The Exotic Teapot

This miniature teapot invention is that of Joshua Foy.  “The work is my visual interpretation of events such as war, energy consumption, outsourcing, imports, environmental concerns, and recession through the combination of associated objects and iconography.”  Joshua uses ceramics and other pieces from assorted media to reveal industrialist production and mass consumerism.  He hopes to infuse the serious and humorous side of life all the while exposing traditionalism and contemporary views. 

I am not sure how Charles Krafft selects the characters depicted on his teapot heads but he has chosen a unique group of individuals to replicate.  Kim Jong IL, Charles Manson and Aleister Crowley are a few.  Each porcelain ceramic head is hand crafted by Krafft who admits he specializes in the evil or disgraced icons.  His promotional literature claims that he crafts the sculpted, fully functional teapots from a dark and gloomy basement.

Tomasz Bobrzynski claims he is a child of digital age.  It is apparent after viewing his amazing photographs.  However, Tomasz does not just have technical skills he has the artistic ability to select subjects that are awe inspiring without manipulation.  Then using his proficiency and photographic experimentation he magnifies or suspends the action associated with the matter.  This is what the makes the visual image so fascinating.       

Steampunk refers to the combination of sci-fi and exploratory fiction but… with fantasy undertones.  Additionally, this style focuses on the Victorian English era only as it relates to steam power.  These teapots, made by Michael Morarity are of this genre; it has a temperature gauge, spout cover, release key and percolation window.  Tea is placed in the top hatch; when the temperature is high, the release key that controls an internal seal is manually pulled then hot water percolates through.  This rotates the key as it percolates.

If fun, bright, whimsical, imaginative and unique are attributes that you appreciate then you will love this All Heart Teapot by JoAnne Bedient.  This skilled ceramic artist hand builds pop culture like pieces then reverts to traditional Japanese raku firing for the finishing touch.  The smoke infuses the clay and glazes, resulting in surprising shimmers, noticeable crackles and dazzling colours.  JoAnne finds joy in this process which she calls “continual experimentation.”     

Artist Lilianne Milgrom’s believes “any chosen subject matter intrinsically demands its own form of expression.”  Her hand built porcelain teapot is one example.  Because she is a tea drinker she wanted to publicize the teapot.  She chose to do so by making use of letters and the symbolic T-shirt.  Notice how the lower case letters “p” and “t” form the sleeves of a shirt yet all four letters refer to a teapot.     

An avid reading friend of mine called insisting that I read Tim Macy’s online web short story “The Brass Teapot.”  It certainly is not one to read to your child.  Yes, the teapot is magical and it does produce money.  But it is the physical and mental expense required to generate the income in the teapot which makes this tale one of darkness. 

They argued for an hour, Alice the entire time clutching the closed teapot. She called him a loser three times during the fight and he once, out of frustration, told her that she had been a bad mother. It was the dirtiest they had ever treated one another. When they finished, when both were hunched over in exhaustion … Alice lifted the lid to find the teapot filled with twenty dollar bills. There was just over four hundred dollars.

Even though Mr. Macy’s work is appreciated as literary art, I think I’ll just continue adding only water and tea leaves to my teapots.

These little pigs are born small enough to fit in a teacup.  The miniature swine is gaining acceptance as a replacement to the teacup pet poodle.  Additionally, it is claimed the tiny ones, growing to the adult size of a Cocker Spaniel, are smarter than a dog.  Apparently they can learn and perform tricks.  I wonder if they can learn how to brew a cup of tea?      

The baobab tree is native to Australia, Madagascar and the mainland of Africa.  Baobabs, sometimes referred to as monkey bread trees, can hold up to 120,000 l of water; grow up to 30 m tall and 11 m wide.  Because of its water storage capacity the tree trunks swell.  Some trees take on very strange shapes like this one of a teapot in Ifaty, Madagascar. 

Apparently the teapot is an often manipulated object in computer science.  The one shown here is created by Ann Torrence.  She took numerous digital images of the same: water with bubbles in a clear glass teapot under a white strobe light.  Using Adobe Photoshop, Anne then applied various grey levels of the spectrum to assemble this one image.  In her words:  The resulting transformation of time into spectral space yields a non-realistic yet evocative approach to image-making.  I must admit I do not fully understand the technique; however, the image is spectacular. 

