Collecting Fine American Crafts

I love crafts and have always been a creator. But I also am a collector. I love going to an excellent craft show and seeing the wonderful things being crafted by others using techniques I know little about. And occasionally David and I buy for our craft collection. Last weekend was one of those times. We visited the Paradise City Craft Expo in Marlborough, MA. This is an annual show that is always worth a visit, and we often expand our collection.  Here is a piece of pottery that now graces my dining room table.

I have posted before about my love of ferns and the ferns of the Connecticut countryside figure prominently in this design.  This piece has a beautiful mixture of form and natural design that we found stunning.

The artist is Tim Scull and he has a pottery school in Canton, CT.  He explained the firing technique as a sawdust technique in which the pot is fired while being packed in sawdust. The ferns were applied to the vase before firing, a layer of slip clay was applied over it and the entire pot is buried in saw dust and fired.  The smoky pattern is caused by the cracks that form in the slip during the firing. The ferns leave oxidized markings on the pot. The end result is very organic. 

Here are some links for more information about Tim Scull and his work.

Tim Scull - Fine Art Pottery

Canton Clay Works

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© 2014 Marji Roy, Ashbee Design