Glaze, Technique

Are handmade ceramics dishwasher safe?

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Does the dream of surrounding yourself with handmade ceramics have practical objections such as dishwasher safe? To be beautiful, …uh.. use beautiful ceramics … means suffering?

Or better yet to quote the Dutch poet Willem Elsschot:

[…] for between dream and deed
laws  and practical objections stand in the way
(Willem Elsschot 7 May 1910)

Handmade ceramics in actionFortunately not! Handmade dream ceramics and dishwasher convenience do not encounter any practical objections. At least when the glazes used are properly designed and fired correctly.

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Inspiration, Personally

Hand building ceramics is a men’s job

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The scientific evidence has been provided, hand building ceramics cannot be left to women, that’s a real man’s job! At least that was the case 4,700 years ago in present-day Israel, according to a recent study at the University of Winnipeg.

Science is fantastic, ideas are constantly changing; progressive insight. A few years ago it turned out that hand stencils in caves from about 64,000 years ago were not made by men, but mainly by women. Now it seems that hand-forming clay pots wasn’t something  women did when men were running after a mammoth.

So you modern men, it’s time to get from behind your potter’s wheel and grab clay directly with your bare hands. Hand building ceramics is the new hunting.

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Personally

The devil is in the ceramic details

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Handmade ceramics are all about details. The ceramic connoisseur carefully examines each piece of pottery that appeals. Looking, feeling, if possible pick up and turn around. How is the foot turned, does lip match finish, finish match shape, etc. etc.

handmade coffee afters outsidecoffee cup in hand, notice the ceramic detailsIt’s now week six in our corona lock-down. The news is about numbers of victims, IC beds, respiratory care and protective equipment. I work at home and embrace the guidelines. Ceramic fairs have been cancelled, so I opened my webshop. Everyone has to help contain this virus, so I am also doing my (tiny) bit.

Ceramic details are far away, it seems like something from before this pandemic. But as the saying goes; “the devil is in the details“. And this devil helps us appreciate the details. And that’s needed more than ever. Continue reading The devil is in the ceramic details →

Inspiration, Personally

A ceramic bird in the hand

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A ceramic bird is a symbol of freedom captured in stoneware.

A contradictio in terminis? I don’t think so, but I’m a ceramist with a soft spot for ceramics and birds.

In my opinion, clay, birds, ceramics and freedom are inextricably linked. And I’m not alone. Ceramic birds are a popular subject of artists and ceramists of all time.

Better A Bird In The HandI’d like to take you this new spring into my world of thoughts and birds .

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Inspiration, Personally

Pottery Podcasts that every potter should know

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What are the best pottery podcasts right now? Well that’s argumentative , but I will share my favorite podcasts with you.

Spoiler alert: they are all American podcasts. I listen to Dutch, German and English podcasts, but at the moment I only know  podcasts about pottery and ceramics in the English language.

Why now a blog about pottery podcasts? Because in the current corona crisis it is good to also focus on other things. Stay tuned on the advice of of your government (RIVM in the Netherlands) to prevent the spread of the virus. When you’ve done that (and keep doing that) then there’s time for other things!

And what better way to spend your time than listening to podcasts about pottery, ceramics and ceramists around the world? If you are not yet a frequent listener of pottery podcasts, now is the time to start…

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Opinion, Personally

Don’t panic: Online Ceramics and the Coronavirus

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The coronavirus has taken over the world, including that of online ceramics. My mailbox is overflowing with cancellations. In the US, the international ceramics festival NCECA has been cancelled, many museums in Europe are closed and cultural life has also been paused in my neck of the woods, the Netherlands.

I find it a strange sensation, when I wake up I hear the birds singing in the garden. The dunnock  is whistling at the top of his lungs until he is chased away by a screaming robin. The blackbird does not bother and  cheerfully sings uninterrupted on top of my roof. Spring has begun!

No Panic Galactic AdviceBut the streets are quiet, the shelves empty in the supermarket. I notice that it also influenced my work ethics.. and not in a good way.

How do you break from this negative spiral? Just go back to work and follow transgalactic advice!

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Inspiration, Personally

My inspiration: the letters of Vincent van Gogh

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“Dear Theo”, the first words Vincent van Gogh  wrote to his brother in 1872. An iconic correspondence followed that would come to an abrupt end in 1890. In 819 letters we get a unique glimpse into the thoughts of this world famous painter.

“In order to do good work you have to eat well, be well housed, have a screw from time to time, smoke your pipe and drink your coffee in peace.” (Vincent van Gogh, 1888)

Self-portrait Vincent van Gogh
Self-portrait Vincent van Gogh (1887) Van Gogh Museum

Now almost 150 years later, Vincent’s letters are as current, comforting and inspiring as when they were written. I can fully confirm Vincent’s advice… well, almost …

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Inspiration, Personally

The ceramic color mystery

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Ceramic colors are a mystery, magical, dangerous and elusive. A battle between ceramist and Gaia. A battle every mortal is doomed to lose…

It has historical, cultural and technical aspects. Scientists, philosophers, psychologists and artists all have bitten off more than they could chew. Many books have been written about color, but the truth is still elusive.

Keramiek Kleuren mysterieIn other words, colors are a fascinating phenomenon.

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Personally

Men’s tears among handmade ceramics

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Maybe I’ve become more sensitive, but I think I see lots of men’s tears nowadays. It’s not because I watch reality shows. Big Brother, the Voice, Hell’s Kitchen, tears provoked for the ratings I ignore. I will also have nothing to do with tears for emotional blackmail.

No, I mean real tears, like president Obama’s , but then in the ceramics scene. Keith Brymer Jones in his judging at The Great Pottery Throw Down comes to mind. But there are more ceramists who have become immersed in modernizing male emotions.

Will the twenties be the emotional catch-up for modern male ceramists?

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Personally

New Decade: Roaring Twenties Ceramics

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A new decade has begun, time for roaring twenties ceramics. No I don’t mean vintage ceramics from the twenties of the last century, but freshly fired 21st century ceramics.

No matter how much I love historical ceramics, the current handmade ceramic tradition can only be maintained by making it now.

And the ceramic tradition is still very much alive, judging from what I’m all encountering on Insta. The hashtag #ceramics has 10 million posts on Instagram. Okay not as popular as #Love (2 billion), #Fashion (759 million) or #Art (583 million), but still 10 million is nothing to sneeze at.

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Personally

Panta Rhei, Memento Mori

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Panta Rhei, everything flows, everything changes, nothing is permanent (Heraclitus, 540-480 BCE). Everything is perishable, life is perishable, my life is perishable. Memento mori.

A rock in the surf, immortalized in art, indestructible ceramics. Forms made permanent by fire. A continuous tradition of millennia in the history of mankind. Everything seems forever.

But appearances deceive, everything flows. Life is flowing, even if we have to say good bye.

Panta Rhei.

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News

NVK-Ceramics 45 years, we celebrate in Nijmegen

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In the nick of time a blog from me to announce the exhibition of the NVK-ceramics.

The Dutch Trade Group Ceramics (“Nederlandse Vakgroep Keramisten” or “NVK” for short in dutch) celebrates it’s 45 years anniversary. To mark the occasion, there will be a sizzling exhibition of the members in Nijmegen this weekend. Together with more than 60 fellow ceramic artists, we’re going to make it a splashing (birthday) party and you’re  invited!

NVK-Keramiek Expo Nijmegen 2019

45 years of NVK-Ceramics: a sizzling expo
Saturday 30 November and Sunday 1 December
10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Vasim, Winselingseweg 41,
6541 AH Nijmegen
(entrance site via Latensteinweg)
Free admission!

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[English] Handgevormd en gedraaid figuratief steengoed keramiek