The Journal of Australian Ceramics Vol 51 No 3 November 2012

-------
Focus: Technical
-----------------
~LI:::=::i::===:::U
Project 3: Slab pot with wheel-thrown neck
The pot in Project 2 could have been almost completely enclosed so a wheelthrown neck could be
added. However, the pressure used to firmly attach the neck could also cause the flat top to collapse.
The solution is to give the pot an upwardly curved top. (Diagram 7a; above left)
Two fibro faces are cut with the desired curve and screwed to the formwork. (Diagram 7b)
Step 1: Remove the front fibro face and construct the insides as in Project 2.
Step 2: Add the front face as in Project 2, making certain that all joints are well pressed with coils .
Step 3: As in Project 2, add fat coils inside the top of the rim, starting from the narrower ends. Hold a
block of wood firmly against the top of the formwork and press the coils upwards towards the block of
wood. Continue until you can no longer place a finger inside the pot.
Step 4: Allow the pot to reach the cheese hard stage before adding a freshly thrown neck with slight
pressure. Do not use slip for the joining - to minimise damage to the top of the pot, throw the neck
with softer clay than usual.
Project 4: A narrow slab pot
You may wish to make a slab pot which is too narrow from front to back for your hands to be inside
for joining by the plastic clay and pressure methods used so far. The solution is a compromise. Most
of the pot is made by the methods used in Projects 2 and 3 but the remaining face is added by using
pressure and a thick clay paste that is thicker than slip but thinner than plastic clay.
The formwork for this pot has a thin plywood, curved top, two wooden sides and a wooden base, and
a back face of fibro cement. It has no front face.
Step 1: Construct the insides as for Project 1, that is, a top, a base, 2 sides and the back.
Step 2: Cut a slab slightly bigger than the back.
42 THE JOURNAL OF AUSTRALIAN CERAMICS NOVEMBER 2012