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Mark Peters shows us how to add texture to platter rims with bisque stamps.
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June 27, 2008
Video Tip of the Week: Using Handmade Bisque Stamps to Apply Texture to Platter Rims
by Mark Peters | Read Comments (16)
Today’s Video Tip of the Week comes to us from Mark Peters of Pine Root Pottery in North Carolina. Mark takes us, from start to finish, through the process of adding decorative texture to freshly thrown platter rims with bisque stamps. And he makes it look sooooo easy! This is another great technique if you use glazes that break or pool in texture. Give it a try! -Jennifer Harnetty, editor.
More about the star of today’s video, in his own words…I graduated with a Master of Fine Arts degree in 1997 from the University of Tennessee. Since then, I have been working as a self-employed potter, teacher and kiln designer. In 1998, we moved to the foot of Roan Mountain in Mitchell County, North Carolina. We have created a working pottery studio and gallery from an old barn on our property.
I am currently a member of the Toe River Arts Council, a local arts group devoted to promoting the arts of our region. Each spring and fall, Pine Root Pottery participates in the Arts Council’s studio tours, weekend open houses for the public. I have the privilege of serving on the Board of Directors for the Energy Xchange, an innovative business incubator program that uses methane from a landfill to support entrepreneurs in starting, managing and operating new businesses in the crafts of glass blowing and pottery (see
"Going Green" in the Ceramics Monthly article archives). I'm also a founding member of Potters of the Roan, a Bakersville potter’s guild. The Roan potter’s mission is to better educate and market the ceramic talent in the community.
I make wheel-thrown, wood-fired functional pottery. Each piece is made by hand and a lot of the work is altered or assembled off the wheel. My work is a collaboration between me, the clay, and the fire. I work with the clay’s inherent qualities to make objects that are complimented through the wood firing. Processes in nature such as wind, gravity, and erosion inspire my work. Each pot is organic and loose in form while bold and defined in structure. Wood firing is an intensive process; physically demanding, but worth the work. Wood-fired pots demand attention and respect. They have unique characteristics that make each pot one of a kind.
Several years ago I decided to start teaching workshops. Originally it was a way for me to get out of the studio on occasion, and take a break from making pots. It has since become an extremely rewarding experience for me. In fact, every time I teach a workshop, I learn something. When I do demonstrations I’ll usually try a new pot or technique for the first time. I figured if I’m asking my students to take risks and try some new things then I should be willing to try too.
To see more images of Mark Peters’ work, visit
www.pinerootpottery.com.