Siobhán O Malley

Ceramics in Expanding Practice | Clay +

These are the results of my finished project ' Narrative of the Senses" Clay +

These pieces were fired in a second and higher temperature firing.

A number of my pieces were de-constructed , re-used in a second exploratory piece and re-fired at a higher temperature over 1000 degrees.

The results are different with such a vibrant popping of the colours.

For my last work in semester 2 I threw clay on the wheel to make plates.

Tutors Elaine Riordan and Mary Conroy showed me how to get started. Elaine demonstrated how to make a side plate. As the final week was coming to an end she also showed me a handbuilding technique for plates using a table standing wheel.

While I was investigating how I wanted to layer with spices to create a visually interesting sculptural piece, I returned to one of the first practices we learned in ceramics elective workshops of using paper to create the structure first before we moved to clay.

So I was happy to try out the school camera equipment before our first year comes to an end. I used a macro lens to take images of my primary research.

This is how I arrived in my thinking process of 'layering' as a study of how spices and many other ingredients are layered to create a tasty edible dish.

BLOOM

Jong jin park

I like how this artist worked with the idea of layering clay. he achieved a refined look which I would like to work towards by learning to use paper clay in my continuing ceramics discipline.

He has achieved texture within the folds and shapes he created with paper clay material which is something I practiced with using other materials.

This was fired at a low temperature, I like the result so far but I plan to refire this piece at a higher temperature to hopefully get a different appearance with the glazes melting into each other.

I also used a macro lense in the photography studio with Tutor Paul Tarpey to take some of these images.

I have quite a good few of macro images taken which gives me options when editing and choosing how I could use them in various settings , e.g.; in a background or a display

Dipping material into clay slip,

these images below are some of the results after the first low temperature firing.

I began a second layering project which seemed to take longer to dry this time, I think because I made the clay slip layers thicker. I didnt get to work as quickly with the material in order to get a more refined result this time.

Work in progress and cataloging the process as I go.

I began with several clay slips mixed with different colors. I worked in layers by pouring a colored slip on the molding bats and allowing it to dry before pouring on the next layer of Clay slip.

I interchanged with strips of cloth materials.

This image is of the layers dried out overnight and cut into square pieces. I layered them placing other clay structures I had dipped in clay slip and allowed to dry.

There is cardboard, cloth strips, hessian layered in with dipping glazes and Lava /crater glazes.

For the clay + project I used cloth and cardboard to dip into clay slips to create a variant of colored layers for my spices concept.

These are trial pieces and are waiting to dry to put into the Kiln to be fired.

This picture ↓↓↓↓ is the result after firing in the kiln has occurred.

The materials used have burnt out and the forms of the materials are what is left behind.

After Firing...

They were fired lower than 1000 degrees and as a result they are very delicate and easy to break. Some of the structure's have crumbled.

I am inquiring into the layering process of spices that occurs when preparing a meal. I am interested in the expanding practice of our elective and this for me took me down a road of incorporating textiles to create or re-create shapes with clay by studying various spices.

I spent a week investigating CLAY SLIP which is a material I hadn't used in the previous semesters.

As I cannot put actual spices/food into the Kiln I am experimenting with coloured slips for now.

I cut pieces of paper from the image below taken from a second book of the same series, to make a paper structure resemblance of one idea I have of layering, I am going to make this with clay.

Helen Beard is one of many inspirational artists working with Clay. As part of our Clay + Narrative of the senses project I researched helens work to inspire my own ideas.

I continue to explore how I want to display the sense of SIGHT/VISUAL sense of Spices into ceramics.

Ceramics Elective 2nd project.

For this second project we have been tasked to create a piece of clay which represents our experience of the 5 senses.

SMELL

TOUCH

SIGHT

SOUND

TASTE

I choose to go with the striking SIGHT of SPICES.

To collect my first primary research I went to the local Indian/Asian foodstore and took some images of spices and colourful vegetables.

I also bought some spices and brought them home to begin studying them for my next piece.

Fresh Coriander.