Three New Ceramic Art Pottery pieces by Michael W. Moses at South Coast Antiques & Gallery in Ocean Springs, MS

Letter Embossed Orchid Pot  by Michael W Moses

I just finished three new pieces that I thought that I would share here on my blog. The first is a Letter Embossed Orchid Pot That I made for an orchid that I have that I have just not had any luck with at all. I may just put it out in the shop with a new orchid plant in it. 

Red Yellow Sponge Pot by Michael W Moses

The second is a matt Red Sponge Pot with a glossy yellow Interior that fades into a dark red.  This piece has an organic quality that I really find appealling.  It looks like some form of life that could be setting in a crystal clear sea basking in the hot noonday sun of an alien world.  Two delicatly painted stones accompany this piece, one is almost jade like and the other is possably an azurite, who knows maybe they are gemstones that do not even exist here on Earth.

The Smoker Art Pottery by Michael W Moses

The third is an incense burner that I call the smoker. It is a bowl that has a small three rhinestone attachment on the inside. It sets on a stand and has barnacles that have openings that allow an inscense cone to be laced undernrigth so that the smoke can drift out of the barnacles and drift up around the bowl. This piece was inspiered by stories about life around the thermal vents that occur in the depths of the oceans.  I will make a small video clip of this piece that I will put on YouTube shortly so that one may view this piece in action.

The Smoker Art Pottery by Michael W Moses inside

 All three pieces are currently available and may be viewed at South Coast Antiques & Gallery in Ocean Springs, MS.

The Smoker Art Pottery by Michael W Moses

Queen's Tears Bromeliad Billbergia Nutans in Green Blue Dotted Bulb Vase by Michael W. Moses

The other day I noticed that my Queen's Tears Bromeliad (Billbergia Nutans) is in bloom once more so I clipped three off and put them in one of my ceramic art pottery vases. This particular Green Blue Dotted Bulb Vase is a favorite of mine. It is just perfect for displaying so many different flowers. I was so pleased with the over all effect from this arrangement that I took my camera and fired off a few shots. This is one that I particularly liked.  The colors of the flowers make it look as of I had specifically chosen these colors to match the flowers.

I featured this same vase on my May 31, 2011 blog post showing it with a totally different type of flower.

This vase and the Queen's Tears blossoms are currently on display at our main counter at South Coast Antiques & Gallery in Ocean Springs, MS.  They will be in bloom (with any luck) for about the next three or four days, so if you are in the area stop by and have a look at them up close and in person.

Prints of this image available.

The New Vase I Purchased is Signed by an Unknown Potter

I found this great looking pottery vase at a second hand shop about a week ago or so. Take a good look at this beautiful piece.  This is a very well made piece of pottery having been wheel thrown into a very shapely form. I like this classic shape that makes this work so decorative as well as functional.  A sturdy thick walled vase that has an exceptionally attractive glaze both outside and on the interior. The exterior has a wonderful multi-color glaze that has a really complicated depth to it and the inside has a rich deep blue with very nicely done drip work. When I first saw this vase  I immediately could see it sitting in my home full of beautiful flowers from my garden. So I bought it for my personal pottery collection. 

The crafts person that made this piece did a great job. I have to say, up to a certain point.  Believe me I have much respect for the person that made this work and I do not mean any disrespect to this crafts person, but why in the world did they sign it with just a peculiar squiggle on the bottom?  Were they not proud of this piece?  Were they in a great hurry?  Or did they just not care?   Did they feel that they were so well known that anyone that saw this scribbled glyph would know who made this vessel?



This has been one of my biggest beefs about pottery for over thirty five years now.  I just hate it when I find a beautiful piece of pottery and I have to wonder who made it and where it was made.  This is such a shame. How can one make a piece this nice and not clearly sign their name to it?  A potter can produce thousands of pieces like this and end up an unknown potter. Pottery can survive for thousands of years. I know that this just sounds silly to many people, but it is far from silly. There is vast quantities of pottery out there that is over a thousand years old.  How sad it is to make pottery and have it last for a millennium and no one ever have a clue who created it. I always love to find pottery that has been clearly signed.  It is just a pleasure to be able to pick up a piece of pottery and look on the bottom and be able to factually know exactly who made the piece.  So if you create ceramic works of art PLEASE take a few minutes and add your signature and maybe even where it was made.  I guarantee that collectors will thank you for later down the road!

This is why every piece I make is clearly marked. I hand sign my works of ceramic art pottery and add the place where it was made and even counter stamp my name hidden usually in the design with my own original custom made micro stamp.

If anyone out there in the world wide ether has any idea as to who may have done this piece, please contact me. I would really love to know who made it!

Ceramic Art Pottery Sponge Flower Vase by Michael W. Moses With Flowers

It has been awhile since I have posted anything.  So here I go! The holidays were just as hectic as ever both in and out side of the shop.  I had a very nice holiday season, but I am really relieved that it is over.  I sure hope you also had a very happy holiday season . Today I am sharing an image of my ceramic art pottery sponge flower vase with a special flower in it. I bet very few people can guess what these flowers are. I know I would not even have had a clue as to what they were, if I had not cut them from the plant myself!  These are Rice Paper plant flowers!  I am familiar with the Rice Paper plant, having two of them in my garden.  I had just never seen one of these great plants in bloom.  A friend of mine has a huge area covered in Rice Paper plants and I was at her house and was so surprised to see them all in bloom a day or so after Christmas. I cut a small piece off and took it to my shop South Coast Antiques & Gallery in Ocean Springs, MS and placed it in the Sponge Flower Vase and took a picture of it.  I found this unusual plant to really add an alien touch to this vase.  If this vase looks a bit familiar, it is because it is the same one that I feature on my Blog header,  It looks a little different, because it is seen from a different angle, which shows one of the two large lustrous black alien pearl like appendages attached to this vase.  You can see a couple more images of this piece on my post for Wednesday, April 4, 2011.  Please note that this piece is now available through both South Coast Antiques & Gallery and online at Etsy.