The practice of ceramics is steeped in history and tradition. For thousands of years humans have exploited the versatile qualities of clay as a material to produce items ranging from humble utilitarian vessels integral to family living, right through to exquisite works of art. Ceramics Masterclass explores this diverse discipline by showcasing 100 of the most innovative and inspiring artists past and present, analysing the techniques and methods used to create the works, and the concepts which underpin their creative process. It shows how to recreate intricate still-life dioramas like 15th-century artist Bernard Palissy, explore narrative like Grayson Perry and convey sensitivity to material like Phoebe Cummings. Arranged thematically, Ceramics Masterclass includes chapters on vessels, batch production, sculptures, figurative works, installation and expanded field. Perfect for students, amateur ceramicists and professionals, this book represents a global perspective of historical and contemporary approaches to clay and be a catalyst for discovery and intrigue.

Get inspired and get glazing! Amazing Glaze Recipes and Combinations provides a captivating collection of sure-fire glaze recipes and electrifying combinations for low-fire, mid-range, and high-fire potters. Hundreds of photos and technically-edited recipes ensure you'll get the best possible results. Whether you're searching for excitement at cone 6 or looking for the perfect high-fire shino recipe, you've come to the right place. Join Gabriel Kline, author of Amazing Glaze and founder of Odyssey Clayworks, for page after color-filled page of glazes. Start by learning the keys to success when applying glazes, then choose the temperature range you want to explore first. Gabriel's collection of well-tested recipes draw on his decades of experience as an instructor and leader of a communal arts studio-including current and past student favorites as well as a few timeless gems. Of course he doesn't stop there! In addition to plentiful tiles showing off two-glaze combinations, Gabriel shares multi-glaze combinations developed through years of trial and error. From waterfall blues to eye-popping bursts of red, there's a rainbow of options. Just as in Amazing Glaze, the recipes have all been technically edited and each one has a photo. By controlling specific gravity and application, the goal is always getting the perfect coat of glaze recipe after recipe. Special topics like majolica and raku firing provide welcome detours, and a variety of artist features serve as launching points for new explorations. Stunning galleries from today's top artists provide even more glazing ideas.

Join the home pottery revolution! Whether you have access to a communal studio or not, hand building projects can travel just about anywhere. Take your clay outside or work at the kitchen table, with instruction from best-selling ceramics author Sunshine Cobb. In this book, you'll find all the necessary fundamentals, including a thorough discussion of clay as well as helpful tips for keeping your body and mind in top shape. Then pick the path that's right for you in the chapters that follow. Develop new skills and unlock your own creativity as you explore: Sculptural projects like miniature animals and plants. Functional items like scoops, a citrus reamer, and a coffee pour-over vessel. Mixed media projects including a candlestick holder, mobile, and a soap dish. All along the way, skill-building is front and center, with conversational instructions and tips to help you make pieces you're proud to show off. Gallery work from some of today's top artists are sure to inspire potters of all levels. What will you make first? For beginners and those returning to ceramics, the Essential Ceramics Skills series from Quarry Books offer the fundamentals along with fresh, contemporary, and simple projects that build skills progressively.

More than 6,000 years ago, ancient civilizations discovered that terracotta was an ideal material for making simple pots; today, it is still highly valued for the production of decorative glazed wares and unglazed garden pots. In Gardenware, potter Martin Lungley first explores the history of terracotta and then shows, through clear instructions and sequential color photos, how to get the best from this wonderfully versatile material. Gardenware covers the selection and preparation of local clays, throwing and decorating, press molding, the production of working molds, and all the specialized techniques involved in the creation of garden pots. Illustrated in color throughout, and with ample step-by-step instruction, this is a unique guide for potters of all levels.

This text explains simply, step-by-step, how even inexperienced amateurs can achieve excellent results when they embark on porcelain restoration. Would-be restorers are introduced to the many options available and encouraged to discover which techniques suit their individual circumstances.;Each stage in the process is illustrated and there is advice on the functions and uses of specialist tools. The book should prove of use to the experienced professional restorer as well as the novice.

