This is an exceptional large jar by Richard Zane Smith. It is coil built and as with much of his pottery, it is the coils that are left exposed to create the textured “corrugated” appearance.  This jar is from 2000.  The shape, design, and coloration are dramatic on this large jar.  The rim is fully polished and the design swirls around to the base of the neck. The jar itself is fully designed with “op-art” style geometric shapes. The linear squares are work perfectly in contrast to the round shape as they spiral up from the base.  Take a closer look and it is possible to see that all the lines are first etched into the clay, and then the design is highlighted with various clay slips to create the color!  The jar is signed on the bottom.  It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, restoration or repair.  Richard said of this period of his work:

“I played around with geometry and a three-dimensional design on the surface of the piece. I used a lot of shading. This is something I’d sketch out first in a notebook and then apply it to the piece.  I’d have to build the pattern in as I go because it’s drying as you coil it, and, being fairly thin, it tends to dry fast. I’d have to have a clear vision of the design, of all the lines and the diagonal lines and the curved lines and the circles. I want my pieces to have a part of me. So when I’m gone there is something left of me here that still speaks.”  Richard Zane Smith, “Spoken Through Clay”