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a brief write up of one of the raku firings i participated in: only at quiblit.com

what’s the best way to spend a 90° day? why, outside, throwing 1800° pots into a trash can full of straw! what, you had to ask?

yesterday was the first time i’ve participated in a raku firing. and it was a hell of a lot of fun. i’ll definately sign up for the next one. anyway, here’s some pictures. enjoy!

first things first. gotta practice moving pots:

pots are red-hot and ready to move to the cans for reduction:

what happens when red-hot pots are thrown on hay? fire!

once the pots are all in the can, we close the lid and let them reduce:

and then, after about half an hour, we’ve got the find everything hidden in the smoldering straw:

one of the best features of raku firing is instant gratification. or sorrow, if your pot cracks from the thermal shock. lucky for me, the kiln gods liked me and all 5 of my pots survived:

small bowl; Roger’s Black (Stoneware/Raku)

large bowl; Red-Bronze (Stoneware/Raku)

squared bowl; White Crackle (Stoneware/Raku)

tea cup; Hawaiian Blue (Stoneware/Raku)

vase; Copper Penny (Stoneware/Raku)

will be this sunday. i’m looking forward to it, as fire is prominently involved. plus, instant results! no waiting for the kiln. pots go in the fire, come out, and (once cooled) are all done. granted, i’m not sure if i’ll be overfond of raku, since it’s non-functional. but hey, it’s worth at least one try. besides, i get to use different glazes and slips. we’ll see how it comes out.

this week’s batch of pots. the oilspot ran a bit (er, a lot, acutally) and my attempt to manufacture purple on the interior of the tea bowls failed (too much cobalt carbonate and not enough reduction). on the other hand, the temmoku came out damn near perfect. enjoy:

Planter/Cache Pot: Gustin Shino w/wax resist

Vase: Oilspot combo

Pair of tea bowls: Light Blue Matte exterior; Oxblood w/cobalt carbonate interior

Small bowl: Red Shino

Bowl: Temmoku

a few photos of what i’ve been up to of late, in the studio:

Spherical bowl; Spodumene w/Temple White

Vase; Spodumene

Spherical bowl w/altered rim; Crazy Green

Small bowl w/altered rim; Mamo

Pair of small bowls; Mamo exterior, Oxblood interior

Pair of small bowls; Light Blue Matte w/SJ Black rims

Fruit bowl; Spodumene w/Temple White interior

looking for a bit of inspiration, i’ve been, on and off, flipping through a book called 500 Bowls, to get ideas. the book consists mostly of photographs, with some technical details, as well as the potter’s name. a few quotes from potters are scattered throughout. they range from the technical to the amusing (one guy’s quote regarding a piece labeled “soup bowl” states it was “inspired by my love of soup”. nice! i like the bowl too) through the overly autobiographical and into the absurdly pretentious (such as the quote accompanying a hideous bowl with a dirt brown interior and what looks like a mushroom plunked in the center: “Working with the theme of premature death, this work presents the golden egg of birth, death, and the gift of the near-death experience.” er, no. it’s just rather ugly).

however, i’ve noticed something interesting and, likely, telling about me. that is a very strong aversion to the non-functional pieces. very few of them are appealing to me. now, i know that taste is a matter of taste. yet, what i find most unappealing in them is the very lack of functionality. to me, much of the beauty of a ceramic piece, such as a bowl, stems from how well it is suited to performing its function. the lines of the bowl, the curve, the shape; all are more important than how it is glazed, or what sculptural bits have been stuck to it. it is, after all, a bowl; thus is should work like one.

these pieces that i’m turned off by also tend to be made by those who identify, not as potters or ever ceramicists, but as “ceramic artists”. this, also, irks me. it harkens back to the old argument between the artist and the artisan. for whatever reason, people still seem to subscribe to the myth that something must be non-functional to be art. furthermore, that pure “art” is somehow of greater value. well, i think that’s bullshit. art is not seperate from craft. it is an inherent part of it. it is what drives the craftsman to create works that are beautiful and useful. to remove that element of usefulness is to pull the heart out of the medium. form does not merely follow function. form is born of function. without it, form is twisted, ugly and dead.

i have no desire to be an artist. i do aspire to be an artisan, to be a good craftsman. i’d much rather my work be displayed on someone’s table, than in any gallery.

as for the book, despite the minor irksome bits, there are some great bowls in it.

