Friday 15 June 2012

Making a Bowl from Raw Clay to Finished Pot

Recently I decided to make a video of the processes involved in making a bowl from the raw clay to the finished item.  I recorded almost every step in the bowl's development and combined the 22 separate videos to make a seven minute film.  So that you don't fall asleep watching me throw, turn and glaze the pot I have speeded up the action and most of the film is at four times normal speed.  The full length of the original film before speeding it up was about 23 minutes. 
The processes involved in making this bowl are:
Reclaiming clay
Drying the clay on plaster bats
Kneading
Throwing
Turning
Biscuit Firing
Glazing
Glaze Firing
There are a few other processes that I haven't included such as setting up before each task and washing up afterwards.  I also make up my glazes from the raw ingredients this involves careful weighing out and sieving.
After I had made this film I thought about how much time I spend on my pottery and how much I charge for my work.  I sell these bowls for £8 each, if you consider all the processes above it probably takes me an hour to make three bowls.  Add to that the cost of the raw materials, the clay is relatively cheap at about 50p but the glaze ingredients can be quite expensive plus the electricity for the two firings.  On top of this  there is the original cost of the equipment such as the kiln and wheel and all the additional tools.  So its a good job that I do this for the love of making pots and not to make a living!