This vase was a custom order for a couple’s 9th wedding anniversary. They wanted something they could pass down to future generations and thought a ceramic piece would make a good commemorative heirloom. They mentioned their love for terracotta amaryllis, a variety I’d never heard of. Terracotta literally means “baked earth” so I was excited to render the flower in clay tones using a mixture of pink Alabama #clay and a clay called Newman Red from California. #pottery

Still warm from the kiln, covered in warm earth tones—I’m so relieved this piece came out successfully on the other side of firing. I worked on it over the course of a month and remembered to document moments of process which I think I’ll share in a thread. The most important thing to know is that I consider this pot a collaboration. I coordinated the colors, but I didn’t choose them. Each clay tone was a surprise and a gift, and that’s where my excitement about this piece lies. #pottery

I usually make things for people to use at home, but it seems to me that the only purpose of this bowl is to bob and spin in the Gulf. #ceramics #pottery #nature #water #beach #Florida #birds #PeacefulMoments

Black skimmers begin nesting on our beaches in the spring and we get to watch them grow from little baby puff balls to adolescents to adults over the summer. This bowl, with its rounded bottom so that it can rock and spin on a flat surface, almost functions as a diorama. It honestly feels more like a toy than anything else. My husband spun it around in the water so that I could shoot some video which I’ll post later. This piece belongs to the Gulf. #pottery #ceramics #nature #birds #Florida

I think I enjoy hand building and wheel throwing equally. My upcoming online workshop (previous post) will focus on hand building because it’s the most accessible way to make pottery—no equipment needed. I went through a phase of forming teapots with #PinchPots—yes, like the ones kindergartners make. You take two pinch pots, let them firm up, and then join them together at the rim to create a vessel. It’s a simple technique with endless possibilities. #pottery

I’m offering this #VirtualWorkshop for the second time on Saturday, October 25. If you’ve ever had an interest in working with #clay, I hope you’ll join me. #Ceramics used to be a free creative medium but has become an expensive hobby. In this workshop, I will explain exactly how to take advantage of the therapeutic benefits of working with clay, but at minimal cost. The workshop is sliding scale beginning at $10. Recording available. More info & signup:

Pottery by Osa

Clay Is for Everyone

This workshop is for beginners who would like to work with clay from home but don’t know where to start. There are three payment tiers to choose ...

I included these pieces in the exhibition that opened Sunday. The middle piece features the crackled, fragmented surface I wrote about a few weeks back. The two pieces on either end were formed with clay collected from a construction site in Sarasota County and are unglazed. Up close, you can see the grainy sediment including small, black fossil fragments. The Earth is its own document, leaving a record for us to decipher. #WildClay #alttext

Thinking about ancient people busying themselves by moving large stones and piles of earth, aligning them with major astrological events. #Equinox #busybusy

I just got back from installing pieces for an #art exhibition that opens this Sunday in Sarasota. If you've read any of my blog posts, you know that working with local materials has been a gateway for me to learn more about #Florida geology and Indigenous cultures. I've also gained a deeper relationship to #nature based on hands-on intimacy rather than intellectualism and the acquisition of scientific facts. I'm very excited to share this experience with other people who live here.

I just uploaded clips of #NestaNala (1940-2005) and her daughter #JabulileNala showing how they begin coil building a pot. The Nalas are the most renowned Zulu pottery family. Jabulile taught me her coil building technique and gave me more insight into Zulu culture when we spent three weeks together in the summer of 2022.

MakerTube

Nala Zulu Pottery Coil Building

This is an excerpt from a video shared with me by Susan Bernstein. It was shot by South African musician and poet Eugene Skeef in 2001 during a tri...

#pottery #ceramics #SouthAfrica #AfricanArt #culture #PeerTube