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Atonement

6/17/2018

4 Comments

 
My mom and dad moved into an apartment about a year ago. They did some heavy editing in terms of the things they brought with them from their old house. This is when I realized my mom has some of my earliest pots, that I had forgotten about. They are terrible. I feel queasy every time I see them. It's not the quality that bothers me. I can forgive myself for being a beginner. The problem is they remind me of my hubris for once thinking they were good pots. Seriously, they are really bad, but at the time I thought I was pretty slick.

A couple of months ago, I asked my mom if I could take these pots, throw them away, and replace them with much higher quality new pots. She didn't want to let them go, but I did convince her to give me one of them. 

She let me take the awful pitcher on the left, which she was using as a vase. I made it sometime in the 90s. There are too many disconnected features ... the sphere bottom, the vertical neck, and flared rim ... they have no reason or relationship to each other. The handle looks like a limp noodle, and is the wrong size for the pot. The glaze is covered in pinholes. What you can't tell from a photograph is that it weighs as much as a cinder block, and wobbles on a flat surface. 

Once my mom let go of the pot, she started seeing the benefits of a switcharoo. "Could it be about an inch taller? Maybe just a simple straight shape? And I like this spout, can it have a spout? It doesn't need a handle." I asked if I could cover it with horizontal grooves, which is a theme that's going on in my current line of vases.

The one on the right is well-proportioned, properly weighted, with all of its design elements in balance, and no extraneous features. 
​ 
Picture

This is a combination Mother's Day / Father's Day gift. The vase is for mom, and the flowers are for dad. 
​ 
Picture
4 Comments
paula lewis
6/17/2018 04:41:29 pm

I wish every artisan would read this, Mea. It's fascinating to see how some people grow and how others seem unable to pull away from their first feeling of "success." What a lovely, honest, and important little essay.

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Mike Martin
6/17/2018 05:11:42 pm

Couldn't agree more. I wanted to crawl under the table every time my Mom would point out my pots from earlier days to guest at her house. I finally did the switch and traded out all the early pots for newer ones. I did save them for the "museum" my kids will have in my honor after I become "famous". I can only dream.

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Lolo Robison
6/24/2018 08:15:01 pm

I love that you shared this story, Mea. It is a reminder that every potter started on their clay journey as a beginner. Before I took my first class, I told myself it was OK to brutally suck at the wheel, and that I didn't have to be an expert. My mother made pots for about 20 years, so I felt a lot of pressure to produce good pots. She told me to open myself up to learning; to accept my failures as part of the lesson. She said, if I stuck with it, no matter how frustrated or disappointed I got, I would quickly be proud of my work. It's been four years, and I remain open to learning and growing. I am so grateful to all the patient, inspiring teachers like you and my mom who have shared their clay wisdom with me. I read your post and pulled some of my first, embarrassing pots out of hiding. I put one out on my nightstand as a reminder of my humble beginnings. <3

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pottery and crafting link
4/14/2022 03:56:13 am

This is awesome

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    Mea Rhee (mee-uh ree),
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