Dilla Week

This week in IP studio... and every other waking moment I was in the ceramic studio working and listening to J Dilla. Dilla is my musical idol (who died in Feb 2006) and since February is the month of his birth and death it is essential that I listen to him at all times. I finally feel my momentum coming back..... I'm in the studio for around 8 hours a day and it feels great. I made 200 pounds of clay this week, finished two almost three pieces and started three more. I put my next largest piece (the budding one) in the kiln today along with my super little and fat one (see image) with no major issues. Now they will dry out for about a week to two and then I'll fire them!

I've moved on to doing some smaller and skinner pieces. I'm trying to help create a transition between my smaller and larger segment sizes. I want them to all make sense when they're together. As for my surfaces, I have a test piece (with washes) in the kiln currently and should be ready for me on Saturday morning. I've also been talking with John about using beeswax on my work. He's given me the number of a local guy who I'm going to call tomorrow and see if he has any in stock. If not I might be able to buy some from Johns stash. There are many wonderful qualities about the beeswax that could really add to my work. 1. It smells GREAT. I think having another sensory experience besides visual could add just the right touch to my 'living' organisms. 2. It can create a really great bumpy texture or just the opposite, smooth and shinny. 3. I can use the yellowish natural color or add oxides and change it to black, red, or whatever. Basically beeswax has a lot of avenues to explore. I'm think that I'll use it over the washes (it'll be transparent I think)... we'll see.

I'm having some fun with my new skinny-er pieces and the forms. With one I have it budding three times... I might even create a piece in the process of fragmentation (breaking off from the parent). I s I'm starting to see my pieces and they're sizes either as different generations... each having one, or many ways of functioning.. still trying to make sense of all of these guys.

I have one piece that I'm in the process of building into the ground. I've been thinking a lot about how I'm going to handle the piece utilizing the ground... Amanda mentioned that it's a great opportunity for the viewer to discover something new about the organism (no ones else is going into the ground). I'm not sure how to approach it yet, I'm thinking about having some form jut out (as if a bone was dislocated) in order for it to bend over.

The third guy I'm working on is nice and simple, he is mid sized, sleek, and extending his head and neck to look backwards. I'm excited for this one because it is looking more akin to my first smaller pieces and helping the transition of size along.

Maybe a new texture for the middle guys? or maybe a variation of what I have so far? What do you think? I wan them to be apart of the same family, but variation is good for many reasons.

Ok, so that's what I got. I'm ready for the weekend to work and relax, can't believe it's almost break (aka my birthday hah). WAhhhhh


RIP Dilla