In early 2015, I was interested in moving beyond throwing and slabbing clay and wanted to create something three dimensional. I wanted to create a three dimensional form that was doable for me and would be successful (didn’t collapse during the build, wasn’t too thick to fire, lots of concerns). I saw a small 3D gnome on Pinterest and decided to try to recreate it. I knew I couldn’t make the form solid because that would lead to firing problems. So I created a newspaper cone form that I could roll the slabbed clay around. Once the cone form was created, I carved details. Since I didn’t feel completely comfortable with carving 3D forms, my carving details were not very deep. After carving and letting the clay dry to bone dry, I applied underglaze to the hats and robes of the gnomes. After they were bisque fired, I added black underglaze that I then wiped off, leaving only the underglaze residue that highlighted textures. I then added a transparent glossy glaze before the final firing. I really like the very first gnome – I think he turned out how I had envisioned him. The four I carved right after him were not as visually successful. The eyes were zombie-like and several elements just didn’t work.
I continued playing with the design and carving of the gnomes over the next couple of months. I was unsure how to best carve facial details and experimented with different color combos, including adding a glaze called honey to the face and hands.
After feeling comfortable with creating this form, I started playing with scale – going larger, going smaller, adding playful elements – rabbit ears, flowers, and decided that a spotted gnome hat was an important design element.
I also started experimenting with putting my gnomes imagery on different surfaces – creating a large vase/utensil holder, a large mug/utensil holder (notice a theme), and painting the gnomes onto items I had thrown on the wheel.
In 2016, I began selling my gnomes at local markets. I had success with a springtime event – The Dogwood Arts Festival and a Christmas event at a nature preserve and park – Ijams Nature Center.
