I like making vases, the way I can put my hands around it, the way I can flower it up.
This vase is the first one that I made where I tried a base glaze I made up (really had no idea what it would look like once fired) that I layered with copper and ash glazes. It was a lovely surprise to see how golden the combination became. I don’t know enough about glaze chemistry to know why, but since glazes are mostly just experimentation, trial and error, I’m happy to record this combo in my glaze book.
This vessel, however, went through five firings. I kept layering the glazes on until it finally came out and said to me “I’m done.” The flowing green just felt verdant to me.
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Verdant: A Poem by April DeConick
Verdant is one of those words that I know
but I don’t use too often
green is easier
more recognizable
but sometimes you need verdant
because the green is shifting, flowing
a river of trees mirrored
or leaves dancing and spinning
or just vitality.
So verdant it is.