of late (that is, since i purchased it) i’ve been reading and re-reading john britt’s The Complete Guide to High Fire Glazes: Glazing & Firing at Cone 10. truly a fascinating book. glazing has been one of the areas where i’ve not quite had a firm grasp of what was going on. part of this ignorance may stem from my status as a student: i have no control over what glazes are available to me for use, nor over the firing cycle. still, knowing more about glazing and firing is only going to help me improve my own work. hence the study.

probably the most important lesson i’ve gleaned from it so far is just how damned important glaze application is. again, it does depend on the glaze. however, it’s very useful to know that i may not have gotten the results i expected because the glaze coat was too thin. or that my glaze may have crawled because i applied it a bit too thickly. additionally, knowing how the colorants, for instance, affect each other is going to help me gauge what glaze combinations may yield interesting results.

the downside is that, not having my own studio and kiln, i cannot try out some of the really fascinating glazes and techniques in the book. for example, since i cannot request a slow cooling to the glaze firing, i won’t be able to get any macrocrystaline effects. at least, untill i’m at a point where i do have my own kiln. then i can really play.

anyway, even if you aren’t actually making pottery, i’d recommend looking through this book. provided the craft itself interests you. at the very least, it will help you appreciate it all the more.

i’m looking at a (more accurately, the) demitasse cup i made earlier this year. it was an afterthought, as far as creation goes. just a way to use up clay left over on the wheelhead from throwing teapot spouts. yet it came out well, and now i drink coffee from it most mornings. this, naturally, means i need to make more (having only one). not only for my own use, but i need to practice throwing off the stack (or hump, depending on who you ask).

so, an examination of the shape is in order. how to improve it. two flaws in the existing piece: the foot and the handle. as far as the cup itself, the size is near perfect, as is the weight. the foot, however, is about a quarter inch too wide. as for the handle, it’s too large and has consequently is a shape more fitting a larger cup.

i think about shapes often. bowls, plates, cups, pitchers, etc.. the taper of a bowl edge, whether it should be steep and narrow or wide and shallow. what uses are best suited by what shapes? where should a handle go? all of these things are important in the design of a piece. whether i think about them because of my love of pottery, or i love pottery because i think of these things is unclear. likely a mixture. no matter. i still find it important. so much so, that i’ll pick up nearly every piece of dinnerware or vase, etc. in a housewares store.

shape defines not only look and use, but how a thing should feel in the hand. feel and fit. this is what i’m striving for: something that feels like a part of your hand. to accomplish this, what is essential to keep in mind is how you hold things. cups, for instance, are round for two reasons: the first is that wheel-thrown ceramics and blown glass produce round shapes. yet, those shapes are easy to alter (i square off bowls often). the second it the natural curve of our hands. this makes round shapes more pleasing to hold. try it yourself. i’m certain you’ll agree. even with a handle on a cup or mug, we still often want to hold the actual cup. i know i’m not the only one who will wrap his hands around a mug, fingers slipped through the handle.

with a cup for a hot beverage though, handles are essential. after all, burns suck. so, back to my demitasse cup. because it’s small and light (only should hold about 2oz.) i find i can only comfortably fit one finger through the handle. herein lies the flaw. the shape is better suited to accomadate two fingers, though scaled down a bit. i hold it, though, with one through the handle and one directly under it, supporting. however, the curve is not well designed for this. what i need to do, then, is create the handle with this method of holding it in mind. this will allow my natural inclination as to how to hold it feel, well, natural. the next step in my learning of this craft: how to alter the basic forms to suit function.

i’ve noticed my handles tend to skew to the left. now, considering that i’m right-handed, this isn’t a problem so far as function goes. actually a bit more comfortable, as they conform to the curve of my fingers. aesthetically, though, this is bothersome. mostly because i’m unsure why. i’ll have to ask in class this week. not sure if it’s something in my pulling technique or when i attach the handle to the cup. something do to with shrinkage? likely not, because it seems fairly consistant. so i’m guessing it’s my technique.

going to play with copper oxide this week too. didn’t put the iron oxide on my ginko leaf impressions thickly enough last round, so they don’t show through the glaze. but, light matte blue accent on the shaner clear is a very nice combonation. will likely try that again. should have two pieces finished this week; my first use of the shino glazes. need to find which of the available glazes is a good green. not as many earth tones available to me at this new place, but i’ll find stuff the i like. eventually.

feels good to be back in tune with the wheel. took a little bit, but i feel i’m back at the level i was before moving. practice, practice. going to try my hand at tea pots again after turkey day. they’re a pain, but i like the challenge.