Wednesday 26 May 2021

Green.


Green has always been my favourite colour. It also happens to be one of the preferred colours of our local potters for their glazes; both now and previously.


It's a particular green; not brash or obtrusive, but a green that is relaxing and comfortable.

I am constantly finding bits of broken plates, cups, or bowls which have this green glaze. Just looking at the soil opposite the house I found this small piece yesterday, above. It is the same basic glaze as that on the large flower pot (left), and the tall ancient pinnacle (right) that live on our terrace wall. 

I believe the colour comes from a small percentage of Copper Oxide, although I am not a potter. It must have been an easily obtained additive, as it seems to be used by 'rustic potters' the world over.


I have quite a collection of Biot pottery (both modern and antique) from Provence. They use this colour extensively, and produce beautiful work. 

It's a colour that always makes me happy. 

 

22 comments:

  1. Morning Cro, tis a very restful green my good man. Also I love the form of that piece, a honey jar? in the bottom picture.

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    1. Being from Provence, it's actually an Olive jar, although I must admit that I've never kept Olives in it.

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  2. I read somewhere ages ago that humans can apparently distinguish more shades of green than any other animals (including primates). I'm not sure how anyone knows, but it possibly goes to show that green is very important to us as humans. We agree with your view that the green is a very restful one and the pottery in your last photo is particularly attractive.

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    1. I commissioned the Biot people to make me a dozen dinner plates. We rarely use them (Christmas etc), but they are wonderful to eat from. A rustic green plate enhances everything.

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  3. I love that glaze too, a wonderful green.
    Jean

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  4. Yes, copper either carbonate or oxide.
    An interesting thought...the word for green in quite a few languages is much younger than the word for blue. I wonder why

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  5. I also wondered if that was a honey jar pictured. I like the color of it, and the picture could be a painting. I confess to having my own color that I cannot resist: Cobalt blue.

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  6. It is indeed a lovely and familiar shade of green. Whenever I find a piece of pottery in my garden I wonder how the hell it got there. After all, this land was farmland until 1925 as Sheffield's suburbs began to spread out further.

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    1. I'm always amazed by the amount of bits of pottery (glazed or unglazed) there are in the soil almost everywhere. I don't think they're particularly old, but it's the amount that surprises me.

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  7. That olive/honey pot is very attractive, whatever its purpose.

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    1. It was that pot that gave me my taste for Biot. It was given to me by a neighbour when she moved, and I've been buying more bits ever since.

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  8. Replies
    1. I used to have a green Harris Tweed jacket, unfortunately it eventually fell apart, but I loved it as much as my pottery.

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  9. As you say, bits of pottery turn up everywhere. My garden was croftland but i've found miscellaneous bits of pottery obviously just thrown out at some time over the last 100 years since this house was built.

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    1. I find loads of pieces even in fields that have no nearby houses. The amount of such bits has always surprised me, it's as if previous generations took their broken plates, etc, and threw them into the fields.

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  10. Lovely … I like the colour green. Our garden is chockablock with bits of Victorian/ Edwardian pottery … I find loads every time I dig …. Plus, bits of clay pipes, old Bovril jars …. All sorts of things. I read somewhere that the Victorians/ Edwardians just used to chuck broken china out the back door !!! They certainly did in our house !! XXXX

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    1. Back in England I was always finding bit of broken clay pipes, but less pottery. I can't imagine smoking whilst tending the garden.

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  11. One of the hobbies I took up upon retiring was throwing on the pottery wheel. Blues and greens (always with a bit of brown) are my favorite. Love that rustic look. Your green pieces are really nice.

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    1. It's that rustic look that I like. This particular glaze must be cheap, and slightly flawed, which gives it the quality.

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  12. I really like that color as well.

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    1. I have a lot of it, and still buy it when I can.

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