Roots Rocka's Clay Journal - New Stuff pg 11

Thanks, Mike!
Here's one of the lidded jars with a tapa design that I did sgraffito. It's white underglaze on Black Mountain clay while wet greenware and dipped in super clear after bisque.

Some big Moai that I built with various clays.

Some lidded coconut jars.

Some PNG pieces that are ready for glaze firing.

Various finished pieces.

Work in progress.

Thanks for looking and please follow me on Instagram to see my daily updates. Ceramics only. No personal BS.
#junglemodern or Jungle Modern Ceramics

Love all the new pieces- esp that mod vase. Unfortunately won't be able to make it up north for the Bob show but look forward to seeing your work in person soon....

Lidded coconut mugs!!! Sheer GENIUS!!! Love 'em!

And the Marquesan and PNG pieces are exquisite!

GREAT STUFF!!!!

Woweewowow!!! I love EVERYTHING I see here!

Just started following you on instagram, too!

Wow, slow down Mike your making the rest of us look bad! :)

Hey guys, thanks for stopping by!
Eric, great seeing you on Sunday. Great job on the show and thank you for letting me be part of it! It was a great time and the pieces for the Tiki Bob show were top notch.
Aloha Bill, thanks for following me on Instagram. Your tikis are awesome and I always look forward to your next post.
TA and ATP, as always, thanks for stopping by and sharing your compliments. They're greatly appreciated.

For anybody going to the Kon-Tiki 50th anniversary celebration on April 5th, I'll be vending along with Crazy Al, Bamboo Ben, Doug Horne, Mahalo Tiki, Tiki Vato, Mo 'Tiki and Michelle Hotchkiss.
http://www.kontikitucson.com/fifty/fiftyvendors.html
Come party it up in Tuscon, AZ and pay homage to the Kon-Tiki!

i really dig the png mug, mike! also, i love my moai diorama i picked up from you last month. keep up the great work, braddah.

Thanks, Bullet! Hope all is well!

Here's some of the finished PNG product from the last post and some various others.

This one is three pieces that I threw on the wheel and put together.

Thanks for stopping by!

Wow, those pieces are amazing. Love all the details.

• Dale

Your stuff is looking muy awesome. GROG like.

Thanks Dale! Thanks GROG! GROG, hope to see ya Saturday!

It's so amazing that you've conquered the potters wheel. I took a semester in college and never could center well.
I enjoy all your pieces and techniques. You are a fine ceramicist and a great guy too. Wendy

Everything is so awesome! The glazes on that bowl are really cool, love it.

WOW! That piece looks huge! About 15-20 inches tall? Mug, lamp, or sculpture?
All very cool looking stuff, I really like that rustic glaze on the first PNG piece.

I am with MadDogMike..that piece is amazing! Tell us more--what is it?

Your recent posted works are killing it! Looking good!!

Mike!
Slow down buddy, your making the rest of us look bad
man your progression & skill is exponential, you are rocking it!

Wendy - Awe, thanks! You're the sweetest! I actually love throwing on the wheel. Overall, I think I've improved because of the wheel, because I'm able to create so much more surface area to decorate, in a shorter amount of time. I've recently taken a class from a lady who combines pieces that she throws on the wheel to make these crazy mid-century modern pieces, so I'm having fun experimenting with how to apply this technique to my work.

Woodtiki - Thanks for stopping by! The glaze on the inside of the Moai bowl is a thick layer of gloss white with a layer of Tenmoku over it.

ATP - Thanks! Always great hearing from ya! Hope to see you and Ginger on Saturday.

MDM and Sandra - Thank you :) Thank you :) - It's only about 12-13" tall, but it's about 10.5" wide and about 9" deep, so it's got some presence. It's inspired by a PNG piece that Leroy Schmaltz did in, "Night of the Tiki." The bottom and top are two pieces that were thrown on the wheel and combined. On the head and bottom base, I applied a black underglaze, while the clay was still wet, and carved the designs. The piece is constructed to be a lamp.

Again, thank you for stopping by. Your comments are always appreciated.

Here's some more finished pieces from the last couple weeks.
Some of the stuff is already is sold, but I will be vending at Caliente, Friday only, so if you see something you like, please send me a message, or find me on-grounds, Thursday, for an early purchase in Palm Springs.

This one will have cowrie shell eyes.

The piece above is going to the Polynesian Village Resort at Disneyland Florida, along with a few other of my PNG style pieces from the past. The "Spirit Snatcher Ceremonial Bowl" and one of the PNG Drum mugs are two of them.

Thanks for looking and I hope to see some of you at Tiki Caliente this weekend!

Your work is so fresh and new and original. You are a great designer and I really like your choice of colors.

Ridiculous....ly beautiful work, as always.

Won't be at Caliente, but hope to meet up in person one of these days soon...

Those all turned out great Mike. I like that the colors are saturated well enough have an impact but still look rustic and primitive.

Mike- awesome work
Great to finally meet you at Caliente
Love my new mug
Thanks

Jon

hang10tiki you scored a terrific mug.

