Porcelain Grace - Meryl Ruth

FAIRY TALE QUALI-TEA

This work represents a further modification on two prior pieces, Happily Ever After and Enchanted Quali-Tea. The pumpkin form has been much more closely integrated with the matching teapot form.
Changes made in this new work include making the pumpkin stem more fluid and curved, creating the smallest teapot in the series yet, and placing the teapot handle at the side rather than over the top, The opening to accmmodate the teapot is cut into the side of the pumpkin coach.
The same overall theme, however, is retained in which a pumpkin coach is enhanced by an understructure made up of press-mold leaves and sculpted wheels.
As in prior pieces in this series, a functional teapot is placed within the interior of the hollowed-out pumpkin. The teapot is wheel-thrown with an extruded handle.
Slip cast molding is used to form both the pumpkin and its projecting stem.
A large segment of the pumpkin body is cut away at the side of the coach for access by the teapot.
Construction sequence:
- Fired in bisque state to cone 06.
- Underglazes applied.
- Refired to cone 6.
- Overglazes applied.
- Cold finished with China paints and gold leaf embellishments.
Date: 2009.
Size: 6.25" x 8.25" x 4.0".
Available for purchase: Price $1,200..

Pumpkin surmounted on carriage of gold leaves with wheel base; teapot inside.

ENLARGED VIEWS

Enlarged view.

Enlarged view

CREATIVE PROCESS

Early stage in the development showing the slip molded pumpkin coach on press mold leaves.

This stoneware creation is assembled by combining a slip cast molded coach body and stem with press mold leaves for the undercoach structure and scultped clay wheels. All components are kiln fired separately. The wheels are yet to be added here.
Coloration is done first with underglazes in pumpkin orange for the body and tans and gold for the stem and leaves.

Press mold leaves are being formed separately.

The artist's signature in clay is glazed onto the bottom of a leaf.

The leaves that will form the undercarriage of the pumpkin coach are fashioned by press mold from plaster casts.
They are then decorated with realistic underglazes in shades of tan, brown and gold.
The artist's signature and date (Ruth 2009) are applied in the glazing, as shown..

The completed work is fully assembled.

A tiny teapot is crafted by wheel-throwing, It is designed to fit the hollow-out space in the pumpkin coach body.
The loop of the newly-formed teapot's handle is intended to match the curve of the sagging pumpkin stem.
The undercarriage is modelled so as to settle the coach farther down on the wheel base than in prior works in this series.