Handmade remnant tiles are soaked in cobalt dye and fired to reveal microscopic fractures in the glaze surface, simulating macro and micro views of drying landscape, deltas, flowing tributaries, and cracked soil. An homage to the preciousnessness of water and broken landscapes. 

Each verticle column of tiles are hung separately making this piece modular and adaptable to your ideal location. Shown here: 73" tall x 60" wide; individual tile column: 47" x 3"

Atmospheric River is a revisualization of digital imagery into an ancient material, binding technology with the handmade; the present with the past, and bringing (more) attention to our current climate crisis. Stein used an image acquired on January 4, 2023, at 1:20 p.m. Pacific Standard Time by the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the NOAA-20 satellite as inspiration to make this piece.

Handmade terracotta tiles are the substrate for two glazes that were swirled together in individual ½ cup batches to create the color and line quality. The glaze was poured onto the tile for a generous and fluid application, following hand-drawn lines that charted out the image. The tiles were then fired to cone 5/2200°F in an electric kiln, leveraging the high heat to distort the image and create psychedelic glaze effects that conjure the theory of primordial soup, the galaxy and beyond, rivers, oceans, and other natural phenomena. The blue glaze in this piece is 100% studio bi-product collected in 2022 as a closed-loop sustainability experiment.

The undulating surface of the tile and grid formation references a well-used navigation map and brings the individual into the piece as a player in the climate crisis. It is an introspection on what it means to be a contributing factor to the tragedy of the climate crisis in the Anthropocene Epoch (The Anthropocene Epoch is a proposed geological epoch dating from the commencement of significant human impact on Earth's geology and ecosystems, including, but not limited to, anthropogenic climate change.), marking this moment in time of our collective experience of severe historic weather.

Dimensions: 60" wide x 44" tall x 1.5" deep

Each verticle column of tiles are hung separately making this piece modular and adaptable to your ideal location. 32" x 32" total dimension

Tile rendering (data visualization) of California's annual precipitation in a 1:1 ratio showing inches of rain represented by blue photographic ink fired into glazed surfaces of remnant tile. Each vertical line represents a calendar year, left to right 2010-2021.

Cited from NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Climate at a Glance: Statewide Time Series, published February 2022, retrieved on February 27, 2022 from https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cag/

This series of ceramic "canvases" were made to display the alchemy of glaze materials and the heat of the kiln. They link together the creative process, the material, and the natural world. In the ceramics field, these are considered large-format and are technically challenging to make. The process calls for amping up the tenacity and practicing careful bravery when handling, glazing, and firing them.

A scale shift, they reference ancient clay cuneiforms which are early Mesopotamian and Persian versions of record keeping developed between 3500 and 3000 BCE, and an ironic reference to ubiquitous touchscreen iPad tablets.

The tablets here shift scale and material in an attempt to fossilize, maybe memorialize, temporal gestures of weather and the kiln's heat.

Each tablet is made with 50 pounds of clay pounded into a wooden frame and fired two times in a gas kiln, to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F. The cable system on the reverse allows the tablet to be rotated and hung on any of the 4 sides.

20.25" wide x 26" high x 1.25" thick

Atmospheric River is a revisualization of digital imagery into an ancient material, binding technology with the handmade; the present with the past, and bringing (more) attention to our current climate crisis. Stein used an image acquired on January 4, 2023, at 1:20 p.m. Pacific Standard Time by the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the NOAA-20 satellite as inspiration to make this piece.

100 handmade terracotta tiles are the substrate for two glazes that were swirled together in individual ½ cup batches to create the color and line quality. The glaze was poured onto the tile for a generous and fluid application, following hand-drawn lines that charted out the image. The tiles were then fired to cone 5/2200°F in an electric kiln, leveraging the high heat to distort the image and create psychedelic glaze effects that conjure the theory of primordial soup, the galaxy and beyond, rivers, oceans, and other natural phenomena. The blue glaze in this piece is 100% studio bi-product collected in 2022 as a closed-loop sustainability experiment.

The undulating surface of the tile and grid formation references a well-used navigation map and brings the individual into the piece as a player in the climate crisis. It is an introspection on what it means to be a contributing factor to the tragedy of the climate crisis in the Anthropocene Epoch (The Anthropocene Epoch is a proposed geological epoch dating from the commencement of significant human impact on Earth's geology and ecosystems, including, but not limited to, anthropogenic climate change.), marking this moment in time of our collective experience of severe historic weather.

Collaborators:

Imaging: The original image was scaled and split into two color channels in order to be translated into ceramic material by University of Cincinnati intern Lam Do.

Clay processing: Rose Gitlin rolled and cut over 100 tiles for this piece as well as glaze testing, and overall studio support.

Lead installer: Cleat system and precision layout provided by Tyler Nagel.

Dimensions: 80" tall x 147" wide

Collaborating with the winter rains, the tiles are first coated in a base layer of opaque underglaze and then held under the rain to remove material and create a photographic surface effect. The result is a ghostly image quality with a poetic mood.

Porcelain, underglaze. Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

15.5" high x 3.5" wide x .38" thick

Collaborating with the winter rains, the tiles are first coated in a base layer of opaque underglaze and then held under the rain to remove material and create a photographic surface effect. The result is a ghostly image quality with a poetic mood.

Porcelain, underglaze. Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

10.25" high x 7" wide x .38" thick

Collaborating with the winter rains, the tiles are first coated in a base layer of opaque underglaze and then held under the rain to remove material and create a photographic surface effect. The result is a ghostly image quality with a poetic mood.