I am sure we have all experienced boredom.  To pass the time I’ve never thought about blowing water from a teapot.   Apparently others have.  In fact, the images below are submitted by participants who competed to see how far and accurate s/he could perform this task.  Not only is it an unusual contest but one of the objects chosen to blow the water into is odd to say the least. 

Everyone loves tea at Christmas!

Sara Chieco has a Master’s degree in Computer Information and Sciences.   Her resume (CV) reveals years of experience as a software engineer.  Yet she has been the Volunteer Coordinator of over 250 artists for a major annual US festival for four years.  Plus, she has a website of her own ceramic art designs.  If you look at Sara’s tea ware pieces they do resemble informational technology symbols even us non-techies recognize 

Mary Dorsch believes in recycling.  Her studio consists of old shelves and old carts.  Her clay she reuses, making round vessels then with the remains making squared pieces, such as these glorious squared teapots.  Her unused clay, she stores in old plastic bags and the energy used is from wind power.  The pots cracked from the high heat in kilns she gives to mosaic artists.  Do you know that quality loose tea leaves can be used more than once?

This pot appears to be floating in mid-air or even slowly falling from the sky.  The flowing liquid from the spout enhances the sense of motion.  I wondered if those working in the nearby office building were not heavy tea drinkers; thus, their tribute to the beverage.  But then I noticed the windows were covered with shades and shelves of vessels; perhaps this could be from management accusing workers of taking too many tea breaks.   

I have always thought a teapot a work of art.  This includes an image that is painted on the vessel.  And, now that I have seen Jo St. Baker’s canvases, I think a painting on a teapot within a painting is truly a work of art.  With fine brush strokes, acrylic paints and an eye for recognizing the beauty which silver reflects, Baker has mastered contemporary surrealism via teapots.  Not only are the pots magnificently designed, the mirrored images are equally as intriguing. 

Who hasn’t heard the saying ‘a spot of tea’?  Apparently very few, at least that is in the UK and the US.  According to the World Wide Words Organization Americans use the phrase as often, if not more over the last few decades, than the Brits.  However, interpretation is not the same.  Additionally, region and social class impact its elucidation.  Generally Americans think it means a cup of tea whereas in the UK it refers to tea with food.  To further complicate the subject, the region in UK may alter whether it is afternoon tea with refreshment or an evening meal.  In spite of the discrepancies, there is none when it comes to the word ‘spot’ as the Brits are recognized worldwide for the slangy term.

If you haven’t visited a wine and spirits shop in the U.S. you may be surprised at the variety of tea infused vodkas on the shelves.  Even the finer pubs and bars, especially in southeastern USA, vie for the most unique tea infused martinis and cocktails.  Southerners have always been known for drinking sweet iced tea; most restaurants in the region assume that when you order tea, it is to be iced and laden with sugar.  No wonder sweet tea infused vodkas have caught on so quickly.  One brand warns that even the daintiest of belles can drink a mason jar full before feeling fuzzy. 

Linda Mau believes new techniques lead to solutions for old design issues.  But because she is married to an engineer, the concept of design, technology and materials has escalated.  This is evident with her paper clay teapots.  She first designs them on paper.  Wearing thick gloves, Linda then transforms the pot to a 3-D shape using tin wire.  Afterwards, multiple layers of paper clay are applied to the hardware, requiring hours or days to dry between each coat.  Her paper clay consists of 20% pulp to 80% slip.  Because the wire and paper fibers melt during firing, she has determined the kiln cannot be baked at high temperatures or the pot will crumble.    

For some reason Jeff Campana likes to create chaos then resolve the problem with physics.  His green leaf teapot is a prime example.  He designed a teapot then dissected it for the most exceptionally functioning teapot and visual appeal.  He applied the venturi design to create a drip-less spout: at 45 degree angle, the spout tip slightly higher than the interior lip of the body, the handle pulls in close to the body and has a handle-based lid latch.  He cut the body of the teapot in leaf pattern shapes then re-assembled, stopping to use a drill bit to make holes in the body and spout for a built-in tea infuser.  This link displays each step of the detailed process…well worth a few moments of intrigue.