For
the last twenty-five years, Susy Siegele and Mike Haley
have worked together in a partnership that has proved
to be greater than the sum of its parts.
Our
ideas bounce back and forth through each of our personal
filters, sometimes gathering energy and feeling, turning
into something good, and sometimes being dropped by
the wayside, but always working toward some nebulous
ideal piece of work that will speak with eloquence.
Their
method of working with clay involves layering different
colors of clay into loaves which, when sliced like bread,
reveal carefully constructed patterns in the clay. Each
slice from a loaf will be shaped into a piece of pottery.
The twenty or so colors they mix are all based on the
same porcelain body, which is a wonderfully vitreous
and durable medium for functional work.
The
colors we use come from naturally occurring oxides,
but depend on our firing technique for their richness.
At around 1600ºF, we begin stoking our propane
and wood kiln with ceder splits, and continue firing
with both gas and wood for another six or eight hours
unti the temperature in the kiln reaches 2380ºF.
Splitting wood and stoking the fire for intense periods
is like meditation; it keeps us in touch with the extreme
physics, craftsmanship and magic necessary to make high-fired
porcelain.
The inspiration for our work comes from many sources;
aboriginal rock art, old quilt patterns, M.C. Escher's
drawings,the landscapes and natural wonders of the world
around us.
PUBLICATIONS
- BOOKS
The White House Collection of American Crafts
by Michael W. Monroe, et al (Hardcover - April 1995)
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