Champa Kate on mon 2 jun 08
I have an invitation to do a raku "performance" at a "Day of
Inspiration" at a local corporation. I'm trying to figure out if it
is in any way possible to have them make stuff and fire it the same
day. I don't want a popcorn kiln however! Any suggestions? Anyone
know of a clay so durable that we can make & bake in an 8 hour day?
Or other suggestions for making this about more than the excitement
of firing a firey kiln and the communal process of firing. I know I
can make a batch of tea bowls and have them glaze them that morning
but those are not their creations. Don't know if I can come in a few
days before and have them make stuff I can then bisque but perhaps
that's a possibility.
Kate Champa, R.I.
Tony Ferguson on mon 2 jun 08
Kate,
Raku--Heavy grogged and mica stoneware body with high % of fire clay in it is your best bet. They will have to make the work, you will have to immediately start drying it and glaze either when they are leather or bone dry. You could single fire (thinking tea bowls right?) them so the firing is all in one shot. You could, once glazed, fire it in 3-5 hours and then pull them). I would TEST first to see the limits of the body and glaze. It can be done but very carefully. Many factors.
Tony Ferguson
Champa Kate wrote: I have an invitation to do a raku "performance" at a "Day of
Inspiration" at a local corporation. I'm trying to figure out if it
is in any way possible to have them make stuff and fire it the same
day. I don't want a popcorn kiln however! Any suggestions? Anyone
know of a clay so durable that we can make & bake in an 8 hour day?
Or other suggestions for making this about more than the excitement
of firing a firey kiln and the communal process of firing. I know I
can make a batch of tea bowls and have them glaze them that morning
but those are not their creations. Don't know if I can come in a few
days before and have them make stuff I can then bisque but perhaps
that's a possibility.
Kate Champa, R.I.
Tony Ferguson
315 N. Lake Ave. Apt 312
Duluth, MN 55806
...where the sky meets the lake...
Artist, Educator, Photographer, Film Maker, Web Meister
fergyart@yahoo.com
(218) 727-6339
http://www.tonyferguson.net
Champa Kate on tue 3 jun 08
Good thoughts and much like I was thinking. If I'm lucky, I can get
the corporate types to invite me to come back so they can raku fire
the things they make on the day of the first firing. I can work with
them to make something, and I too was thinking slumped (over rocks)
and stamped, while the kiln is firing up.
Maybe no more than 4 raku glazes?
Thanks,
Kate
On Jun 3, 2008, at 4:13 PM, John Post wrote:
> I understand your goal of wanting to be able to go from making
> something in clay to firing it in a Raku kiln in the same day. But
> with a bunch of people getting their first experience making something
> in clay, there may be many problems with that approach.
>
> Beginners tend to work thick, heavy and uneven. If they could work
> thin, uniform and light they would dry out more quickly but that isn't
> likely to happen.
>
> If I was working with beginners and I wanted them to come away with a
> couple of decent products, I would have one bisque piece ready for
> them to use with Raku glazes. Pencil holders or something simple they
> could use on their desk at work. I would design it so I could fit
> lots of them in the kiln at once so that loading, unloading and firing
> could go quickly. Give them a bunch of glaze choices and explain how
> a simple design is often the most compelling.
>
> Then I would have them make some kind of slumped or humped slab tray
> with textures stamped in with bisque stamps. I would fire these slab
> pieces in an electric kiln later with a nice glaze that breaks over
> the edges of the textures. At the end of the day the participants
> would take home their Raku pencil holder. A week or two later I would
> deliver their finished slab pieces.
>
> The participants would thus get to make and glaze something in one
> day, but just not complete all of the process on one piece.
>
> John Post
> Sterling Heights, Michigan
>
> :: cone 6 glaze website :: http://www.johnpost.us
> :: elementary art website :: http://www.wemakeart.org
> :: etsy sales website :: http://www.johnpost.etsy.com
Info khmerceramics on tue 3 jun 08
Hi Kate,
We propose in our workshops for tourist a 3 hours raku workshops; 1 hour to
make pots; one our drying and one hour firing.
It works and never had popcorns.
We use a local clay that you can compare with a fire clay; we grog it at
20%. Grog is made with the same clay; melt with many risk hulks (of course
fired and crushed)
We sieve the grog in ~60 mesh (using local silk scraps).
We dry the pots over the kiln ~30 minutes; we glaze it; and finish the
drying 30 minutes more.
We put the pots in kiln (small gas 64 liters in fiber) and let the door open
few minutes; we close the door slowly step by step.
As I said we never had popcorn.
I don't like this way to works.
We develop this technique to fit a need of our valuable visitors.
That's all I know about but it works.
Serge
Serge Rega
Director
NCKCR
+855(0)63 761 519
www.khmerceramics.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Champa Kate"
To:
Sent: Tuesday, 03 June, 2008 4:12
Subject: Indestructible raku clay
>I have an invitation to do a raku "performance" at a "Day of
> Inspiration" at a local corporation. I'm trying to figure out if it
> is in any way possible to have them make stuff and fire it the same
> day. I don't want a popcorn kiln however! Any suggestions? Anyone
> know of a clay so durable that we can make & bake in an 8 hour day?
>
> Or other suggestions for making this about more than the excitement
> of firing a firey kiln and the communal process of firing. I know I
> can make a batch of tea bowls and have them glaze them that morning
> but those are not their creations. Don't know if I can come in a few
> days before and have them make stuff I can then bisque but perhaps
> that's a possibility.