Terracotta, underglaze. Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

12" high x 6" wide x .38" thick

This series of ceramic panels are created by collaborating with the winter rains- the handmade tiles are painted with a layer of opaque ceramic pigment and then held under the rain to wash away the pigments to create a spontaneous naturalistic surface effect. The result is a ghostly surface quality with a poetic mood. The tiles are then fired for the second time to permanently fix the moment into a ‘fossil record’ of the northern California rain.

Ferrous clay, ceramic pigments, rainwater. Ready to hang.

Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

22.75" x 14.25"

inventory # 1

This series of ceramic panels are created by collaborating with the winter rains- the handmade tiles are painted with a layer of opaque ceramic pigment and then held under the rain to wash away the pigments to create a spontaneous naturalistic surface effect. The result is a ghostly surface quality with a poetic mood. The tiles are then fired for the second time to permanently fix the moment into a ‘fossil record’ of the northern California rain.

Ferrous clay, ceramic pigments, rainwater. Ready to hang.

Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

22.75" x 14.25"

inventory # 3

This series of ceramic panels are created by collaborating with the winter rains- the handmade tiles are painted with a layer of opaque ceramic pigment and then held under the rain to wash away the pigments to create a spontaneous naturalistic surface effect. The result is a ghostly surface quality with a poetic mood. The tiles are then fired for the second time to permanently fix the moment into a ‘fossil record’ of the northern California rain.

Ferrous clay, ceramic pigments, rainwater. Ready to hang.

Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

20" x 11.5"

inventory # 4

This series of ceramic panels are created by collaborating with the winter rains- the handmade tiles are painted with a layer of opaque ceramic pigment and then held under the rain to wash away the pigments to create a spontaneous naturalistic surface effect. The result is a ghostly surface quality with a poetic mood. The tiles are then fired for the second time to permanently fix the moment into a ‘fossil record’ of the northern California rain.

Ferrous clay, ceramic pigments, rainwater. Ready to hang.

Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

22.75" x 14.25"

inventory # 9

This series of ceramic panels are created by collaborating with the winter rains- the handmade tiles are painted with a layer of opaque ceramic pigment and then held under the rain to wash away the pigments to create a spontaneous naturalistic surface effect. The result is a ghostly surface quality with a poetic mood. The tiles are then fired for the second time to permanently fix the moment into a ‘fossil record’ of the northern California rain.

Ferrous clay, ceramic pigments, rainwater. Ready to hang.

Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

11.5" x 11.5"

inventory # 11

This series of ceramic panels are created by collaborating with the winter rains- the handmade tiles are painted with a layer of opaque ceramic pigment and then held under the rain to wash away the pigments to create a spontaneous naturalistic surface effect. The result is a ghostly surface quality with a poetic mood. The tiles are then fired for the second time to permanently fix the moment into a ‘fossil record’ of the northern California rain.

Ferrous clay, ceramic pigments, rainwater. Ready to hang.

Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

5.75" x 8.5"

inventory # 15

This series of ceramic panels are created by collaborating with the winter rains- the handmade tiles are painted with a layer of opaque ceramic pigment and then held under the rain to wash away the pigments to create a spontaneous naturalistic surface effect. The result is a ghostly surface quality with a poetic mood. The tiles are then fired for the second time to permanently fix the moment into a ‘fossil record’ of the northern California rain.

Ferrous clay, ceramic pigments, rainwater. Ready to hang.

Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

5.75" x 8.5"

inventory # 17

This series of ceramic panels are created by collaborating with the winter rains- the handmade tiles are painted with a layer of opaque ceramic pigment and then held under the rain to wash away the pigments to create a spontaneous naturalistic surface effect. The result is a ghostly surface quality with a poetic mood. The tiles are then fired for the second time to permanently fix the moment into a ‘fossil record’ of the northern California rain.

Ferrous clay, ceramic pigments, rainwater. Ready to hang.

Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

5.75" x 8.5"

inventory # 18

This series of ceramic panels are created by collaborating with the winter rains- the handmade tiles are painted with a layer of opaque ceramic pigment and then held under the rain to wash away the pigments to create a spontaneous naturalistic surface effect. The result is a ghostly surface quality with a poetic mood. The tiles are then fired for the second time to permanently fix the moment into a ‘fossil record’ of the northern California rain.

Ferrous clay, ceramic pigments, rainwater. Ready to hang.

Fired two times in an electric kiln to a top temperature of cone 5/2200°F

5.75" x 8.5"

inventory # 19

Handmade panels made of iron-rich clay, hand cut, custom batch poured glaze. This piece is reminiscent of clouds, maps, shorelines, weather patterns, and bodily silhouettes, honoring the beauty of the natural world.

Handmade panels made of iron-rich clay, hand cut, custom batch poured glaze. This piece is reminiscent of clouds, maps, shorelines, weather patterns, and bodily silhouettes, honoring the beauty of the natural world.

Handmade panels made of iron-rich clay, hand cut, custom batch poured glaze. This piece is reminiscent of clouds, maps, shorelines, weather patterns, and bodily silhouettes, honoring the beauty of the natural world. Framed in raw oak.

16.75" wide by 43" tall (including frame)

Handmade panels made of iron-rich clay, hand cut, custom batch poured glaze. This piece is reminiscent of clouds, maps, shorelines, weather patterns, and bodily silhouettes, honoring the beauty of the natural world.