Zsolnay ceramic art from Hungary, featuring over 400 color photographs, covers the three main periods of Zsolnay production: 1868 to 1897--Folklorism, Historicism, Victorian Eclecticism; 1897 to 1920--Art Nouveau; and Art Deco; and 1920 to the present--Modernism. An entire chapter is devoted to Zsolnay marks to help identify the pieces. There are almost 11,000 different forms of domestic Zsolnay art works; 700 were issued in 1900 alone, and there are many undocumented forms imported in England and America. Along with the charming miniature, green-glazed, multi-figural series that Zsolnay is most identified with today, there is a wealth of earlier pieces to be found. A value range is given for each item in the book.

Packed with information and glaze recipes, The Glaze Book will enable you to reference hundreds of ceramic surfaces. Each glaze recipe is clearly illustrated so you can see the colour and surface responses it has to offer, and features a description including its firing range, and the uses to which it can be put. The Glaze Book provides easily accessible help on - Methods and Techniques - Raw Materials - Glazing Tools and Equipment - Mixing a Glaze - Methods of Application - Glaze Recipes for Earthenware, Stoneware and Porcelain

Sir Percival David made one of the finest collections of Chinese ceramics outside Asia. It includes many items of imperial quality, with beautiful examples of extremely rare Ru and guan wares as well as the famous David vases. Their inscriptions date to 1351, making them an internationally acknowledged yardstick for the dating of Chinese blue and white porcelain. Here are 50 selected highlights, all illustrated with colour photographs taken especially for this publication. The accompanying text provides details and draws out the important features of each piece. The range and scope of the collection provide the material for a stunning overview and accessible introduction to Chinese ceramic art.

An essential reference for anyone working with ceramics, from weekend crafters and students to practising ceramicists seeking a one-stop reference on techniques and processes, this workshop reference covers both traditional and contemporary practices, collecting the breadth and range of ceramic techniques into one definitive volume for amateur and specialist alike. A directory of materials, tools, machinery and furniture describes everything you need to set up an effective workshop. It includes an extensive guide to forming techniques, from pinch, coil, slab and wheel to mold-making, slip casting and extrusion, detailed sections on slip decoration, embossing and glazing, glaze recipes and applications. These techniques are explored thematically to facilitate the process of discovery that takes place in the workshop, supported by detailed descriptions and step-by-step photography. At the back of the book there is a comprehensive guide to firing and kilns, along with charts and tables for quick reference. All techniques are examined closely for relevance to practice and quality of finish. The practical processes of running a workshop are discussed alongside the more complex techniques of making unique work. Examples of how to set up a studio, good workshop practices, tool making, and recycling of materials act as a foundation to creating a strong workshop environment to carry out your work.

In Courtly Mediators, Leah R. Clark investigates the exchange of a range of materials and objects, including metalware, ceramic drug jars, Chinese porcelain, and aromatics, across the early modern Italian, Mamluk, and Ottoman courts. She provides a new narrative that places Aragonese Naples at the center of an international courtly culture, where cosmopolitanism and the transcultural flourished, and in which artists, ambassadors, and luxury goods actively participated. By articulating how and why transcultural objects were exchanged, displayed, copied, and framed, she provides a new methodological framework that transforms our understanding of the Italian Renaissance court. Clark's volume provides a multi-sensorial, innovative reading of Italian Renaissance art. It demonstrates that the early modern culture of collecting was more than a humanistic enterprise associated with the European roots of the Renaissance. Rather, it was sustained by interactions with global material cultures from the Islamic world and beyond.

An in-depth analysis of Frans Wildenhain and his role in mid-century studio ceramics. Steeped in modernist ceramic aesthetics, Frans Wildenhain studied under Gerhard Marcks and Max Krehan at the Bauhaus pottery workshop in Dornburg, Germany. There, Wildenhain met another potter, Marguerite Friedlaender, his futurewife. Following World War II, Wildenhain emigrated to the U.S. Earning prizes for his art at the 1939 International Exposition in Paris and the 1958 Brussels World's Fair, Wildenhain also received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1958,became a Fellow of the American Crafts Council and his work is in the collections of the Smithsonian Institution, Everson Museum and the Art Institute of Chicago. This book features archival images as well as more than 150rich, color photographs of the ceramics exhibited in 2012 at the Rochester Institute of Technology, NY. Six chapters offer contributions to scholarship on the artist, mid-century studio pottery and modern design, monetizing and commercial acceptance of mid-century handcrafted art at an innovative artists' cooperative, university education at the School for American Craftsmen, and an interview with collector Robert Johnson who donated his Wildenhain collection to RIT. The book is an essential document of the exhibition and an excellent reference for those interested in ceramics, crafts, mid-century design and art entrepreneurship.

