JUST A JUG

I have probably mentioned on an occasion or two that I am very influenced by the pitchers and jugs of the late Bill Klock and having had the chance to handle quite a few of them, I hope I have learned a thing or two or even three. The biggest problem with Bill's pitchers and jugs is that for quite some time I was very intimidated by them and only on the rarest occasion did I throw any and truthfully they were just too close to his pieces. In order to move on I spent a fair amount of time learning about and searching out medieval and earlier pitchers in order to make my way clear of the shadow of Bill's pots and this particular form is one that I settled on and still make to this day. This temmoku, stamped jug isn't terribly large at about 12" tall but it has a strict, almost formal form that is broken up with the deeply impressed designs around the widest point of the belly and the exaggerated throwing rings around the neck. The temmoku also has broken nicely on either side of the handle creating a framework for the deep rich glaze in between either edge and all told just enough detail has been added to break up the surface and give the pot the right amount of eye appeal. This is just a jug, nothing more but there are lessons learned from Bill Klock, Warren MacKenzie and others in this pot but they are subtle and I would like to think the bigger picture is all about how I see and make pottery just outside the cast shadow.