BLUE MONDAY VII

Today was another one of those Mondays, it started out very dreary and overcast  and has become a rather pleasant, if cool day in the Mohawk Valley. I spent the day firing off a glaze kiln and throwing plates and separating out finished work to see what needs to be done. The throwing got me thinking about one of the curious side effects of starting this blog; the number of people who I have been able to reconnect with, because they stumbled, or possibly went looking, for me on the web. I have reconnected with family, friends, old clientele and collectors and I have the blog and the internet to thank for that.

I also was able to reconnect with a potter, who I knew in passing from Cleveland. At one point in her travels, said potter had the opportunity to meet with my favorite Persian influenced potter, Kato Kenji and she was able to get one of his formula for his unique blue glazes, which she has very kindly passed on to me (Thanks, Jo!).  After I finish my terra cotta run, I'll order some Cone 2 cones and will try my hand at this recipe. I have made up 10 pounds of clay that I used a long time back in Cleveland for a project at about cone 2 and hope to get this tested sometime after Nov. Like everything else, one step at a time and all in good time.

Illustrated is a Persian influenced vase by Kato Kenji (1933-2008). The vase was thrown round and then gently paddled square in form, the foot is carefully carved out to compliment the form. Under the crisp electric blue glaze is a fluid decoration in dark black pigment which takes on a decidedly blue tint as it peaks through to the surface. This particular design is seen on a number of Kato Kenji's works as it was easily adapted to a wide array of forms and works well to animate the surfaces of any given pot.