|
Clayton Bailey Press 01010101010000 |
|||
|
PAINTED CLAY- 1964 |
|||
|
|||
| In 1964 and 1965, Bailey made
a series of painted clay Nitepots, and
Urinals. The Nitepots often have puckered red
lips, and small pink breasts that titillate
and frustrate the user by causing erotic
stimulation. One is invited to urinate into
the mouth of the pot, but, at the same time,
the pot is designed to arouse the user with
its lips and breasts, and the joke is that it
is difficult to urinate while sexually aroused These painted clay works are constructed from broad slabs of clay which are caulked with small coils which emphasize the process of construction. This piece is welded together with soft clay extruded from a caulking gun, and with its numerous extruded clay seams, has the appearance of metal welding or icing on a decorated cake.
SMALL BREASTED NITEPOT- 1965 Painted Earthenware, extruded clay seams 18" X 9" X 9" |
Bailey made some of the
Nitepots up to 6 ft. tall , and called them
Kissing Pots because he noticed they were so
tall that they kiss you back with an echo.
All of these painted clay Kissing Nitepots were made in his studio at Whitewater, Wisconsin.
KISSING POTS - 1965 Painted Earthenware
|
||
|
In deciding to paint this group of works in primary colors, Bailey embraces the harsh esthetic of house paint and tractor enamel instead of the rich and subtle palette of salt glazes he had been using on other works. The painted works were much easier to make, since they only required a single firing before painting. The painted clay works also liberated him from the frequent and lengthy salt firings he had been doing. .A related series of ceramic Wall Shelves and First Aid Boxes of this period originated from Bailey's need for an inexpensive and functional first aid kit for the ceramic studio where he was teaching.
YELLOW NITEPOT- 1965 Painted Earthenware, hand coiled seams 36" Ht. |
|||
