Lump Boxes - Student Work

Just a few more posts to go before I finish with the 2011-2012 school year.  The last couple of days have been crazy busy getting ready for the new school year.  My new students come back this Thursday.

In the meantime, let me show off my last school year's beginning clay kid's lump boxes, a Japanese handbuilding technique.  They start with a small lump of clay that they paddle or slam onto their boards until they come up with an interesting form.  Then they slice off the top 1/4 to be used as their lid, and hollow out both top and bottom with carving tools so that they are left with 1/4" walls.  I also make sure they add surface decoration for interest.

The gorgeous piece up top belongs to senior Priya Shah.  I love how she combined the sun motif on top with the geometrics around the sides.  And then a brilliant glaze job too! 

This fun looking bean form was done by sophomore Samantha Lee.  Outstanding glazing in your surface design areas.

And below we have another highly organic form by junior Sangita Rajan.  I encouraged the kids to go for the most unusual forms they could come up with, and to try to go for asymmetry. 

Another requirement was to come up with a locking lid design other then the one we used in the slab boxes.  Look below at Sangita's really unique solution with the coil posts.  And then of course she has done a special something for the eye inside when you take the lid off with glaze and oxides.

Senor Andy Hwang has delivered another stunning piece here with his interesting form and beautiful glaze choices.  And then the inside is so lovely when you take the lid off.

Senior Kelsey Chang has also once again come through on this assignment.  She loves to do surface decoration that involves coils and pinch flowers.  She really gets how to place them within her piece.  She has also marbleized the clay before she got started so that when we take the lid off we see swirls of white and red clay.  Kelsey has attached  a coil to make her lid locked.

Senior Shayna Franklin blew me away with this piece above.  Love the stamped decoration that she put around this piece...

as well as the cool locking lid.  Fantastic piece Shayna!

And this last cutie belongs to senior Michael Marin.  I love the contrast between the hard tarnished nails against the creamy, soft form.  Wonderful work Michael and all of you!