New Patterns and New Bowls

My mind has been buzzing like always and I have some new work that I am very excited about. I never get tired of patterns, so made some new textured slabs.

New patterns calls for new forms. I wanted to make some unique elegant bowls. Check these out.

I love the curling handles and the simplistic design balanced with the intricate free flowing patterns

Perfect for serving strawberries this summer season. Buy them now at my Etsy shop.

New Butter Trays

Many of you have seen and purchased my lidded butter dishes which are still my best sellers. With a suggestion from the Luna Sea Gallery in Pascadero, CA, I am introducing my new butter trays. They are still charming and colorful with a different design and a great price point.

They can also be used as spoon rests or serving.

Check them out in my Etsy shop.

Upcoming in 2010!

I have been busy from the start of the year making some new work for 2010.
Here are some pictures of them in their unfired stage.
I made some handbuilt tumblers and beer steins from slabs of clay which are really light weight and a delight to hold.

I also made a new extrusion die with which I can extrude walls for a container with a gallery inside for the lid. It is quite a versatile die as I can make containers of any shape and size with just this one die. You can see the first picture of the small ones that I made first and then some really big casseroles I made. I wanted to emmulate the look of fabric wrapped around and held together by buttons and that look really comes through.

Another challenging thing has been making oval lids from slabs to fit these pieces and these have comes out great.

These items will be available for purchase in April in my etsy shop.

Vases: Old and New

I have seen working with clay as a journey. Here is a glimpse of my journey with vases.

These are pictures of vases that I have made arranged in chonological order starting from 2000 till date.

Temoku glazed with slip decoration. This was my first piece on which I had tried slip decoration back in 2000.

This is a 18 inch vase thrown in sections and gas fired to Cone 10 in deep blue glaze. I gifted this to my mom remembering that she had a similar vase in brass.

This is when I started altering my work. These were ovaled in shape after throwing and are still sitting near my fireplace.

Here is when I started extruding my vases and had switched to an electric kiln. I was amazed at the possibilities of a extruder and couldn't stop experimenting.

My Bollywood designs make an entry to my vases. The extrusions are still altered and then embelished with slip decoration.

And below are pictures of where I am now. Adding more movement, more decoration, introduction of texture.

This is a slab built vase made with textured slabs and multiple firings.

Oil Vinegar Bottles ready to hit the Dance Floor

Oh yes they are ready! I am thankful to the customer who put this idea in my head. She said, I have your butter dish, I have your salt pepper shakers, I have your mugs and bowls and I need some thing more for the kitchen.

I decided to make Oil/Vinegar bottles but wasn't sure what shape/design or how would I incorporate my style to them. Sometimes you just have to try out things to see how they transform.

I made a new die for my extruder and manipulated the clay as it came out. And just like that I knew where this was going.

I tapered the tops to give them a more elegant look and the decoration just empahized the curves and flow of the shape emulating the look of embroidered fabric wrapped around a body.

And I just couldn't decorate one side... they have a different pattern on both sides. The textured slip pattern also helps in getting a good grip on the bottle while cooking.

I like how they came out and would like to read your comments. Getting input on new work is really appreciated. Thanks

New work and more new work in progress

Being an engineer, I am always problem solving. And being an artist, I am always striving to be creative and create new work. Seems like a good combo to me and but it can be an overdose of ideas floating in my head at all times.

I have made incense holders in the past and designed them such that the ash fell directly on the tray rather than creating a mess all around. These still work very well and have beautiful stamped patterns on them. A few months back I started thinking of how to make them even more interesting. This is when I designed a lidded incense holder. The lid has holes through which the incense smoke escapes making these smooth curvy patterns. Of course I went crazy decorating these lids. They took me forever but I love the way they look and especially when the incense is lit. I just posted some on Etsy in my shop.

Another I have had on my mind is oil vinegar bottles. I have been struggling to get a form which would work and had made a few prototypes but not to my liking. This is when observing everything around you becomes important. Just be aware and enjoy and take in all that you see. I was looking at the smoke patterns from the incense holders and decided that is the shape I want. I made a new extruder die, got to work and made these oil vinegar bottles. These still need to be decorated but couldn't wait to share my Aha! moment. Looking at the group photograph they look like dancers in Bollywood dance routine. LOL!

Some new work

So once I made the decision of buying the pugmill, I felt free to experiment. I wanted to try some new things I hadn't tried before. I have been updating some of these pictures on facebook, but here is a glimpse into some new work. Having the pugmill is really liberating!

This new line of work is a lot more decrorative and time consuming. I am still trying to figure out pricing work like this before I post it on Etsy.