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Dr. Harris holds a wooden rib he makes and sells from his workshop. CREATIVITY

in two minutes is a beautiful thing. It’s pleas-
urable to do, and it’s mesmerizing to watch.
(See link at end of article.)

The potter’s tools are very simple. The more
skilled the potter, the fewer tools he needs. But
one tool that every potter uses is a “rib.” These
are made of wood or stiff plastic. Old credit
cards make good ribs. Ribs are held in one
hand to scrape or shape the clay while the other
hand pushes against the clay. Ribs used by
American potters are usually quite thin, but
Japanese potters prefer thicker ones. It oc-
curred to me that I could make a thick rib by
shaping a piece of hardwood on the wood-turn-
ing lathe. I tried many shapes and many woods
before settling on a wood called Padauk. It’s
easy to turn, takes a nice finish and has a beau-
tiful red color. These round, thick ribs became
popular, and I started a little business from my
wood shop.

Continued on page 20

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