Rolling in Clay

Looking at a finished piece of pottery is beautiful; your eyes trace the clay body from
its base up to the rim, admiring how perfect this once piece of dirt has become. The walls are so even, smooth, and very symmetrical. For such a beautiful and elegant outcome of throwing clay on a pottery wheel, the act of throwing clay is down and dirty. When starting to throw, there is a moment of peace and tranquility, or as some would say a calm before the storm. There is no clay under your nails, your hair feels fresh and new, and your clothes are spotless. But then as soon as the wheel starts turning, clay is slugged on your arms and clothes, and pieces could fly into your hair, nothing is safe from the wet clay. So, for this set of photographs I wanted to capture the before and after a ceramist throws clay. My day starts with me driving the school squeaky clean and then ends with me driving home covered in clay. I wanted to juxtapose the before and after because being coated in clay makes me feel like a different person. I cannot touch anything or sit on my couch and the idea of getting so messy deters me from even going near the throwing wheel. But the joy of seeing a finished product cancels out all my negative feelings towards using the wheel. Allowing my photographs to be transferred using a Mod Podge technique and displaying them on a linen/canvas fabric that we use on our tables in the ceramic studio gives clay characteristics to the photographs. When the images are wet on the canvas, they show up more glossy whereas when they are dry, just like clay, they turn a lighter shade and turn matte which makes the images harder to view.