Beauty of Numbers and a Seven Year Old's Mind


one, two, three, four, five
six is on line of seven
autumn day haiku
~MoMo


Other people buy flowers.  I buy branches.  Branches with green acorns. Chestnut with their spiky puff balls.  Even nightshade when I can find it.  Occasionally, I get pomegranates hanging onto long, thin branches with their tiny leaves. Naturally, the most exciting for me is a big branch of persimmons.

I hung the branch over my pantry door.  This is a favorite hang out.  All love to draw on this door.  Some leave their opinions of menu selection (the big people.)  Others sketch their vision of the future (middle-aged child space traveler.)  Lists get erased by little hands (Tough Little Girl.)  Drawn over with wild circles, toothy dinosaurs, smiling robots and big autographs (Confident Cousins Three.)  PoPo has long since learned to leave his memos at the very top of the door.  Out of the reach of children and MoMo.
the beauty of numbers by Noah, age 7



"If numbers aren't beautiful, I don't know what is."   
mathematician Paul Erdos



 Numbers aside---opened the kiln and surprised
to find my jade green and crackle oribe plates
were not the color envisioned


I forgot to put in copper carbonate! And I forgot to put in the rutile!  Oh my, the kiln gods still came though and these are nice in spite of me.  The yellow is a luscious quince color with rusty flecks.  Perfect for little purple and green figs.
I am very tempted to keep these, but they are promised.

Now on their way to Pence Gallery in Davis.  Time to go back to the chalkboard.  I think I am going back to figures....

Comments

  1. You know, that second image is an art print in itself. I love it!
    And your plates are wonderful! Happy accidents indeed :)
    And, oh! I do love the wee figs! I keep promising myself that I'll sculpt some figs - I love them so. I even have 'fig' in my business name, I love their seedy, sweet, juicy plumpness that much :)

    And, that is one particularly pretty pomegranate!

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    1. I know what you mean about figs. I love the way they grow behind big, thick leaves as if hidden little gems. Sometimes we cut them in half and stuff them with a bit of goat cheese. And oh, you should make some :) Once you start it's hard to stop.....

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  2. Love hearing of your luck forgetting two glaze ingredients and getting good results. Ha. It's all a numbers game for sure.

    where do you get branches of fruit? At the farmer's market?

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    1. Sometimes I think there are glaze angels who know better than me :) Thank goodness!

      The local farmer's markets will bring in branches of persimmons and pomegranates. There are some who will bring in sugar pears with stems and leaves. I get branches of green acorns (coastal live oak) and horse chestnuts from a Japanese florist in Berkeley.

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  3. Really lovely! The figs, the yellow plate...all.

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    1. Thank you, Maria. The yellow plate was the best surprise! Along with 7 year old Noah's artwork all around the persimmons.....

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  4. What a fun post! Love the branches and the door of numbers. You have certainly impressed the kiln gods - just look at those luscious MISTAKES! The yellow is scrumptious. Hope you can repteat them.

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    1. I think the numbers completed the look. How effortless children make art without them thinking they are creating something so free and wonderful. They just do. I love the look of those numbers that I am using their shapes for house numbers......

      Ooooh, that yellow.....it is silky smooth, too. With textures and flecks of brick red. I have been blessed with a kiln load. So I am grateful :)

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  5. Usually I don't want a surprise when I open the kiln, but what a nice surprise you had! Those turquoise blue and yellow make such a beautiful contrast!

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    Replies
    1. Sometimes those surprises are more like UGH! After all these years I still approach my kiln as a big, hot box of surprise. Good or bad, curiosity always makes me peek :) I have never had a whole kiln of UGH! There's always a gem...to try again.......

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