The common knowledge in ceramics starts with very basic study on clay, glaze, and surface techniques, and later corresponds to the desired solutions in fixing problems and consuming theory. The material research will keep its academical status while changing its surroundings from the Universities to the studios, and will start from the body of knowledge, from a professional standing point, of a post-graduate artist. Not everything should be tried hands on the material, but a lot needs to be understood, already during studies.
Specific areas of research, study, and theory consumption aims to being a professional in specific area within the discipline; unless being an professional content provider for materials and theory, all research done in the studio will reach ceramic artworks, which all of the theory will reach eventually, and for the oeuvre or a body of knowledge.
All types of knowledge will eventually reach to an wanted outcome, although it will need a communal library of material knowledge. All ceramic knowledge is ancient, old or universal, even though a personal pursuit will keep it current. To consider all the ceramics knowledge that is shared, a researching artist will be discovered, this within the material and on creating the theory.
Material based art/intellectual property rights over the material; a personal pursuit towards material creates new knowledge, if shared within networks of practice online, it will benefit not only an individual practitioner but the whole networks of practice/the whole professional field of ceramic artists.
As a hypothesis, the knowledge is firstly personal, then professional, then collective, and then personal again, when an artist becomes a knowledge seeker. The structure aims to render the types of theory contents of published articles on ceramics, and other areas such as material mind hack and their consumption as information.
STRUCTURE
BODY OF KNOWLEDGE
Material research processes
information that is given
material research, concrete test series
receiving
-> gain, deepen, documenting, forwarding
-> networking
Ceramic information is given online on different platforms, such as Digitalfire and Ceramic Arts Daily. This information aims to aid all the problems in ceramics such as unstable glazes. Also other information is given, for example on surface techniques, where an artist shares their innovation in a form of an artist-tutorial.
So, this material knowledge process starts with given information, and the test series that follows the received information, where the material research in the studios aims to bring new information for the artist and the artworks; to gain information, deepening the given information for an individual artist's studio practice, documenting the findings for a personal use or to be shared forwards the field of ceramic material knowledge.
Information that is given online is already networking and an artist could join the conversation by citing the used information creator.
B. Material thought processes
to know how things are done
material mind hacking
taking/stealing
-> using one’s professional mind
Material thinking processes are quite the advanced form of receiving information, since it already requires ceramic knowledge that has been gathered during studies and with personal survey. It requires knowledge on how things are done, since the ready artwork you see somewhere might not contain the info about for example the surface technique that has been used. This corresponds well when we are trying to think material mind hacking, trying to think how somebody else has thought material wise. When taking these things in your own artwork this moves in a gray area of fairness, since the technique used has not been shared fairly in form of an artist tutorial - and people fairly ever cite correctly.
In other words:
Body of material knowledge
to study -> to gain knowledge, personal
duplicate, observe
digest, test
adore
doing research -> to gain, communal if shared
making test series
having a goal
wonder, achieve
published own work, having discussion -> professional, communal
published opinion
to comment
original thought -> to forward
Professional standing point
test series, trial and error
given/taken
ever expandable/basics of knowledge
On knowledge exchange
Craft knowledge has always been a communal product/action, (Dormer, 1994 s.7) which can mean the ideologically open access to information. The ceramics knowledge is shared within the networks of practice and this highlights the practitioner-knower or the researcher-artist image; joining the private practices to the discussion of the networks.
This, however, doesn’t cover all invented ceramics knowledge, since a ceramic artist is allowed to have trade secrets. But the material mind hack and test series that start with a trial and error might support the openness, sharing and of course the important citing of the other ceramic artist invented formula or an advanced surface technique, as done in science.
Sharing information and material knowledge that is made communicated benefits not only a single ceramic artist but the whole professional field. There is always the labourful process of seeking information, adjusting it to the studio practice and available materials, firing temperatures and the clay body.