1 week working with Japanese ceramics
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Pottery town- Mashiko toguei club - Japan
Mashiko the pottery town, a small village in the middle of the countryside filled with gallery and beautiful ceramics.
The pottery club of Mashiko toguei club.
" Exploring the world of ceramics where each piece is unique with a personality and perfectly imperfect. ''
One week to fall in love with the joy and the freedom of creating. The feeling of the clay under my hands, the texture, the subtle movements of the piece that slowly take form. To me pottery is about passion, trusting your intuition, failing often and embracing imperfections which become then the essence of beauty.
More than an experience it is a philosophy that deeply inspired me, changed my relationship with things around us and help me to approach beauty with a different eye.
Throwing and trimming.
It all start with clay and with your hands.
Freshly throwed pieces left to dry
Trimming with the wheel.
After adjusting the center point on the wheel. Trimming is done using a sharp tool.
Trimming by hand.
My favorite way to trim, it give you freedom to create interesting forms and add more personality to the piece.
The glazing of the pieces.
A special glaze from the area is Mashiko made with white clay and water.
Glazing.
It is possible to glaze the piece this will create a different look and give the surface a smoother feel that can be more convient to use.
Iron oxyde.
Different oxyde cam be use to create a particular effect. This red iron oxyde will turn into brown once it has reacted with the heat during the firing process.
Selected pieces.
After producing around 35 pieces I decided myself for the best 7 pieces to be wood fired in the kiln.
Last, wood firing.
Wood fired kilns are more of a choice than a necessity but while the process isn’t easy, the results are incomparable. It where the magic happens, pieces are fired at 1250°C, during this time the temperature, ashes and flames are giving the unique look and solidity of the piece.
Wood kiln.
The wood.
Specific types of wood and quantity are necessary to produce the most interesting results. They need to be cutted in short piece to put in the oven.
Collecting wood for firing pieces
The firing.
It is important to maintained a stable temperature, people take turn over night and to check.
5 months later…
I receive my pieces fired at home, a beautiful moment to finally see how they look after the firing process.
Behind the scenes, Mashiko pottery club.
An inspiring place filled with passion, hard work and amazing people.
What I have learned from this experience.
To see and celebrate imperfections which are part of the beauty of an object.
Learned techniques of pottery and trained my eye to create harmonious forms.
Shaped my vision as designer and exposed me to an another way to approach objects.
To embrace creativity and the freedom to create.
Thank you to Paula, Henry, Julie, Timi, Asakusa, and the staff for the great energy and patience !
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