This short video is just a snippet from my film length YouTube video this weekend that shows the entire creation of these mugs from beginning to end in excruciating detail. It’s an hour and ten-minutes long and you can find a link to the fully narrated video via the Linktree in my profile’s biography.
It might be the longest film I’ve created yet, stitched together from footage filmed and accumulated over the past two-years. It shows how I create one of my simple, handmade ceramic mugs, from beginning to end, with every single fleeting step in that process included. These vessels are amongst the pots I’ve made the most of yet there’s still subtle variations that creep into each batch.
Despite the form being immensely simple, there's endless minute details that go into creating any pot thousands of times. Over the years a potter will finesse their practice, figuring out new efficiencies, improvements and ways of speeding up the making process. I’ve always found chatting about these seemingly unnoticeable actions with other craftspeople fascinating and so I hope some of what I’ve learnt over the past fifteen years is helpful to anybody who decides to sit through this.
Ultimately, being a production potter isn't all about speed, as quality can't be sacrificed for haste. This means there's a point if you're making repetitively, or learning to, when your speed will lessen as you focus on keeping the quality of the thrown items top-notch. Then, as you sink hundreds of hours into practicing a particular shape, the faster you'll become whilst being able to retain a certain level of quality. It's this tireless persistence that many potters I know have, which helps them become really fluid throwers, trimmers and handlers of pots.
Beyond those steps, I've tried to discuss the glazing, firing and the steps taken after the vessels have been plucked out of the kiln in greater detail, as I really want to try and paint a thorough picture of what it really means to make pottery like this and on this scale.
If you happen to watch the full video, please do let me know! Enjoy!
Here's the video I've been promising I'd make. It might be the longest one yet and it shows how I create one of my simple, handmade ceramic mugs, from beginning to end, with every single fleeting step in that process included.
This might be the longest film I’ve created yet, stitched together from footage filmed and accumulated over the past two-years. It shows how I create one of my simple, handmade ceramic mugs, from beginning to end, with every single tiny step in that process included. These vessels are amongst the pots I’ve made the most of yet there’s still subtle variations that creep into each batch.
Despite the form being immensely simple, there's endless minute details that go into creating any pot thousands of times. Over the years a potter will finesse their practice, figuring out new efficiencies, improvements and ways of speeding up the making process. I’ve always found chatting about these seemingly unnoticeable actions with other craftspeople fascinating and so I hope some of what I’ve learnt over the past fifteen years is helpful to anybody who decides to sit through this.
Ultimately, being a production potter isn't all about speed, as quality can't be sacrificed for haste. This means there's a point if you're making repetitively, or learning to, when your speed will lessen as you focus on keeping the quality of the thrown items top-notch. Then, as you sink hundreds of hours into practicing a particular shape, the faster you'll become whilst being able to retain a certain level of quality. It's this tireless persistence that many potters I know have, which helps them become really fluid throwers, trimmers and handlers of pots.
Beyond those steps, I've tried to discuss the glazing, firing and the steps taken after the vessels have been plucked out of the kiln in greater detail, as I really want to try and paint a thorough picture of what it really means to make pottery like this and on this scale.
⚪️ • How to make and use wadding: https://youtu.be/KCI_LQL3JIs (I skipped over this part a little bit—apologies)
📚 • You'll find many more guides on how to centre and pull up the walls of clay here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2WJhtTF0eGhQwf8g2LHcom_KrvJpH_JT
📖 • ORDER MY BOOK: https://geni.us/bymyhands
📢 • Find out much more about my work here: https://linktr.ee/floriangadsby
⏱ • Timestamps:
0:00 - Introduction
0:27 - Preparing and wedging the clay, (300 gram lumps)
2:10 - The simple design of the mug
4:17 - Throwing the mugs
8:37 - The type of wire I use
12:44 - The importance of drying the cups carefully & slowly
14:05 - Trimming the bodies of the mugs on a chuck
18:42 - Attaching & pulling the handles for the mugs
37:08 - Quality control, double checking their bases
39:54 - Biscuit firing the mugs to 1000ºC
42:34 - Waxing the bases of the mugs
44:17 - Glazing the mugs
49:18 - Cleaning over the glazed surfaces
53:32 - Loading & reduction firing the gas kiln to 1290ºC, (cone ten)
58:52 - Unpacking the kiln
59:54 - Sanding the bases of the mugs
1:01:35 - Grinding away fluid glaze
1:03:45 - The finished mugs
1:05:21 - How I package the mugs for shipping
1:10:28 - Clean up
*I throw using both a Rohde HMT 500 & 600 potter's wheel and fire using Rohde kilns too, the electric is a TE-200 and the gas kiln is a KG-340.
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