This beautiful wheel thrown bottle form features my unique metallic finish to give it its unique reflective surface.
The listing is for ONE RED bottle, the shortest straight one on the far right of the photo.
The iridescence is achieved by adding 6% 24k Gold in powder form into the glaze and the piece is fired multiple times including a reduction firing (absence of oxygen during firing). The dragonfly wing effect is done by hand-painting.
The one for sale here is the 6" Straight (the shorter of the five straight bottles in this set). You can use it with dried flowers, it is decorative and does not hold water.
Shown in Red and Orange Crackle. (Please specify color choice when ordering). Many other colors are available as you see in the detail photos to the side. They can be ordered even if not currently in stock and will ship in two to four weeks.
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P.S. A LITTLE PIECE OF INFO
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About lustres.
Lustre is the metallic decoration on the surface of ceramic forms or tiles. Golds, silvers and reflective reds have seized the imagination of makers and appreciators of ceramics for over 1,200 years. Such work has been highly prized over centuries in many lands and cultures.
Lustre on ceramics is almost akin to alchemy. In the right conditions, copper becomes vibrant, lustrous red. Silver may be silvery or may become golden. The transformation of dull metal compounds to gleaming, reflective metal is achieved in complex firing conditions in the kiln that are hard to control.
So lustre is also unpredictable and therefore rarely practiced today. The fire may thwart the potter's ambitions or reverse his worst expectations. A crucial skill in producing lustre lies in the packing and firing of the kiln in the last of three firings. At this point, when most potters have produced their final product, the lustre potter is just starting on the most hazardous stage.
Lustre usually requires three firings: the first ("biscuit") to harden the clay and the second to fire the glaze, usually blank at this stage. The work is then decorated using clay pigments containing metal compounds, usually of silver and copper. The third firing is to a low temperature - red heat - when the kiln is starved of oxygen and the pigments are chemically "reduced" to base metals.
Many sensitive variables of temperature, atmosphere and air movement govern the final result. Potter and kiln both contribute to the outcome in partnership. Spectacular iridescent and smoke effects may magically appear if one is lucky. The failure rate is high and prize results are always accompanied by disappointments!
Marietta's work is usually hand-thrown, brush-decorated and fired at least three times. The reduction firing is achieved using sugar as an agent. Her work is intended to be decorative but may have occasional functional use, like her beautiful bowls.
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COPYRIGHT NOTICE: The design of this handmade art piece and all associated images and descriptive text are © copyright 1985-2012 by Marietta LeMieux (Marietta Theodorou-LeMieux) either registered or unregistered, unless otherwise noted. Violation of this copyright may subject the violator to civil and/or criminal prosecution. Copyright DOES NOT transfer with purchase and no license to reproduce is created or should be inferred.
Have any questions?
Contact the shop owner.
