Chanakarn Semachai – Sculptural Lidded Jar

Hi, I’m Chanakarn Semachai (Punch), and in this workshop, I will be walking you through the entire process of making my dino lidded jar.

Combining pottery and sculpture together adds fun and a joyful mood to functional work.

I will also be demonstrated how I achieve the multiple surface decorations using underglaze techniques such as water coloring, sgraffito, wash, and underglaze pencil. I will make sure I’m packed with little tips and tricks learned from my own experiences trying to make it work with clay. Also, will talk about how to make narrative work and explain form inspirations and how those form choices influence my illustrated surface during the Q&A session!

At the end of the workshop, you will be able to make jars, lids, and sculptures. Also, you will be able to decorate your piece will different underglaze techniques. Combining all that you can create numerous sculptural vessel designs in your own style.

Let’s have fun together!

In this workshop, we will be doing the following:

Step 1. Build the jar body.
Step 2. Make the lid for the jar.
Step 3. Decorate the lid with a dino figure.
Step 4. Decorate the jar body.
Step 5. Bisque firing.
Step 6. Decorate the jar with underglaze, glaze.
Step 7. Glaze firing.
Step 8. Luster painting.
Step 9. Luster firing.

Required Equipment:

Clay, wooden modeling tools, knife, brushes, metal or rubber rib, sponge, spray bottle, needle tool, towel, nichrome wire, paper, water-based wax, underglaze, underglaze pencil, luster, clear glaze, kiln.

When you buy this workshop, you get:

• Watch my Online Workshop
  • The workshop will be around 1 hour 45 Minutes long.
• Bonus Q&A
  • Join my bonus Q&A where I answered questions about my process face-to-face
• Lifetime Access to the Replays
  • The workshop and the Q&A are recorded, and you will have lifetime access to it. You can watch it online, or download it to your device to watch offline at any time

I moved from Thailand to pursue an MFA in the US, had unavoidably been immersed in an entirely new culture. I have faced new and unforgettable experiences which have changed my life. Living in a totally unfamiliar world has had lasting impressions, and has affected my artwork.
In the beginning, I found that I was unconsciously changing and trying hard to blend into the new society and culture. Eventually, I shifted back to myself, although a new, better version of myself. I realized that people from all around the world share similar feelings and you don’t need to fit in to be happy. It got me thinking; what if dinosaurs came back to life in this present world, how would they feel? They were here first, they died then we took over, slowly changing their world. They would probably try so hard to fit in and try to live the life that suits this modern world. Yet, they will stand out anyway because they are dinosaurs. Sometimes when I surround myself with a new environment, I feel like I’m a dinosaur. I think people will see that I don’t belong. I think about these things a lot, and then I realized that it’s just insecurity and it is completely normal. We should embrace our differences and find ways to live with them. I would like to send a message through my art that encourages people to accept that everybody is unique and that is what makes people special as individuals.

Chanakarn Semachai (Punch), was born and raised in Bangkok, Thailand. Chanakarn graduated in 2012 with her Bachelor in Fine and Applied Arts Degree from Chulalongkorn University located in the heart of Bangkok City, the capital of Thailand. In 2019 she earned an MFA degree from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, USA. Punch is starting off as a sculptor, however began exploring functional wares that discuss similar ideas and designs as her sculptural surfaces. She combines a multitude of unique and exciting design elements on both her sculptures and functional vessels, creating a cohesive body of work. She has shown her work internationally, both in Thailand, Taiwan, China, and the United States. Chanakarn is a part of The Ceramics Congress Team and responds in organizing The Virtual Makers Market for The Ceramics Congress Conference. Currently, she has a career as a full-time ceramic faculty at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand.

Website: www.numpucsh.com