Kiln Goddesses

I am a member of The Mud Team, a group of potters who sell their work on Etsy. Periodically, we have challenges and exchanges (we recently had a casserole challenge and a mug exchange).

Our current challenge is to create kiln gods. Those are the amulets that we place on our kilns to ensure a safe firing. I currently use a variety of amulets as my kiln protectors (see April 25, 2009 posting) and have often thought about actually making a kiln god (or in my case, a goddess) of my own.

I am back in the studio after the holiday hiatus and found myself with some brown clay in my hands as the thought of the kiln goddess played in my head. It's awfully cold and I do my best to keep my studio warm with the portable heater, but I had to bring a second heater this week. So my mind was full of thoughts of spring and here's the first goddess that emerged: a female torso pregnant with new growth! It evokes creativity and potential and is just the lady I need to look after my firings.

I still had some clay left over so I embarked on another goddess. The thought that came to me then was of stages in life. One of my daughters recently laughed that by the time I get up in the mornings she's had what seems like a full day. I replied that I thought that was as it should be because I am (finally!) retired and she is responsible for a home and two lovely children. My first goddess is the young mother~~my daughters. The second goddess is the crone~~me! Here she is. Once fired, the witness cones in her hair will bend to their particular temperature and, I hope, she'll look more hag-like (and not like the Statue of Liberty or the Geniol ad!)

I do hope that these little sculptures make it through the firing because I'm already a bit fond of them given that I am not a sculptor and this is the first time that I try my hand at something like this.