IllustratedClayworks
Columbus, Ohio |
IllustratedClayworks
Uniquely manipulated, carved, and illustrated ceramics.Columbus, Ohio 27 Sales On Etsy since 2017
Announcement
Welcome, welcome to this place of "Enchanted Forestry." Wade in: The koi don't bite. Wander around: The flowers don't have thorns. The birds are mostly skittish, but still, you might discover something to treasure or share.
These illustrated clayworks are all created as one-of-kind objects here in my studio in the foothills of the Appalachians. Thrown on the wheel, manipulated by hand, heavily incised with a sgraffito technique, and finally hand-painted and -glazed.
I'm also an author and poet of many, many books, and an illustrator for magazines ranging from The New Yorker to Gourmet. I love translating my passion for nature into clay's three dimensions. Please write with comments or questions or even commissions. All good wishes...and happy holidays ahead! MJR
Announcement
Welcome, welcome to this place of "Enchanted Forestry." Wade in: The koi don't bite. Wander around: The flowers don't have thorns. The birds are mostly skittish, but still, you might discover something to treasure or share.
These illustrated clayworks are all created as one-of-kind objects here in my studio in the foothills of the Appalachians. Thrown on the wheel, manipulated by hand, heavily incised with a sgraffito technique, and finally hand-painted and -glazed.
I'm also an author and poet of many, many books, and an illustrator for magazines ranging from The New Yorker to Gourmet. I love translating my passion for nature into clay's three dimensions. Please write with comments or questions or even commissions. All good wishes...and happy holidays ahead! MJR
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Morning coffee or tea mug / Hummingbird mug with nature inspired designs / Enchanted forestry / Red and greens
$110.00
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Sculpted Mug or Teacup with Three Warblers Among Lilacs / One-of-a-Kind Ceramic Piece / Birds and Blossoms / Enchanted Forestry
$95.00
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Vase with floral patterns / Decorative centerpiece with flowers / Extravagant Botanicals
$125.00
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Vase with rose-breasted grosbeak / Table decoration / Functional Art / handmade objet
$90.00
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Vase with White-breasted Nuthatches / Large decorated sculpture / Browns and blues / Birds and branches / Enchanted Forestry
$190.00
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Northern Oriole Mug / Morning coffee or tea / Functional art / Serving piece / Birds and Branches
$90.00
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Mug with Peonies / Morning Coffee or Tea Cup / Extravagant Botanicals / Illustrated clay / functional, inspired by nature
$65.00
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Round Vase with birds and berries / Frieze with songbirds and botanicals / Bud vase / Illustrated clay
$110.00
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Drinking Vessel with Indigo Bunting on Holly Berry Bush / Coffee or Cocoa Mug or Vase
$95.00
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Prairie Warbler sculpted mug / Natural World / Morning coffee or tea drinking vessel / Birds and Branches
$100.00
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Tall sculpted teacup or mug with a pair of Northern Cardinals in the pines / Birdwatching Art
$95.00
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Vase with pine siskins and pine boughs / Table centerpiece / Showpiece/ Birds and Branches
$170.00
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Sculpted Teacup or Mug with Koi and Maple Leaves / Nature inspired designs / Morning coffee or tea / Enchanted Forestry
$85.00
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Mug/vase with a Pair of Rose Breasted Grosbeaks / Nature inspired designs / Morning coffee or tea / Birds and Branches
$110.00
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Hummingbird with florals / Functional art / Morning Coffee or Tea mug / Birds and Branches / Nature inspired ceramics
$85.00
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Hand-carved Mug with Tufted Titmice / Morning coffee or tea mug / Illustrated clay / Functional art
$85.00
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Brach-handled Mug with Three American Goldfinches / Enchanted Forestry / Nature-Inspired Gift / Functional Art / Objet d'Art
$100.00
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Small mug with Brown Creeper / Coffee or Tea serving piece / Enchanted forestry / Nature inspired designs / Brown and Green patterns /
$60.00
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Vase with Sgraffito Flowers / Teasel Centerpiece / Hand-Carved and Hand-Painted Ceramic Vase / Floral Centerpiece / Wildflower Decor
$130.00
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Small Vase with Hydrangea Branches and Blossoms / Vase Small, Coral-Red Bowl / Wheel-Thrown, Hand-Colored Objet d'Art / Enchanted Forestry
$90.00
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White-Breasted Nuthatch and Pink Dogwood Blossoms / Low Vase or Bowl / Handmade Object d'Art / Enchanted Forestry / Pale Blue with Pink
$100.00
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Portrait of Your Cat or Dog on a Handmade Ceramic Tile
$210.00
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Northern Oriole Sculpted Mug
$72.00
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Smoke-fired Bowl/Vase with Pea Tendrils and Gold-leafing
$145.00
Reviews
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Emma Belli on Aug 28, 2018
5 out of 5 starsWe now have three pieces made by Michael and they are all just beautiful. They are colorful and detailed beyond what his photos can show. Ours are bronze and black and white with beautiful leaf patterns. Beyond looking good, they feel sturdy and solid in your hand, if you ever feel like moving them (which you won't because these are display pieces). Michael is also very prompt and pleasant to work with, and all his items come very well-packaged.
