It is all About LINE
“Making work with tiny coils is much like knitting, weaving, or braiding hair; the individual strands coalesce into a harmonized whole that is both distinct and blended.”
Amy Simons
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Big Idea – How can I communicate an idea or emotion through the simplicity of line, texture and form?
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Sketchbook
Plan out form and line direction/flow. Work on two adjacent pages on your sketchbook. Title you page and brainstorm multiple ideas.
Key terms
- Flow/Line
- Form (organic) – research, sketch multiple forms
- Texture
- Movement/Rhythm
Clay bodies before mixing
Palette of clay bodies after being wedged together
1. To roll a coil, start at the center and move outward with even pressure as you roll.
2. Continue rolling and spread your fingers wide while moving your hands toward the edges of the coil.
3. Use a serrated rib to score the beveled edge of the slab base in preparation for adding the first coil.
4. Pinch a large coil, score the bottom edge, and then join it to the slab base and blend the seam.
5. Rehydrate a small amount of clay by wetting your palms and rolling the clay between your hands.
6. Pinch larger, structural coils onto the piece, adding them to the inside edge of the previous layer.
7. Pinch finer, detail coils, adding them onto the exterior. Tuck the tapered ends of the coils underneath the one above it.
8. Paddle the rim of the piece with a flat palm to compress and shape the vessel, creating a piled look.
9. Scrape the coils together on the inside of the vessel with a serrated rib.
10. Smooth the coils on the inside with a soft rib then continue to clean up the inside with a damp sponge.
