Poppies

by Sara Simonson

“A deep dive into tessellations energized my obsession with ceramic piecework. In this body of work, over 1034 clay pieces were individually formed to complete the 3D abstract design on wooden bases. I started the process with two 5.5" pentagon-shaped pieces of plywood & one 3.5" triangle shape. A lump of clay was deposited on each of the three shapes & then, I designed the clay to fit each pattern. These clay pieces were coated with oil, & plaster was poured over the clay. When the plaster was set, the molds were ready & the repetition began. Using an oversized padded mallet, clay was pounded into the press molds. Once the clay forms were released, I went over each one with my fingertips dipped in water—smoothing the form & removing excess cornstarch. After the clay dried, the pieces were sanded with steel wool before the bisque firing. By simply rearranging the 14.5” x 14.5” wooden bases & using various glazes & color combinations, additional shapes & pieces of artwork were created.”