Vocabulary of Forming and Decorations
This table will provide with general vocabulary related to Forming and Decorations, which may be used in our Online shop.
| English | Japanese | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| throwing | Rokuro | The clay is wedged vigorously on a flat surface. After wedging, it is placed on the center of the wheel. Using water on both hands, the clay is repeatedly pulled up and pushed down. Enough clay to make one piece is gathered at the top of the hump of clay. The clay is pressed between the fingers as the wheel spins to form the piece. |
| Hand Building | Tebineri | The wedged clay is spread out to form the bottom of the piece. The clay coils are added to the circumference of this base by twisting and pressing. The coils are added until the piece has reached the desired height. |
| Faceting | Mentori | The formed piece is trimmed pr sjaved with a wire or knife when cray is in leather-hard. |
| Carving | Chouka | The leather-hard piece is carved with a wooden knife, bamboo coil, or metal carving tools.to make an intended design. |
| Incised Lines | Senbori | Lines are incised on the surface with a sharp tool made of wood, bamboo or stick. This is done when clayt is leather hard, directly onto the clay surface or after is has been covered with slip. |
| Brush Mark | Hakeme | The tip of a brush is dipped in white or colored slip, and slip is applied briskly to the surface of the pot, letting the brush mark remain. For best decoration effect, the slip should be applied quickly in one motion. |
| Inlay | Zogan | The surface is carved using a bamboo or metal tool. Soft clay of a contrasting color is pressed into the carved area. In a day,the piece is scraped until the inlaid clay is flush with the surface. |
| Mishima | Mishima | The surface is stamped with a pattern while soft and covered with a slip wash of contrasting color. The slip fills the stamped areas and, when slightly drier, may be scraped or wiped off from the surface. |
| Clay marbling and mosaic | Nerikomi / Neriage | The piece is formed using different colored clay, by which marbling and mosaic pattern appears. |
| Combing | Kushigaki | The surface of a finishied piece is lightly brushed with a wooden or bamboo comb. Different effects can be achieved with fine or coarse comb, or combinations of both. |
| Cloth-Texturing | Nunome | Cloth (especially mosquito netting) may be used to impress a texture into the wet clay. |
| Chattering | Tobikanna / Tochiri | A coat of slip is applied to leather-hard piece, which is rotated on a wheel while a flexible metal tool is held against the surface so that it jumps, cutting nicks in the coat of slip and producing a characteristic pattern. |
| Springging | Haritsuke | Clay is pressed into a small mould that is used as a stamp to stick motifs to the slip-covered surface of the leather-hard piece. |
| Sgraffito | Kakiotoshi | An iron slip is applied by brushing or dipping to the entire surface of a piece. Lines and patterns are scratched away with a metal tool. The underlying clay color is revealed by scratching away the slip for a contrasting decorative effect. |
| Waxresist | Ronuki | A pattern is painted in wax on the surface of a leather-hard body. Slip is then applied over the surface and does not adhere to the waxed parts. The wax burns away during biscuit firing. |
| Marbling | Suminagashi | A coat of slip is applied to the leather-hard wage and a few blobs of slip of contrasting color are dropped from a brush onto the surface. The two colors are swirled together by moving the piece through different angles. |
| Slip Trailing | Itchin / Tsutsugaki | Slip is trailed over a contrasting body using a bamboo slip trailer or a squeeze bottle with a narrow tube or cut-off paper cone. |
| Cord-impressed patterns | Nawame | Textures made by rolling cords or cord-wound sticks across the surface of the soft clay. |
| Paddling | Tataki | Beating a thrown or coiled piece by carved wooden paddles to change or consolidate its shape and to texture its surface. |
| Dipping | Shitashigake / Nagashigake | The pot is dipped into a bucket filed with slip or glaze. This method facilitates an even coat of glaze. Sometimes, depending on the shape of the piece, a hook shaped tool is used to dip the piece into the bucket. |
| Layered Glazing | Kasanegaki | Glazes can be dipped, poured, or sprayed in two or three layers to achieve the desired effect. |
| Spraying Glazing | Fukikake | A mister is used to glaze a pot evenly, or to attain gradition in thickness, or to apply one part thickly. The glaze liquid is sprayed with a mister onto the surface. By controlling the thickness of the glaze, different effects can be achieved. A brush can also be used to spatter glaze onto the surfaces. |
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