Ode To Appalachia
This Honors Seminar has been one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences I have had the opportunity of being involved in at App State. Working as a team, our class was able to make over 300 dishes and 120 glasses for a 5 course meal spanning over 2 nights. It was a whirlwind studio that resulted in a community of artists, professors, students, family, and community members.
Aluminum Bowls: Made by Lela Arruza, Julia Boyce, & Maggie Mackenzie with the help of Professor Frankie Flood
For the first course of this dinner, we wanted to represent the resilient nature of the Appalachia people, who can flourish in any environment. The process we used was a metalsmithing technique of spinning. It started with a flat alumina disk, spun on a high-speed lathe, sandblasting, buffing to a high polish, anodizing, and dyeing for color. The last part of the process used a laser to etch imagery of native plants, mountain laurel or dogwood, that bloom at the start of every spring.
Buffing The Bowls
Anodizing Set Up Of The Bowls
Laser Etching Of The Bowls
Huckleberry Sgraffito Cups
These cocktail glasses are inspired by the black huckleberry bushes that are native to North America and can be found throughout the mountains in North Carolina. The glasses started off from plaster casts and slip was poured into the molds. Once it popped out of the mold the cup is painted with black or white englobe. Each huckleberry bush design is then hand carved into the painted glasses. Carving through the englobe allows the natural color of the clay body to show through revealing an intricate pattern around the glass. All the glasses were fired and clear glazed.
