The James, Succulent Pots

New York, NY. 2017

I was commissioned to design and produce 380 custom succulent pots for their guestroom bathrooms in part of the artist collaboration project for The James, a boutique hotel located in Nomad in Manhattan. The James focuses on creating an artful experience for their clients by engaging with artists and makers from the communities and around the world.

The client wished to add some colors with these pots to the neutral bathroom design and play with the rough texture of the clay contrasting with the glazed surface, so I responded with a soft and clean color palette in blush, light blue and lavender, with subtle variations within the finish resembling a water color, paired with bold and playful dot patters of the natural clay color.

I threw the pots individually on a wheel. It has a cylindrical form with a flat bottom so they are stable. To create the dot patterns of naked clay I used wax resist technique where wax is painted on with a brush. Wax prevents the glaze from sticking and burns off during firing, leaving the unglazed natural clay surface. I used two layers of different glazes to achieve subtle variations on the finish within a piece to accentuate the interest of hand-crafted objects.

Project specs:
380 succulent pots in three colorways. 4.5" Dia X 5"H. White stoneware fired to 2200F in an electric kiln.

Project: The James | www.jameshotels.com/discover-the-james/philosophy

Client: Denihan | www.denihan.com/portfolio/hotel-brands

Interior Design: Thomas Juul-Hansen | www.thomasjuulhansen.com

Schematic sketches showing the initial finish and size ideas in addition to form study models were made prior to prototype production.

Conceptual sketches are made to explore the nuance I want to achieve with colors. In this project the client wished to add fresh colors with these succulent pots to the neutral bathroom scheme, so I aimed to achieve soft colors with irregular wash like water color.

Desirable colors and textures are achieved after testing numerous chemical formulas. Here are some of the potential glazes tested on the tiles made with the same claybody the final product will be made in.

After drying thrown forms made on a wheel I bisque them to get them ready for waxing and glazing. Bisquing, the first slow firing at 1700F, removes organic matters within the claybody and makes the pots hard enough to be handled easily and porous enough to absorb liquid glaze.

After gazing I fire them in an electric kiln to 2200F. The cycle of bringing up the temprture and cooling down takes approximately 36 hours. The speed of raising temprature and cooling down affect the durability of the pots as well as the color, opaqueness, and glossiness of the surface. Here are glazed and fired pots in a blush glaze.

Glazed and fired pots in lavender.

Glazed and finished pots in light blue.