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Handbuilt Ceramics: Pinching * Coiling * Extruding * Molding * Slip Casting * Slab Work
Written for the general reader with an interest in ceramics, Handbuilt Ceramics is a big, colorful, and complete how-to manual for shaping clay without a potter’s wheel. Features 8 projects, complete with materials lists, clear step-by-step instructions, and detailed “how-to” color photos.
160 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1997
4 people are currently reading
103 people want to read
About the author
Kathy Triplett
4 books4 followersA native of Orangeburg, SC, Kathy Triplett attended the Universidad de las Americas in Puebla, Mexico and received her B. A. from Agnes Scott College in Decatur, GA. Additionally, she honed her artistic skills in courses at La Meridiana, Italy; Arrowmont School, Tennessee; Castle Clay, Colorado; and the architecture department at Georgia Tech.
While in Mexico, Triplett developed an interest in the geometric elements of that region’s Olmec and Aztec architecture, which led to an interest in Art Deco architecture and design. Travels to Barcelona, Spain and an interest in the work of Gaudi contributed to a tendency towards more organic forms in her work. A recent trip to Mali, in West Africa, brought the influences of the colors of mudcloth and the shapes of the mud mosques and houses, to her work. A study of terra-sigillata in Italy encouraged more natural and warmer surfaces to the wall tiles she creates now.
But what explains the sea creature and insect-like forms in the work? Time spent every year exploring the shores of Edisto Island, SC, where horseshoe crabs and sharks’ teeth are found in abundance, contributes to the shapes and to the small detailed natural object additions on the teapots and the wall pieces.
Windows and openings from one layer into another are abiding elements in the work, metaphors for the layers of the self, or for the process of uncovering another world that lies beyond this one. An interest in texture and contrast leads Triplett to lengthy glaze testing in order to find new and intriguing surfaces.
Though she began her career as a wheelthrower, now handbuilding with slabs and coils is the method used to manipulate the clay. She is the author of Handbuilt Ceramics and Handbuilt Tableware and has exhibited at SOFA New York and Chicago, New Art Forms, Chicago; First International Tokyo Crafts Expo, Tokyo, Japan; The Tea Party, American Craft Museum, New York, NY; Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR, and is included in collections from Bolivia to Japan. She is a member of Piedmont Craftsmen, Inc., and the Southern Highland Guild and currently serves on the board of Handmade in America, Asheville, NC.
She lives in Weaverville, NC, with her husband and two dogs, in a solar house filled with handmade tiles and ceramic wall sconces, and works in a handbuilt studio nearby.
While in Mexico, Triplett developed an interest in the geometric elements of that region’s Olmec and Aztec architecture, which led to an interest in Art Deco architecture and design. Travels to Barcelona, Spain and an interest in the work of Gaudi contributed to a tendency towards more organic forms in her work. A recent trip to Mali, in West Africa, brought the influences of the colors of mudcloth and the shapes of the mud mosques and houses, to her work. A study of terra-sigillata in Italy encouraged more natural and warmer surfaces to the wall tiles she creates now.
But what explains the sea creature and insect-like forms in the work? Time spent every year exploring the shores of Edisto Island, SC, where horseshoe crabs and sharks’ teeth are found in abundance, contributes to the shapes and to the small detailed natural object additions on the teapots and the wall pieces.
Windows and openings from one layer into another are abiding elements in the work, metaphors for the layers of the self, or for the process of uncovering another world that lies beyond this one. An interest in texture and contrast leads Triplett to lengthy glaze testing in order to find new and intriguing surfaces.
Though she began her career as a wheelthrower, now handbuilding with slabs and coils is the method used to manipulate the clay. She is the author of Handbuilt Ceramics and Handbuilt Tableware and has exhibited at SOFA New York and Chicago, New Art Forms, Chicago; First International Tokyo Crafts Expo, Tokyo, Japan; The Tea Party, American Craft Museum, New York, NY; Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR, and is included in collections from Bolivia to Japan. She is a member of Piedmont Craftsmen, Inc., and the Southern Highland Guild and currently serves on the board of Handmade in America, Asheville, NC.
She lives in Weaverville, NC, with her husband and two dogs, in a solar house filled with handmade tiles and ceramic wall sconces, and works in a handbuilt studio nearby.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 26, 2018
Excellent book with a lot of refreshing ideas. Simply enough for a beginner, but a lot here for the teacher or advanced potter.
January 23, 2016
Such an inspirational book with gorgeous photos of artists work and step-out-projects. One of my favorites.
April 15, 2017
Lovely book by Kathy Triplett with practical instructions as well as a nice 'gallery' to her work.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews