Stacked Bowl and Wood Thrush

Somehow I am drawn to making this type of work now, but this bowl took me three hours to make. Why would I even think about making another one. First I roll out a slab of clay, then I cut it into strips about half an inch wide. Then I started at the bottom with a strip placed in a circle. Then I add the next strip placing it a little wider than the previous circle and so forth till I get up to the top. But I can only add a strip after the previous strip has firmed up a bit, but not too firm. This technique is similar to a coiled bowl except the coils are flat. I like looking at the inside of the bowl at the stacked steps.

In the end the strips wanted to separate a bit so I ran my fingers up the outside of the bowl and also used a tool to do with same on the inside. The bowl is three inches tall and eight inches wide. I think there are thirteen strips plus the bottom. Oh and I added a foot ring. About ten minutes for each strip placement makes 130 minutes plus cutting it out and adding the bottom. This will be a very sturdy bowl with the weight of all that clay in it. I've just about obliterated the steps on the outside of the bowl. I'm kind of disappointed about that. In my mind I envisioned these crisp lines on the inside and outside. I think the clay was too soft. I'll have to let it firm more next time.

These are the best photos I could get out of my windows of a pair of wood thrush who've been visiting every morning. I noticed them because I heard a chirping and then I heard a beautiful song. The wood thrush is reported to have one of the most beautiful songs of North American birds. Henry David Thoreau wrote "Whenever a man hears it, he is young, and nature is in her Spring, whenever he hears it, it is a new world and a free country and the gates of heaven are not shut against him".

When I looked out the window I saw their beautiful cinnamon brown feathers on top and their speckled breast feathers. They are beautiful birds. Click on the wood thrush link to see a much better photo and you'll see why I was so struck by these birds.

How time flies when I'm having fun. I can say that now that the bowl is in the cabinet drying. Ha. I do want to make another stacked bowl without the finger rubbing on the inside and outside. I may have to make the strips wider so they can over lap more. And of course I'd like to make a really large stacked bowl. I suppose if I threw a bowl I could cut the ridges in the outside and outside but somehow it wouldn't be the same. An extruder would made the strip making go faster. Then I could also make a bowl by weaving strips. So many possibilities. Check out these stacked bowls made of wood by Dennie York. Thanks for reading and for all your comments.