Ken Adams

Sometimes, carelessness pays off - in this case when followed by extreme effort and care. The creation of this vessel tells two tales. Initially, what was intended to be a 'normal' vessel created using a series of balloon inflation/deflation cycles, was a 'disaster'. Don't get me wrong, the textural development appeared most promising, a creased look that I had not managed to achieve before. But, I somehow was distracted after the final inflation, leaving the slip to dry for far too long (4 hours!) As a result, when I carried out the final deflation, the vessel literally tore itself apart. Nonetheless, there was just enough of the surviving structure to provide a base from which to rebuild it. I cannot admit to re-attaching every fragment, but enough to create a vessel of sorts which was strong enough to be flipped upside down and fired once in the kiln. It took about 3 days to rebuild: I had to wait for each fragment addition to dry, before I could add more. But it was, I hope you will agree, a 3-dimensional jigsaw puzzle worth the effort.