Pottery in Bicholim
Bicholim, a small town in Goa, is rich in the art of pottery and is gifted with a community of craftsmen and artists who have been practicing this craft and passing it on from one generation to another. The story behind the artefacts from this region has been gathered by interviewing various craftsmen who work in these industries. Pottery is one of the oldest known bodies that date back 10,000 years and most widespread of decorative art, consisting of objects made of clay and hardened with heat. [1]
The objects made are commonly useful ones, such as vessels for holding liquids or plates or bowls from which food can be served. [2] Other than this the objects are also used for decorative purposes. The scope of this project is restricted to the study of fired clay vessels in Goa. In this document historical origins of pottery making in the old world and the new world is discussed also raw materials of pottery are covered. Manufacture, trade, decoration and use of pottery among traditional potters today are summarized. The technical characteristics of pottery are described and modern changes in manufacture and use of traditional pottery are covered.
Defining the scope - Pottery can be shaped by a range of methods that include:
Hand building - This is the earliest forming method. Wares can be constructed by hand from coils of clay, combining flat slabs of clay, pinching solid balls of clay or some combinations of these. [3]
The potter’s wheel - In a process called "throwing“, a ball of clay is placed in the centre of a turntable, called the wheel-head, the wheel rotates rapidly while the solid ball of soft clay is pressed, squeezed and pulled gently upwards and outwards into a hollow shape. [3]
Moulding - As the name suggests, this is the operation of shaping pottery by pressing clay into a mould. [3]
The scope of this project is limited to the one process of making these products which are Moulding.
The story behind the artefacts from this region has been gathered by interviewing various craftsmen who work in these industries.
Clay is a natural product dug from the earth, which has decomposed from rock within the earth's crust for millions of years. [4]
It is the basic material of pottery, and has two distinctive characteristics: it is plastic (i.e., it can be molded and will retain the shape imposed upon it) and it hardens on firing to form a brittle but otherwise virtually indestructible material that is not attacked by any of the agents that corrode metals or organic materials. The firing also protects the clay body against the effects of water. If a sun-dried clay vessel is filled with water, it will eventually collapse, but if it is heated, chemical changes that begin to take place at about 500 preclude a return to the plastic state no matter how much water is later in contact with it. [2]
The finished object can be divided into three categories:
• Earthenware, the ordinary pottery dating from primitive times, baked at 700°C or lower.
• Stoneware, fired at up to 1150°C, less porous.
• Porcelain, fired at 1400°C.
