Unfolding

Made by Terry Phillips

Quadra Island, BC

Size approx 12” W x 13” H

As this series ‘unfolds’, I present to you the 5^th teapot. There is nothing so romantic as the unfolding of a rose on a warm summer day. You bring your face closer and the sunwarmed petals release their tea scented fragrance into the soft air. It is no coincidence they are called Tea Roses. Don your long gloves, hat, and fancy dress for a tea party in the summer garden.

I love making quilted roses, and have done many over the years. They’re fun to sculpt with the stitching and now I can add extra dimension using acrylic paints. The leaves and sky weave together to create the background. The lacy tablecloth is created using a common sashiko design. I don’t like the convention which says show objects in odd numbered groups like 3, 5, or 7. Many times I choose groupings of 4, and do it in a way that might be pleasing, in this case 3 + 1. Just stubborn I guess.

Faces

Size approx 12” W x 13” H

How much fun it was to put the tugboat captain’s face on a teapot! He sits on a westcoast windowsill looking wistfully out at the passage he once sailed as a tugboat comes into view.

Pure whimsy!

OK Mom, now you have to make the real teapot!

Technique is the same as the rest of the teapots; acrylic on gesso on quilted fabric. Double batted.

Here is a detail:

Crackle Tree Coordinating Fabrics

1 metre feature fabric with 10 fat quarters.

Here is a selection of fabrics that I prepared this week, the idea was to have them coordinate together.

The feature fabric is dyed with wheat paste resist, stamped with various shapes and colours and painted with textile acrylics.  The coordinating fabrics also use a variety of techniques, from deconstructive silkscreening, low water immersion procion dyeing, pole shibori and stamping.  I pulled the extra two from my handmade stash as possible players.

Medieval

Size approx 12"W x 13" H

Here is my contribution for the theme “Medieval”.

I saw plenty of medieval pottery in Greece, Italy, and Spain this year, but nothing I would describe as a teapot. So I used the internet to search out shapes of teapots made in medieval times. The tall shape with the narrow opening at the top meant that no lid was needed and still the contents stayed warm and wouldn't spill out when pouring. The green glaze was typical of pottery wares coming out of England after 1080, at which time glazes started to appear on pots. Copper filings were added to the lead based glazes to obtain the decorative green colour.

The designs carved onto the pot are my fabrications based on ancient celtic designs from the British Isles. Following the medieval theme, I placed the stone wall, cobbled street, and stone arches in the background. This teapot may also have held a tipple, judging from the grape vines!