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Patricia on Jul 10, 2018
5 out of 5 starsWow!! Do not pass this shop by. Outstanding service, over and above. When the product I wanted was sold just before I ordered, I asked if he would do a custom piece. He did, (and even more beautiful) and got it to me on time for my event! His pictures did not do his work justice! Absolutely stunning. Such a talented artist and so delightful to work with!! I would give 10 stars if I could!! Thank you, Micheal, for a lovely piece.
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Beth Santore on Oct 28, 2017
5 out of 5 starsAmazing pottery, I'd definitely buy from Michael again!!
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About
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Chant, the resident cattle dog, posing next to some drinking vessels (this is a Greek form called a rhyton).
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Ever since my ornithology classes in the early 70s, birds have been beacons in the world I know.
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The studio wall with works-in-progress and finished pieces. For a small space, I have mastered the art of packing it in!
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Ready to bisque, a limited set of 12 sculpted drinking vessels for the Columbus Museum of Art, holidays. Cardinals.
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A new series of tiles more allied to my 2D style of illustration. This is the resident heeler overlooking the creek.
Illustrated Clayworks by Michael J. Rosen, author and illustrator of some 135 books for readers of all ages.
Inspired by the flora and fauna here in the Appalachian foothills of Central Ohio—
even if some are exaggerated—each vessel, plater, pitcher, bowl, or mug is an original improvisation. That is the pleasure in making for me: Not duplicating a work over and over, but allowing each work to become an original expression of form, illustration, and color.
Nearly all works are thrown on the wheel and then manipulated to create concavities or ribs or bulges that will add further dimension—further “hand feel”—to the object. After each has hardened a bit, I begin the real pleasure: puzzling out the surface composition. How will the branches or the water ripples travel across the piece. What creatures should fit where? What sort of leaf shape?
As I draw and then carve these visuals into the clay body, I’m also concentrating on creating a surface that will afford the greatest tactile pleasure. The pleasure of holding in your hands an object built in my hands.
Shop members
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Michael J. Rosen
Owner
I've written, illustrated, edited, or photographed over 150 books in a long career. Ceramics have always been a passion. And now, at last, the chance to apply my love and knowledge of natural history and my illustration techniques to clay surfaces.
Shop policies
Shipping
Payment options
- Accepts Etsy Gift Cards and Etsy Credits
Returns & exchanges
I gladly accept returns and exchanges
I don't accept cancellations
The following items can't be returned or exchanged
- Custom or personalized orders
- Perishable products (like food or flowers)
- Digital downloads
- Intimate items (for health/hygiene reasons)
I accept returns I do not accept returns
I accept exchanges I do not accept exchanges
I accept cancellations I do not accept cancellations
Because of the nature of these items, unless they arrive damaged or defective, I can't accept returns for:
Privacy policy
More information
Frequently asked questions
Custom and personalized orders
Sure. I'm happy to create a work based on your favorite bird, cat, dog, or flower. We'd simply have to work out the particulars in terms of timing, price, and objective. I'd need reference images. I'd share a preliminary sketch. And, after that, we'd need to commit to the project. You'd be leaving it to me to create what it is that you see I do: The "likeness" is that you "like" what I do...and how I create that likeness is what you're accepting as my "style." Happy to think along these lines with you!
Care instructions
Nearly everything I create is food-safe and happily hand-washed or tucked inside the dishwasher. The only exceptions are those that have gold-leafing as part of the decoration. Those are more sculptural pieces, not particularly suited for covering in Spaghetti Carbonara or Mom's Favorite Potato Gratin. I've noted this on the few pieces so you should feel comfortable with the durability and safety of all the ceramics offered.
Sizing details
So my vessels are significantly warped and crimped and bowed after throwing on the wheel. And then they're heavily incised in order to bring forward the leaves or birds or fish, allowing the background to recede. Even the bottoms of each piece have carving, decoration, or some more organic foot on which to rest. As such, some of my pieces do not sit exactly flat on a table. Some mugs, with their narrower bases and the fuller handles, are slightly asymmetrical or have a base that's not fully flush with the surface. These are the qualities of handcrafting and, sure, the kiln's fickle properties, that I actually desire. I don't offer any works that can't hold their own on a table. Each piece welcomes you into the journey of its making.