Signing a ceramic, signing a sculpture, signing a pottery is not as spontaneous as signing a painting. Yet artisans have been signing their pottery for a long time, especially in the West.
Whether you consider your work as a craft or an art, I advise you to sign your personal signature. We will see in this article what are the advantages of signing one’s creations and how to do it.
Why sign this ceramic creations?
To find the origin of a work: The lifespan of a ceramic piece is very long. With time, it is possible that your creation may be bequeathed to new people, to a family member.
The signature also allows collectors to date a work and easily identify its creator. For ceramics enthusiasts, and even more so for collectors, the value of an unsigned piece is much less.
This may seem totally superfluous when you start learning ceramics. However, there are always a few early works that may be of particular interest to you or collectors. If, for example, you are surprised by the quality of a glaze coming out of the kiln, you will be very proud of it and you will want your pottery to be signed. Perhaps you will make a whole range of pieces from this first work…
If you do not anticipate the signature, you will probably have to redo a firing and risk modifying the result.
What to sign?
You have 3 possibilities, sign your name like any artist or sign your brand name or simply put your logo, if you have one. You can of course mix these different approaches.
It is better to avoid putting a precise date on your pieces because a buyer who falls for one of your pieces and then realizes that it is nothing new could be disappointed.
Where to sign your clay pieces?
The signature can be visible, even ostentatious, but if your piece is small, you could choose discretion.
Whatever your choice, do not neglect the signature. I invite you to consider your signature as a detail that harmonizes with your realization. It also shows the care that you bring to your works. And it is sometimes the small details that make all the difference when buying.
On pottery, we usually sign the bottom of the piece because this part is not glazed. On a more complex shape make sure that the glaze will not cover your signature.
Which technique to sign his pottery?
The handwriting tip
This is done on a clay with a leathery consistency, either after turning for the potter, or after hollowing for a sculptor. The piece is left to dry and only afterwards is it trimmed with a scouring pad and the dust blown off. Be careful, when sanding the bottom of the piece to ensure stability, not to erase your signature.
The signature in the enamel
It completes the signature at the tip. If we enamel by dipping, we clean the foot but the enamel remains in the hollow of the signature and brings it out. The signature in the hollow in the clay is considered a better proof of authenticity than a brush signature. Even if in both cases one can still cheat…
The stamp and the punch
To create a stamp, remember to invert your signature before printing it on the layer, and to transfer it to the ground.