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Whatareyouupto?I’mworkingon
somenewer,biggerwallpieces.They
are slab-builtlandscapesthatalmost
look likepaintings,butthey’remadeof
ceramic.I workonthisprojectif I have
a stretchoftimewithoutanyorders
from mywebsite.It’shardtodoboth
at thesametimeasceramicsis such
a time-consumingprocess.Whatappealstoyouabout
ceramics?I usedtopaint,andit
botheredmethata paintingis just
decorative.WhenI startedwithceramics,
it feltsogoodtomakefunctionalobjects
that werebothusefulanddecorative.
The materialis alsoappealingtome.It
forcesmetobemorepatientwithmyself
and totakemoretime.Howwouldyoudescribeyour
work?Mybackgroundis in graphic
design,butI amsomewherein between
the designworldandfinearts.I have
moreofa painter’seye,butthewayI
createis moredesign-focused.I amreally
drawntocolors.I amnotaspassionateabouttheformsorshapesofthepieces
asI amaboutdecoratingthem.A lotof
myworkis basedonlandscapes.Some
designsarebasedonthecoastlineof
Californiaandthesurroundingmountains.
Othersarejustimaginarylandscapes.Canyoudescribeyourwork
schedule?I workasa librarianin anart
museumfourdaysa week.I havea very
analyticalsideaswell,andI lovetodo
research;beinga librariansatisfiesthat
partforme.ButI lovetheartsidetoo,
sothisgivesmethebestofbothworlds.
MostofthetimeI makeceramicsin the
eveningsandweekends.Howdoyoucreatea piece?First,
I sketchthedesign.Duringthisstage,
there’sroomfora lotof experimentation.I
planthedesignandcolorschemeasthere
isn’tmuchimprovisationwhenI’mpainting
a piece.Afterthat,I createthepieceoutof
clay.I letit dryandfireit in thekiln.I fireit
onceanddrawthedesignonit witha
pencil.I decorateit witha combinationof
underglazesandthenfireit again. >Ceramicist and librarian Lives in Los Angeles,
US, with her husband and three children
Paulinewolstencroft.comPauline Wolstencroft
Sunset in
Malibu, USHand-formed
sunrise tray‘At work in my home studio’Hand-painted stoneware mugs