"An excellent guide for those aspiring to take up pottery making. [...] While nothing can replace hands-on instruction, this book comes close." Library Journal Starred Review Ready, set, throw! If you've ever wanted to try your hand at the pottery wheel, or if you have ever taken a class and walked away wishing you knew more, you've come to the right place. Welcome to the wheel, from artist and instructor Julia Claire Weber. In The Beginner's Guide to Wheel Throwing, you'll find all you need to develop the skills (and patience) you need to make your first forms. You'll start at the beginning of the process with a tour through a typical ceramics studio, a discussion of the best clays for throwing, as well as a variety of centering methods. Then unleash your creativity with the chapters that follow. You'll find: Starter projects like cups, bowls, and plates to hone your skills. Tutorials on important topics like trimming and handles. A unique decal workshop, unlocking the potential of image transfer. Throughout the book, skill-building is front and center, with tips and tricks to help you crack the code and make pieces you're proud of. Gallery work from some of today's top artists are sure to inspire potters of all levels. What will you make first? For beginners and those returning to ceramics, the Essential Ceramics Skills series from Quarry Books offer the fundamentals along with fresh, contemporary, and simple projects that build skills progressively.

An essential book for potters and ceramicists of all abilities who are interested in creating their own glazes. This new, revised edition of Emmanuel Cooper's classic book is your complete guide to making glazes. Along with an introductory section on glaze materials; colouring, mixing and applying glazes, and information on health and safety issues, the book gives you over 400 glaze recipes - organised according to the different temperature ranges - which cover everything from opaque, matt and transparent glazes to crystalline and black iron glazes. Illustrated with coloured glaze tiles, this reference book is a must for the bookshelves of all potters whatever their level of expertise.

The ultimate illustrated guide to the sculpture parks and trails of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales. This exciting guide to the sculpture parks, trails and gardens of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales is the perfect book for those who like art and the outdoors. Divided up into countries and regions, the book is informative as well as beautifully illustrated with fabulous images of sculptures by a broad array of international artists. It provides information on all the major sculpture venues of interest, featuring the best and most established, while also providing a wide range of other interesting places to visit and explore. Each feature provides directions of how to get there, along with an overview of the park or trail, and lists sculptures of particular interest and quality, while maps of each area will help you find places close by to visit. This makes it easy to see which places are suited to you depending on your preferences, level of interest and time available. This fully revised 2nd edition provides updated information and new entries for England, as well as brand new sections providing thorough coverage of Scotland, Ireland and Wales. The ideal guide for those with a passion for both nature and sculptures.

Techniques Using Slips examines the many techniques of using slips - liquid clay which can be used for decoration on its own or covered with glaze - such as brushing, dipping, trailing and sgraffito amongst others, and uses contemporary potters' works as illustrations. It explains how to make up slips and englobes, as well as ways of using them at higher temperatures, both with and without glazes. The book is illustrated with working potters in action, showing their own personal styles and how they have adapted traditional methods to suit their work today in a modern context. As well as examples of techniques, there are many images of beautiful finished pieces to show what can be achieved.

Potters and Patrons in Edo Period Japan: Takatori Ware and the Kuroda Domain traces the development of one of Japan's best-documented ceramic types, from its beginnings around 1600 until the abolition of the domain system in 1871. Using historical records, archaeological material from early kilns and consumer sites, and the results of comparative chemical analysis, this study explores the operation of Takatori as the official ceramic workshop of the Kuroda, lords of one of the largest domains in Japan. Spanning cultural, aesthetic, economic and practical aspects, this book presents Takatori ware as an ideal archetype with which to compare developments in elite ceramics in other parts of Japan throughout the Edo period. In addition to its scholarly examination of the operation of a domain-sponsored ceramics workshop over more than 250 years, the book includes illustrations of examples from each of the seven Takatori workshop locations, including beautiful pieces that have never before appeared in print.

