Paperclay Ceramic Birds Nest Experiment

This paperclay ceramic birds nest experiment piece was made using an old birds nest that was kindly abandoned in my garden shed.

By experimenting with different paperclay mixes using white stoneware and terracotta in plastic and liquid forms, I injected the paperclay slip into the body of the densely built birds nest.

Not such an easy task as birds are pretty adept at packing in the twigs and sealing them in tightly.

The aim of the experiment was to capture, to reveal, the inside structure and textures of the birds nest, rather than achieve a replica birds nest as a finished piece.

As anticipated, parts of the birds nest were quite fragile after bisque firing, which made it really interesting when pulling apart loose sections.

Removing fragile parts to see what you're left with is like a happy accident or gift unwrapping moment, you're never quite sure what it's going to be, and delighted when all is revealed,

After 'breaking' up the fired paperclay birds nest, I chose this section of the 'remains' as my finished piece, which was clear glazed, a touch of eggshell blue on external parts, and kiln fired.

Nothing else was added and you'll note that the external birds nest construction elements on this piece naturally provided it with it's own 'legs' to stand on.

My photos don't really do the detailed textures justice. Whenever I look at this paperclay nest section, the detail in the birds nest construction reminds me of the skill and effort that birds put into creating their natural home.