Those lamps are over the top. Wendy

Aloha everyone, hope all is well!
John, hope you're enjoying the Moai! Thanks again for supporting my art and sharing it with TC. Hope you had a great anniversary trip to da Big Island.
Thanks, Wendy! The tall one is three pieces that I threw on the wheel and put together.
As usual, I've been making lots of stuff and am too burned out to post it.

Some of my last projects have been to re-sculpt some of my sold, hand built pieces, so they're more mold friendly, and to cast them. This step-by-step isn't as complete as I would've liked, but I've already got the pictures uploaded, so here it goes.

First, is the original piece that I re-sculpted. It's one of the pieces going to the Polynesian Resort in Florida.









His name is Birdman 2. There's also a Birdman 1 and Birdman 3, so I guess it'll be a series.

I also wrote an article about my "Nuka Hiva" coconut mugs, with step-by-step pics of all the work that goes into them. If you're not familiar with the potter's wheel, I think you'll find it interesting.
http://junglemodern.tumblr.com/post/89997650974/step-by-step-polynesian-coconut-mugs-made-on-the

Thanks for stopping by!

I really like your hanging coconut planter, great concept. also like your latest mugs, Nice work.

Mike, great stuff, as always. I'll have to post some pics with your coconut mugs. Cool tumblr site as well. Look forward to seeing you at Oasis.

Happy Aloha Friday everyone!!!

Hi Hiltiki, thanks for stopping by! The coconut planters are lots of fun. I was taking a wheel throwing class and learned how to make fully enclosed vessels, and figured, I make coconut mugs, why not some planters, lidded jars, etc?

Hey TikiAno, great getting to meet in person! Thank you for stopping by and introducing yourself, it was great getting a chance to talk clay. Anytime you have a moment to post a pic of the mug, that would be awesome! Mahalo for the support! If I don't see you roaming around on Friday, at Oasis, I'll be vending at the car show on Saturday and Sunday.

So, a long time ago, six months maybe, haha, I sculpted a Maori warrior bust. In May, I broke down and had the professional mold makers at Laguna Clay, make me a 5 piece mold, for this monster of a mug, vase, sculpture, whatever you want to call it. Here are a few different samples. They're 10" inches tall, but about 7.5" inches wide. They hold 75 ounces, haha.

The big mold, in front, is the professionally made one from Laguna. The rest are mine and the space in back is my clean-up are for casting, with a spot for green ware to dry.

The molds hold just under two gallons of casting slip, and the they weigh about 60 pounds, so they're lots of fun to empty, when they're full of slip. They actually weighed closer to 100 pounds when I got them back from Laguna. I picked them up the day after they were made, so they were still full of water. Obviously, I didn't have the patience for the water to evaporate out of the plaster, so the first few rounds of pouring were really fun.

This is a bowl from the potter's wheel. It started as 8 pounds of clay. I think it measures about 10" inches across the top. I like how the area around the designs is recessed, but it warped a little, which kinda bums me out.

Well, have a great weekends and thank you for stopping by!

Here's how I made my "Pearl de Marquesas" Tiki mug.
The plan wasn't to make a mold of it, I just liked the piece so much when it was finished, I figured, just go for it. I think it was the symmetry in the face.

Anyhow, the original piece was a fully enclosed vessel that I threw on the potter's wheel. It already looks to have a beautiful Marquesan shape. At this point, it is already leather hard. I've also trimmed a foot in the bottom and trimmed some clay off the sides, to give it a more slender look.

From here, it's all carving. I didn't add any clay.

Had I known I was going to make a mold of this, I would've done it as bisque ware, pictured below. Instead, I glazed it, taking away some of the detail in the grooves, then made a mold. I'm not sure how much time this costs me per piece, but in the long run, I'm sure it's quite a bit. Just something to keep in mind for those of you who might want to try making a mold. Another thing that might've cost me some time, was all the sculpting wax, in areas, that looked like they could've had under cuts.

Here, I'm starting to make a mold box. It's going to be a three-sided mold, so the plaster will be poured over this area, once I build the box around this and seal the sides. Unfortunately, I didn't take a picture of all that.

But, the mold worked! or separated, anyway...

Next time, I'll post how they look coming out of the mold. There's lots of clean-up work. THanks for stopping by!

Wow, Maori bust is freekin awesome
Strong work
Love the bowl and new mug too

Keep on keepin on...

Cheers

Jon

Thanks, Jon!

So, here's what they look like out of the mold.



Here's some of the first finished pieces.

They're about 6.25" inches tall and 4.25" inches wide and hold 22 ounces.
If you're interested they're $60.

I also wanted to thank everyone who made it out to The International Tiki Market Place at Don the Beachcomber's this past weekend. It was a great time catching up with old friends and making new ones. For those of you who stopped by to say hi or purchase a piece of my art, thank you very much, the support is greatly appreciated.

Came out great

You were born to work clay. You ROCKA, Wendy

The stuff looks even better in person. He got Best In Show at the PNG art show at the Tonga Hut yesterday, and deservedly so.