The Benaki Museum of Islamic Art in Athens has a substantial collection of Iznik ceramics (tableware, tiles and sherds). Although well-known to those who visit the museum, this collection has never been fully published. John Carswell first studied the objects in the 1980s and started cataloguing them with a view to publication. The project was revived and guided to fruition by the curator of the museum, Mina Moraitou. She has contributed a chapter on Antonis Benakis and the formation of the Iznik collection as well as working on the catalogue which includes 111 objects, 83 tiles and 143 sherds. All the objects are illustrated in colour, some with line drawings.

"Radical and inspiring ... Yanagi's vision puts the connection between heart and hand before the transient and commercial" - Edmund de Waal The daily lives of ordinary people are replete with objects, common things used in commonplace settings. These objects are our constant companions in life. As such, writes Soetsu Yanagi, they should be made with care and built to last, treated with respect and even affection. They should be natural and simple, sturdy and safe - the aesthetic result of wholeheartedly fulfilling utilitarian needs. They should, in short, be things of beauty. In an age of feeble and ugly machine-made things, these essays call for us to deepen and transform our relationship with the objects that surround us. Inspired by the work of the simple, humble craftsmen Yanagi encountered during his lifelong travels through Japan and Korea, they are an earnest defence of modest, honest, handcrafted things - from traditional teacups to jars to cloth and paper. Objects like these exemplify the enduring appeal of simplicity and function: the beauty of everyday things.

North Carolina is home to the only continuing pottery tradition in the United States outside the Native American tradition of the Southwest. Noted for this rich custom from Seagrove to Pisgah, work produced here has earned the attention of collectors, artists, and visitors from around the globe. The collection of The Mint Museums in Charlotte, numbering more than 1,600 pieces, is considered the most comprehensive in any public institution. This volume catalogs more than four hundred individual pieces in the Museums' collection and includes five essays by authorities in the field of ceramics, providing a visual and textual guide to a vibrant living craft. Illustrated with hundreds of color photographs, the catalog includes descriptive entries on potters and potteries and details about individual pieces. These include typical utilitarian wares from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, transitional or ""fancy wares"" made during the first half of the twentieth century, and contemporary objects. Displaying works from the four major pottery-producing areas of the state - Moravian settlements, Seagrove, the Catawba Valley, and the mountains - the collection tells the entire story of the North Carolina pottery tradition. Essays by collector and patron Daisy Wade Bridges, scholar Charles G. Zug III, gallery director Charlotte V. Brown, potter Mark Hewitt, and curator Barbara Stone Perry survey the history and significance of one of the state's best-known art forms.

This book explores porcelain wares produced by the Reinhold Schlegelmilch Porcelain Factory [marked R. S. Prussia], of Suhl, Germany, and sold to America from 1888 through 1900. The wonderfully molded and decorated plates and platters, tea sets, pitchers, clocks, and decorative objects are described with over 760 beautiful color images. An entire chapter is devoted to the company's charming toy china sets. Displayed are wares formed from a variety of molds (including Fleur-de-Lis and Melon) and patterns (outline transfer, King George, and Coraline patterns, to name a few). Newly discovered mold patterns are included, along with a history of the company's early operations, wholesale and trade catalog pages illustrating wares exported to the United States, the manufacturer's marks employed during this early period, a bibliography, and several appendices. This book will guide all collectors of Victorian porcelain to recognize the early pieces marked R. S. Prussia.

The housewares for every purpose-including the well-known Autumn Leaf Pattern dinner wares, the stories of the salesmen who delivered them, and the history of the Jewel Tea Company that sent them forth are explored in great detail in this fascinating book. Over five hundred color and historic black & white photographs accompany the text. Among the product lines explored are Jewel Tea dining services and all the accoutrements to set the perfect table, kitchen wares and cookbooks, household products recommended to furnish the new bride's home, sales items for men only, and toys for children which may stir fond memories of your own. The chapter on unusual sales and premium items found only in collectors' homes today will delight all who are interested in this major twentieth century firm.