Three months ago I began taking ceramic lessons at Maru & An Ceramics Studio. I stumbled upon the studio while exploring the back streets of my neighborhood. When I went down to see the space I was greeted by a cheerful guy who could speak a bit of english. I was keen to try it out but worried about the language barrier. My director called the studio to inquire about classes for a “wa-guk”. The teacher exclaimed that I could just learn Korean. So three months in my Korean is shotty but I swear my teacher's english is improving!
Tuesday and Thursday evenings are spent in the basement studio surrounded by Korean potters, music, language, and traditional Korean craft. I am absorbing the basic techniques (and language). My first project was a tea kettle and three jans, tea cups. A bit ambitious for my first project; I had to try three times before it was acceptable. The amount of liquid held inside the tea kettle is to fill the three jans precisely for traditional Korean tea ceremonies. Oh, the pressure. It is decorated with a traditional Korean style called jo-hwa. White paint is applied to the surface, the pattern etched out from the paint layer, then glazed and fired.
You did that yourself?? It's so great!!
ReplyDelete-Jaime