Aloha Hang10, Wendy, and GROG!
Always great seeing you guys around these parts :)
I've been swamped trying to get things ready for Oasis and it's been crazy.
I poured and cleaned 60-65 castings last week and will be glazing them this week. Luckily, I still have some pieces left from the Tonga Hut show and the last ITMP, so I should have about 80 mugs spread between the three different Birdman designs, Tahitian Tower, Pearl de Marquesas, and Kaitiaki. I'll also have 3 PNG lamps, a couple Hawaiian lamps, and a Marquesan lamp, with a few bowls I threw on the potter's wheel, and one or two handbuilt pieces.

I'll be sure to start posting pics as they're finishing, as well as some progress pics. I'll also post my piece from the Tonga Hut art show and my awesome "Best in Sepik" ribbon, made by Eric October.

Great catching up with some of you and nice meeting some of you for the first time at Oasis!
Here's my lamps from The Tonga Hut art show.

These are pieces I had for Tiki Oasis and a couple from the event.

I think there's more pictures of Tiki Oasis on my Instagram.
http://instagram.com/junglemodernceramics

Thanks for stopping by!

Mike, great seeing you at Oasis- your booth was great, hope sales went well (I fully admit to not buying any ceramics throughout the weekend- though I love looking through the killer work you're doing). Great variety of work, and as Grog wrote (earlier) it all looks WAY better in person (if that's even possible).

I posted this up on instagram but figured should post here, too-

Such great stuff Michael! Love the Marquesan I picked up from you last weekend. So great to meet you at Oasis this year! Looking forward to seeing you more in the future and picking up some more of your stuff.

Woody

mike, it was great seeing you at tiki oasis. i love my massive maori warrior mug. those png lamps are just ridiculously good! keep up the great work.

Hey Woody and Bullet! Great hanging out at Oasis and thank you for giving some of my pieces a great new home.
Now that Oasis is done, I'm moving away from the slip casting and back to handbuilding and throwing on the wheel. I'm starting a batch of Tahitian Towers to fill some orders next week, so if you see something you like, or want something in another color, please send me a PM or email ([email protected]) about pre-ordering.

Here's some of the first pieces I've finished.

First is a PNG drum mug. There's actually a couple little cracks where the handle meets the body :( so it's a vase or sculptural piece. I could also make it into a lamp.

This batch of guys was inspired by a cooking pot from the Wosera people. I believe the original piece was made out of a gourd.

This is a decanter or pitcher. It was inspired by a ceremonial dance mask, stands just over 11" inches tall, and holds 36 ounces.

Please visit my on-line store:
http://junglemodern.bigcartel.com/

or follow me on Instagram to see my day-to-day activity in the studio.
http://instagram.com/junglemodernceramics

Thank you for looking and for your continued support.

So... hey everyone! Time flies when you're having fun!

Thank you to EVERYONE who has been supportive of my art over the last few years. This last year has been unbelievable and a lot of you are to thank. Moving forward, I hope to be a better contributor to the forum.

Thanks again for looking and enjoy the rest of your Labor Day!

This piece is the biggest I've ever attempted to throw on the potter's wheel. I started with about 19.5 pounds and ended with a pot, that weighed around 14, by the time I had trimmed and scraped off wet clay.

After I had my general shape. I hand built both headdresses and crocodile serpent handles.

I call this guy, "Sepalam," because he has two different masks, one being a more traditional Sepik River style make with the other being indicative of the Abelam people, also from the Sepik River region.

Crap! I just realized these are old pics...the Sepik River side is all inlaid with shells. Well, hope you enjoy. These still aren't finished as I've got handmade beads, that'll be laced up with jute yarn, giving the headdresses a little more presence.

Man, awesome stuff. You are killing it.

Impressive feat to throw such a large piece. Look forward to seeing more pics. Thanks for posting/ updating, and hope to see you soon....

Thanks for updating TRR, great progress!

I love your style. It's so different. It really looks like it came from a far away island. Wendy

Thank you Tiki Ano, Cy, and Wendy! Great seeing you all at Oasis! Cy, especially great getting to hangout and talk art with you and Jan on that final Sunday night. TA, mahaloz for the beer. It was much needed. Wendy, that cookie jar is amazing. Again, thank you so much for participating. Have a happy Thursday, everyone!

Aloha friends :)Hope you all had a great weekend!

Here's a couple more projects I worked on over the summer.

First, is my "Unidentified Gray." I wanted to do something that fit the space-like themes of, The Atomic Tiki Terrors art show at Creature Features, and for Tiki Oasis, but wanted it to have some traditional elements.

They also display in non-decapitated form.

Thanks for looking and your comments are always appreciated.

These are something I did for fun and sold a few, so I've been making more.
Here are my #Tikiasfuck cups.

Your work is art. Beautifully done. Wendy

Thanks, Wendy! Love the Maori lamp you're working on.

Here's some of the first Sepik Phallacies and Papua-Loons, that I finished a couple months back. Most of these have homes, but there's still a few available.

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Way Kool Bruddah