Paper Resist

This week, I revisted a technique I haven't done in awhile. Paper resist! I began by cutting multiple shapes from newspaper. I then threw a rounded vase and when finished I moistened the surface with a wet sponge. I laid the strips of dry newspaper in the desired pattern and made sure the paper stuck sufficiently with a minimum of puckering. The moisture on the surface adheres the newspaper well. I ran my finger carefully along the edge of the paper to make sure there was a good enough seal. I then applied a stain (in this case it was Oriental Rust, a Laguna MS 100 series stain)over the surface where the paper was stuck. After applying the stain, I immediately removed the newspaper to reveal my pattern. Some seeping of the stain is inevitable and I don't even bother cleaning it up. I like the jagged edge that is created and with the additional texture I add, it becomes unnoticeable. I let the vase dry a little (20 minutes in the sun) at which point I used my sgraffito tool to carve lines through the slip and added some additional texture and carving. This is such a versatile technique that can be used on just about any form and works well with slab work, too. Many thanks again to my student Misako for the pics!