Porcelain Tulipiere

Porcelain Tulipiere

$700.00
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This approximately 14"x14"x9" porcelain tulipiere (vase) is typically made to order to a client's specifications for size. (Please contact me to discuss your size desires, but this gives an idea of one of my larger sized Tulipiere) Tulipiere are a popular way to display the beautiful tulips in Holland in particular and this is my modern interpretation/signature Tulipiere homage to one of my favorite flowers. I am as crazy about them as the Dutch "tulipmania" of the first part of the 17th century! Tulipiere are also popular heirloom pieces from Japan (often pagoda styled) and China with many of the delft-style blue and white patterned details in asian decor styles.

The entire look of the piece can change dramatically with the addition of floral creativity (flowers not included). The entire piece is hollow allowing water addition through one of the 'tubes' extending from the base which will water all flowers on display. It is porcelain and made to hold liquid. I have included photos from many angles as well as photos with different flowers to give an idea of the many possibilities with this design and decor piece.

14" x 14" x 9"

art piece/floral display; porcelain clay, glaze 

This item is one-of-a-kind. My one-of-a-kind work is called 'Heirloom' because somewhere deep inside me it is my hope that you will pass this along through the generations for others to enjoy its unique nature. I also call items 'Heirloom' when I've spent more hours creating and decorating a piece than I could ever truly recover by charging a premium for it. It's part of the process I love. It's part of what makes the medium ever-changing for me. It's part of the challenge of what new creativity might be drawn out and onto my work.

My handmade pottery items are made individually when I "throw" clay on the potter's wheel to shape the basic form. Sometimes I literally throw it onto the wheel head to get it to stick well, but the process in-general is called "throwing". They are turned over, re-centered, and trimmed when the clay has been allowed to dry slightly. Sometimes I also start with slabs of clay that are then hand-built into their shapes vs. on the wheel. Handles and other clay additions are then added and the piece is allowed to dry very slowly to prevent warping or cracking. When the piece is completely bone dry it is fired in a kiln (think big clay oven) to a temperature of just over 1800 degrees F. After this first firing, the piece is then decorated with glazes that a much like a slurry of powdered glass in water and often do not look anything like their finished colors. When the glaze is dry, each piece is carefully loaded back into the kiln to be fired again to a temperature just over 2200 degrees F. This work is considered "mid-range" temperature pottery fired to Cone 6-7 upon completion.  

This particular piece starts as a large hollow donut of porcelain clay on the potter's wheel. Many tubes are then each individually thrown on the potter's wheel as well as pulled, and hand sculpted using a variety of techniques. I allow all of the pieces to dry slowly for a day or two before doing the arrangement/layout of the tubes. I must work quickly to make all of the tube attachments since porcelain can be finicky about this number of attachments. This piece is quite a challenge to achieve the sheer number of pieces that must be cut, arranged, attached, and smoothed without any cracks or warping. The piece is placed in a large wet-box so that I can control a very slow drying process. After the first firing to 1800F, I wet sand every piece to get the tubes and base perfectly smooth so that the glaze flows well around all of the parts. I then carefully glaze this piece to provide a smooth finish without clouding to capture the luminescence of the porcelain clay. The piece is finish fired to 2232F.

This item is one-of-a-kind and typically is made-to-order. Standard household cleaning products acceptable for cleaning. Please note - additional insurance is recommended to be purchased for shipping this item.

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