I was challenged by one of my interviewees to make a pinch pot each day for seven days, using 1kg of clay each time. Here are my 1kg pots, made from one piece of clay without tools. They were made in my 'studio', more commonly referred to in this house as 'the garden'.
Day 7
Final pot. I kept the shape quite round when the pot was small, by only using my thumb inside and keeping the hole as small as possible. Once I had achieved the height I started to thin the clay out to make the rim. This thinning opened out the pot more in the last stage, but gave a nice finish.
Day 6
I used fresh clay this morning, and this was firmer, but dried more quickly. I started early, it was already 17 degrees, but it was better than in previous days, when I made the pots in the afternoon. I tried a plant pot shape today, it was tricky to keep the top half of the pot quite narrow, once I could not touch the base.
Day 5
I like this shape. I refined the rim more today. I don't know why I didn't do this on previous days, rather than just tidying it up. All of the previous pots would have benefited from this treatment. Sadly I cannot adjust them as I have been using the same kg of clay throughout.
Day 4
I decided to try to bring in the shape today, this was not easy.
Day 3
Just a traditional pinch pot shape, no fancy pants shapes. I tried to get the thickness of the clay as even as possible throughout the whole pot.
Day 2
As the Day 1 pot was so wide and low, I thought I would try a completely different shape today. I think I managed the clay a lot better, and having an idea of the shape beforehand is definitely the way to go.
Day 1
I have made pinch pots before, but not many. I have never tried to make them with 1kg of clay. The sides are very thick when you first press your thumb into the clay ball, and the clay is difficult to hold and manipulate. I was glad to get an even thickness, and for the pot to hold its shape.
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