Circle of Angry Mops

Yorick With the Bad Teeth Collages

Burning Theater

Panic - Science - Serf

I had an idea to make these clay collages with words surrounded by meaningless images.  I made a list of words I wanted to include, but I only got as far as Panic, Science, and Serf.  I had thought it would be fun to make and paint them, but it wasn't fun.  I didn't feel they were even worth painting individually, so I dipped them in glaze.  I like the way they came out, but I'm not intending on pursuing this project any further.

Driving Wands For Defense Against Aggressive Drivers

This was one of my earlier experiments with functional ceramics.  I made four of these objects called driving wands in 2008 or 2009.  The idea was to use them for defense against aggressive drivers.  They had grotesque faces and I hoped they would stun angry drivers with their confusing glares.  I never tried one because I was afraid it might make aggressive drivers more aggressive instead of leaving them in a confused stupor.

1.  Toothy Grin Driving Wand

2.   Floating Blue Driving Wand.  Floating blue glaze comes out brownish when applied lightly.

 
3.  Bulging Eyes Driving Wand.  This one's handle broke off in the kiln.

4.  Piggy Driving Wand.  I gave this one away and this is the only image I have of it.

Day of the Protists

These were meant to be part of a Tarot deck illustrated with clay. 

Paramecium:

Euglena:

Mystery Protist:

Spare Chloroplast from the euglena:

The Mog Project

I made these clay pieces inspired by illustrations from Mog the Forgetful Cat by Judith Kerr a few months ago as gifts for my nephew Milo, but I wasn't sure what to do with them.  My father visited this week and helped me plan the project.  We affixed them to canvases and fit them into frames.

This is Mog's head.  The illustration appears on the cover of the book and again on another page in which Mog has an existential crisis.

She was very sad.

The garden was dark.

The house was dark, too.

Mog sat in the dark

and thought dark thoughts.

This is a scene in which Mog dreams of flying.

She could fly everywhere.

She could fly faster than the birds, 

even quite big birds...

Suddenly she woke up.

I have the copy of Mog which I grew up with.  The binding is only partially intact and it smells like the mold in my parents' basement.  Buy a reprint of Mog the Forgetful Cat by Judith Kerr here.  Note that the classic phase "Drat the Cat" was apparently an attempt to convert the book from British English to American English.  The way Judith Kerr originally wrote it was "Bother that Cat."  I should warn you that the reprints use the original text.  I don't know why the publishers would think that "Drat that Cat" sounds especially American, but it does have a nice rhythm.

More Robotron Ornaments

These are the remaining two robot types from Robotron 2084:  the Grunt and the Enforcer.

Robotron Tank 3

The design in the middle of the Robotron tank reminds me of a cassette tape.  Unfortunately, this tank's head became detached from the body.

Charles Crumb Cowboy 2

A few years ago, I made a clay object modeled on a cartoon cowboy by Charles Crumb, the late brother of the great cartoon artist R. Crumb.  It sold recently and this is a new interpretation.

This is the first Charles Crumb Cowboy from 2010.

And this is the original image by Charles Crumb.

Robotron Tank 2

This is a Tank robot from the arcade game Robotron 2084.

An image from the game:

Robotron Ornaments

These were meant to be smaller Robotron 2084 objects to be used as Christmas tree ornaments, but they're probably still too heavy.

Robotron Brain #4.

Robotron Hulk

 

Robotron Tank

Robotron Brain, Side View.  This one lost a leg unfortunately.

Mog's Dream Scene Objects

This is a clay interpretation of an illustration from Mog the Forgetful Cat by Judith Kerr.  It involves Mog the cat dreaming about flying while sleeping on and destroying someone's hat.

Here's the text:

She could fly everywhere.
She could fly faster than the birds,
even quite big birds...
Suddenly she woke up.

 Mog with wings:

The unlucky birds:

The complete scene:

The illustration from the book:

Mog Head

This is a clay interpretation of a page from the book Mog the Forgetful Cat by Judith Kerr.  The text that goes with illustration is:

The garden was dark.
The house was dark, too.
Mog sat in the dark
and thought dark thoughts.

Scared Kid in Bed

At one point I wanted to make a story called The Angry Mop Head, illustrated with clay images. It was about a kid who is afraid of a vicious mop in his closet. He has a nightmare about it in which it chases him through a maze. He trips, the mop catches up with him, and when he wakes up, the mop has replaced his face. The rest of the story illustrates the milestones of the rest of his life, all with a mop face. I made some mop heads (see below), but I found this object at the back of my shelf and decided to glaze it.




The Mop Heads: