Andy Clift on tue 15 jul 08
From: "Claystation Community"
Date: July 11, 2008 11:59:56 AM PDT
Subject: New Post/Thread Notification: Clay Bodies
This post has been forwarded from the Claystation Community Forum
To Reply See: http://claystation.com/forum/showthread.php?t=66
Porcelain - What are my options?
I have acquired some porcelain, and I am trying to figure out my
firing options. I'd love to some naked raku pit firing if that is
possible with porcelain. Any suggestions? I am still very much an
amateur, so any suggested reading on the subject would be appreciated
as well.
Thanks,
Petetree
petetree@bellsouth.net
Antoinette Badenhorst on tue 15 jul 08
Petetree, there are very few firing methods that is not suitable for porcelain. Some porcelains has to be adjusted to get good results in certain fires. Naked raku is a perfect option for porcelain since porcelain brings out texture so well.
I would suggest that you bisque fire higher(at least to^ 05 or even higher...be careful for the maturing of the clay)) so that the clay is more durable for the "rough" handling in the raku kiln. Pay special attention to even thicknesses of the walls and foot and keep your fire evenly throughout. You might loose some in the beginning, but as you get more skilled with it, your successes will grow. Keep us informed with your progress.
--
Antoinette Badenhorst
www.clayandcanvas.com
www.studiopottery.co.uk
-------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Andy Clift
> From: "Claystation Community"
> Date: July 11, 2008 11:59:56 AM PDT
> Subject: New Post/Thread Notification: Clay Bodies
>
>
> This post has been forwarded from the Claystation Community Forum
> To Reply See: http://claystation.com/forum/showthread.php?t=66
>
> Porcelain - What are my options?
> I have acquired some porcelain, and I am trying to figure out my
> firing options. I'd love to some naked raku pit firing if that is
> possible with porcelain. Any suggestions? I am still very much an
> amateur, so any suggested reading on the subject would be appreciated
> as well.
>
> Thanks,
> Petetree
>
> petetree@bellsouth.net
Paul Herman on wed 16 jul 08
Hello Antoinette and Petetree,
Sorry to rain on your parade, but in order for something to be
described as "porcelain" it needs to be fired to the point of being
vitreous. There are no options that include low firing and porosity.
In other words, low fired porcelain clay bodies do not qualify as
porcelain.
I love a good dictionary, and a friend just gave me a new one. It's
three volumes, and a very beautiful and finely made set of books.
Let's do some nit-picking here.
From Webster's Third New International Dictionary, unabridged 1993
edition:
porcelain
1 a : a hard, fine-grained, non porous , sonorous and usually
translucent and white ceramic ware, that has a hard paste body, is
fired at a high temperature, and is used especially for table and
ornamental wares, industrial wares, and especially formerly for dentures
b : soft paste
2 : an article of porcelain
Please note the emphasis on high firing temperature and non-porosity.
Soft paste is fired lower, but still vitreous. It would be good to use
some other description for low fired porous wares. In fact, low fired
porcelain clay bodies are "white earthenware" as far as I can see.
The etymology of the word porcelain is quite remarkable, and if anyone
is interested, I'll dig deeper, and ramble on some more.
Best wishes,
Paul Herman
Great Basin Pottery
Doyle, California US
www.greatbasinpottery.com/
On Jul 15, 2008, at 10:16 AM, Antoinette Badenhorst wrote:
> Petetree, there are very few firing methods that is not suitable for
> porcelain. Some porcelains has to be adjusted to get good results in
> certain fires. Naked raku is a perfect option for porcelain since
> porcelain brings out texture so well.
>
> I would suggest that you bisque fire higher(at least to^ 05 or even
> higher...be careful for the maturing of the clay)) so that the clay
> is more durable for the "rough" handling in the raku kiln. Pay
> special attention to even thicknesses of the walls and foot and keep
> your fire evenly throughout. You might loose some in the beginning,
> but as you get more skilled with it, your successes will grow. Keep
> us informed with your progress.
>
> --
> Antoinette Badenhorst
Lee Love on wed 16 jul 08
On Wed, Jul 16, 2008 at 1:07 PM, Paul Herman wrote:
> Hello Antoinette and Petetree,
>
> Sorry to rain on your parade, but in order for something to be
> described as "porcelain" it needs to be fired to the point of being
> vitreous. There are no options that include low firing and porosity.
> In other words, low fired porcelain clay bodies do not qualify as
> porcelain.
Maybe the correct way to speak about it is primitive firing with a
what is usually a porcelain body?
I am throwing porcelain with stone inclusions at the NCC studio
and iron fire clay in my basement at home. This way, I don't have to
clean the wheels to switch clay.
Will fire the NCC wood kiln on the 23rd.
--
Lee Love in Minneapolis
http://mashikopots.blogspot.com/
http://claycraft.blogspot.com/
"Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground." --Rumi
Christine Campbell on fri 18 jul 08
> Sorry to rain on your parade,
> but in order for something to
> be described as "porcelain" it
> needs to be fired to the point
> of being vitreous. There are no
> options that include low firing
> and porosity.
Paul, but this is the kind of answer that
stops all learning, kills all joy and leaves
the person that asked the question feeling
like a dope.
And ... to what purpose?
He was asking about firing options for a
porcelain clay body ... not asking for the
limitations.
Yes, you can fire this clay body in oxidation,
reduction, raku, pit firing, gas firing, wood
firing and any other way you desire.
You can fire high first, you can fire low, you
can re-fire it until it gives you the results
you want or it cracks and teaches you to stop.
Yes, if you high fire, it will be vitreous but
an underfired body does wonderful things in a
raku or pit firing because the body is so open.
As with everything else in clay, it all depends.
If the work is decorative, you really do not
have to stick to THE RULES ... if it is functional
then YES, you do have to fire to maturity.
So Pete ... have a blast ... play, experiment and
try it every which way you can think of and find
out for yourself what this clay body can and
cannot do.
Chris Campbell - in North Carolina
--
Chris Campbell Pottery LLC
9417 Koupela Drive
Raleigh NC 27615-2233
Designs in Colored Porcelain
1-800-652-1008
Fax : 919-676-2062
website: www.ccpottery.com
wholesale : www.wholesalecrafts.com
Jeff Gieringer on sat 19 jul 08
Petetree,
Don't try to analyze the content of a horse fart with Wikipedia. You
can use a porcelain body for naked raku just like I use white stoneware
for my saggar pieces. Just try to keep the purist happy and don't call
it porcelain, which I don't think you would want to call naked raku
porcelain. Anyway, good luck and let us know how it goes.
Jeff Gieringer
Gatlinburg, TN
--- In clayart@yahoogroups.com, Paul Herman wrote:
>
> Hello Antoinette and Petetree,
>
> Sorry to rain on your parade, but in order for something to be
> described as "porcelain" it needs to be fired to the point of being
> vitreous. There are no options that include low firing and porosity.
> In other words, low fired porcelain clay bodies do not qualify as
> porcelain.
>
Lee Love on sat 19 jul 08
Paul has a point. As Americans, we are good at innovation, but we are
loose and fast with other people's culture. For sake of clear
communication, we need to use terminology properly.
--
Lee Love in Minneapolis
http://mashikopots.blogspot.com/
http://claycraft.blogspot.com/
"Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground." --Rumi
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