I don't remember what prompted it, but when my urge to work in clay resurfaced in 2000, I took a class at a local studio and got busy making carved tableware. First I'd hand-form a thick and clumsy shape, like an unfinished piece or something by a 5-year-old. Then, when it was leather-hard, I'd use carving tools to bring a form out of the blob. I've been revisiting this technique lately and noticed a lot of other potters using it as well. Again, infinite possibilities.