was that I wanted to give my brother, Holden, pieces to hold his food/drink in. He is in college, so I was worried that he didn't have enough cups/bowls to always be able to eat out of clean ones. I only used the wheel to create my 2 cups and 1 bowl, as that was the method I was best at, the walls tended to stay up that way, and the pieces were much smoother and less coarse when I used the wheel. After I did so, I decided to glaze them using my brothers favorite color, green. Although I was originally worried that my glazes were uneven, they came out with an interesting design and mixture of shades. As I envisioned the cups being used to hold tea, I decided that the best way to display that without risking spilling hot tea all over other peoples pieces, was to only have tea bags placed inside the cups to communicate its intended use. I have made a lot of progress in terms of skill this semester, and I am proud of that progress. My pieces may not be perfect, but they are far more symmetrical, smooth, and stable than any of my previous pieces. In the future, I don't see myself taking another ceramics class, at least not this year. Although taking the class was fun, I believe I should still give myself time to explore other fields that I might enjoy.
Joe Childress
Elements of Ceramics
Class of 2022
I have had little to no experience in clay aside from this class, so these are my first pieces that have been put on display. The idea I had in my head while creating these was that I wanted to give my brother, Holden, pieces to hold his food/drink in. He is in college, so I was worried that he didn't have enough cups/bowls to always be able to eat out of clean ones. I only used the wheel to create my 2 cups and 1 bowl, as that was the method I was best at, the walls tended to stay up that way, and the pieces were much smoother and less coarse when I used the wheel. After I did so, I decided to glaze them using my brothers favorite color, green. Although I was originally worried that my glazes were uneven, they came out with an interesting design and mixture of shades. As I envisioned the cups being used to hold tea, I decided that the best way to display that without risking spilling hot tea all over other peoples pieces, was to only have tea bags placed inside the cups to communicate its intended use. I have made a lot of progress in terms of skill this semester, and I am proud of that progress. My pieces may not be perfect, but they are far more symmetrical, smooth, and stable than any of my previous pieces. In the future, I don't see myself taking another ceramics class, at least not this year. Although taking the class was fun, I believe I should still give myself time to explore other fields that I might enjoy.