>
> Kate Champa, R.I.
Kim Hohlmayer on tue 3 jun 08
Hi, Kay,
If you have them work fairly thin and have access to an oven and preheat to the point of The work being too hot to touch, it might work. I would not however try to glaze the pieces.
instead try putting a wash of copper oxide or carb on the piece and then have them try to burnish the piece. They can even achieve color by just burnishing the piece with a smooth piece of copper or brass as the roughness of the clay abraids the copper or brass and collects it on the surface of the piece.
You could also make up some pieces ahead and bisque those so they also get the joy of a raku glaze firing. They don't even need to be something as large and nice as tea bowls although that would certainly be lovely of you.
I almost forgot to mention that you can get mica (between 200 and 325 mesh) and let them burnish that into the surface. Most of us on the planet love sparkly things.
Temperature wise on the firing, you might want to let the raku kiln cool a bit more than usual between firings to reduce some of the thermal shock, although I for one cannot give any guaruntees on how this will work. Still, I have made a habit of pushing clay bodies when I have been in production. However, since I make small things (beads and tiny bottles and other small works) it is a lot easier to make something, stick it in a regular oven then toss it in kwith the rest of my already warming bisque kiln without blowing anything up. Hope this is some help. --Kim
Lee Love on tue 3 jun 08
There was an article in CM years ago, where a guy wet fired freshly
thrown work. He wrapped the work in aluminum foil. I understand in
the porcelain industry, from John Reeve's studies in England, that
they fast fire in pressurized kilns, holding the humidity high and
lowing it over time. That may be how the alumina wrap helps wet work
fire. It would be worth experimenting with.
--
Lee Love in Minneapolis
http://mashikopots.blogspot.com/
http://claycraft.blogspot.com/
"We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is
rounded with a sleep." --PROSPERO Tempest Shakespeare
John Post on tue 3 jun 08
I understand your goal of wanting to be able to go from making
something in clay to firing it in a Raku kiln in the same day. But
with a bunch of people getting their first experience making something
in clay, there may be many problems with that approach.
Beginners tend to work thick, heavy and uneven. If they could work
thin, uniform and light they would dry out more quickly but that isn't
likely to happen.
If I was working with beginners and I wanted them to come away with a
couple of decent products, I would have one bisque piece ready for
them to use with Raku glazes. Pencil holders or something simple they
could use on their desk at work. I would design it so I could fit
lots of them in the kiln at once so that loading, unloading and firing
could go quickly. Give them a bunch of glaze choices and explain how
a simple design is often the most compelling.
Then I would have them make some kind of slumped or humped slab tray
with textures stamped in with bisque stamps. I would fire these slab
pieces in an electric kiln later with a nice glaze that breaks over
the edges of the textures. At the end of the day the participants
would take home their Raku pencil holder. A week or two later I would
deliver their finished slab pieces.
The participants would thus get to make and glaze something in one
day, but just not complete all of the process on one piece.
John Post
Sterling Heights, Michigan
:: cone 6 glaze website :: http://www.johnpost.us
:: elementary art website :: http://www.wemakeart.org
:: etsy sales website :: http://www.johnpost.etsy.com
Kim Hohlmayer on wed 4 jun 08
Hi Kate,
It's me again. If you glaze the same day, I would go with one glaze that is your most reliable and flashy. If you do the "make it one day and bring it back to glaze and fire it another" plan, four glazes sounds great. --Kim H.
Champa Kate wrote:
Good thoughts and much like I was thinking. If I'm lucky, I can get
the corporate types to invite me to come back so they can raku fire
the things they make on the day of the first firing. I can work with
them to make something, and I too was thinking slumped (over rocks)
and stamped, while the kiln is firing up.
Maybe no more than 4 raku glazes?
Thanks,
Kate
On Jun 3, 2008, at 4:13 PM, John Post wrote:
> I understand your goal of wanting to be able to go from making
> something in clay to firing it in a Raku kiln in the same day. But
> with a bunch of people getting their first experience making something
> in clay, there may be many problems with that approach.
>
> Beginners tend to work thick, heavy and uneven. If they could work
> thin, uniform and light they would dry out more quickly but that isn't
> likely to happen.
>
> If I was working with beginners and I wanted them to come away with a
> couple of decent products, I would have one bisque piece ready for
> them to use with Raku glazes. Pencil holders or something simple they
> could use on their desk at work. I would design it so I could fit
> lots of them in the kiln at once so that loading, unloading and firing
> could go quickly. Give them a bunch of glaze choices and explain how
> a simple design is often the most compelling.
>
> Then I would have them make some kind of slumped or humped slab tray
> with textures stamped in with bisque stamps. I would fire these slab
> pieces in an electric kiln later with a nice glaze that breaks over
> the edges of the textures. At the end of the day the participants
> would take home their Raku pencil holder. A week or two later I would
> deliver their finished slab pieces.
>
> The participants would thus get to make and glaze something in one
> day, but just not complete all of the process on one piece.
>
> John Post
> Sterling Heights, Michigan
>
> :: cone 6 glaze website :: http://www.johnpost.us
> :: elementary art website :: http://www.wemakeart.org
> :: etsy sales website :: http://www.johnpost.etsy.com
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