About - Kotai Technical

BELA KOTAI

Of Hungarian parents but born in Germany in 1947, I arrived in Western Australia with my family in 1950. Trained in ceramics with father Francis Kotai and later graduated from Curtin University with a degree in Design. Throughout the span of my career I have worked as a professional potter, artist in clay, teacher and an academic administrator. Since the early seventies to the present time, I have pursued my artistic practice by exhibiting ceramics in solo and joint shows locally, nationally and internationally. An accredited Master Craftsman and Fellow of the Crafts Council of Western Australia, I have held lecturing positions at Kalgoorlie College and Central Institute of Technology and held academic administrative positions including Head, Claremont School of Art and foundation Director of the Western Australian School of Art, Design and Media. Currently I am a lecturer in ceramics at North Metropolitan TAFE in Western Australia.

As an active advocate for the arts, I have served on numerous public arts committees including the board of the Festival of Perth and have chaired the Ministerial Arts Advisory Board. Awarded a Creative Development Fellowship from the WA Department of Culture and the Arts and for three months in 2011 was a resident at the Anderson Ranch in Colorado USA. I am dedicated to spreading awareness that clay is one of the prime mediums of visual expression. It is a central principle of my teaching and my artistic practice.

About the Throwmaster

Not long after I damaged my back in the mid 1980’s, I invented the Throwmaster so I could continue making large forms.

Until that time, I was throwing big pots directly from the wheelhead by centering and pulling up large and very stiff pieces of clay. The back injury meant it was not possible to do that anymore. I tried making composite pots and wasn’t happy with the results. An alternative needed to be found and I began making pots using the coil and throw method. Initially this too was unsatisfactory. I had difficulty getting the wall thickness uniform and because I was throwing dry, difficulty keeping the skin on the tips of my fingers. I thought of using skids fixed onto some sort of holding device and realised the drag factor would be far too high to hold them steady. This was followed by the realisation that rollers would be a far better option and I made the first prototype.

Coil and throw is now my preferred method for making large pots.

The repertoire of large forms possible using coil and throw with the Throwmaster includes and exceeds anything that can be made using other common methods. The control of shape is far greater, the weight of finished pieces less and the losses of pots during the process of making and firing is greatly diminished.

BELA KOTAI

About the Throwmaster

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