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Throwing a Japanese Bowl from the Hump
Wedging Clay on the Potter's Wheel
Opening Clay for a Japanese Bowl
Tools to Compress the Bottom of a Japanese Bowl
Pinching Clay on the Potter's Wheel
Pulling a Japanese Bowl on the Pottery Wheel
Removing a Japanese Bowl from the Hump
Throwing a Japanese Tea Bowl
Establishing a Japanese Tea Bowl on the Wheel
Throwing a Tea Bowl on the Potter's Wheel
Creating a Clay Chuck
Ceramic Tools for Trimming a Tea Bowl
Centering a Tea Bowl on a Clay Chuck
Trimming a Bowl on a Clay Chuck
Trimming the Foot of a Clay Bowl on the Wheel
Adding a Groove for a Wood Kiln
Summary: Plunging your thumb into the clay is the way to open clay on the wheel. Learn how to open clay for throwing a traditional Japanese Bowl in this free ceramics video.
Chris Cook received a BFA in ceramics and sculpture from Southern Oregon University where he studied raku, studio ceramics, stoneware, and various firing techniques under Jim Romberg....read more
"Now that we've got our indentation, our bottom is established, centered, all the air is out of it, no inconsistencies. We want to go ahead, take our thumbs, plunge it down into the indentation, and right around the bottom of where your fingers are. So, plunging down with my thumbs, and my pinkies are around the bottom. So, I know by how close my thumbs are to my pinkie is how close I am to the bottom, so that I won't worry about plunging through. Alright. And the same with the bowl, even more so with the bowl, you want to make sure that you compress all this clay, because these bowls really have a tendency of wanting to s-crack on the bottom. So, what I'm doing right now is taking my finger and just rubbing it back and forth on the bottom of the bottom of the clay pile that I've established here, and I'm compressing, and compressing. Once I get it big enough, I'm going to go that extra mile, and use some tools here to make sure that we get a nice, compressed bottom."
eHow Article: Opening Clay for a Japanese Bowl
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