Ceramics Project

          With our ceramics project, we designed and created a plate or bowl out of clay. I decided to make a small plate with very little depth. Designing the plate was fun. The plate had to use a radial design, meaning it had radial symmetry all the way around. We practiced making up a few radial designs, and then we made a final template by folding a piece of paper and cutting the design. That way, the design would be perfectly symmetrical.

          After we cut out the template, we had to prepare the clay. We used a machine to flatten out the amount we needed. Then, we had to wedge the slab of clay by hitting it against a surface several times. Next, we lay our template on the clay and cut out the design. I chose to have small diamonds in my design which were very difficult to cut out. Early in the process, we picked an object that we would either put our clay inside or around the outside in order to create the shape. For my plate, I chose to lay a pie plate upside down and put my clay on top of it to create a subtle slope around the edges. I used a slightly wet sponge to smooth all the edges of my plate. After the plate was fired in the kiln, I painted a glaze on it and it was fired again.

          I learned a lot about how to work with clay and the tools involved. I learned about radial designs and techniques about how to accurately and efficiently turn your design into a real form of art. If I were to redo this project, I would probably use a much simpler design. Overall, I really enjoyed this project.