mel jacobson on sat 28 feb 04
old dog, new trick.
old dog, new trick.
great potter, with better technique.
nice.
i must join in here and remind folks
how many times i have mentioned the
work of firing down and how much i have
gained in my life from hank murrow.
tony will be a convert.
i am.
there are better ways of firing. slow cooling
in many cases is perfection. listen to ron and john.
for some glazes it does not work...temmoku and
celedon suffer from it.
but, if you know your glazes, pack your kiln
for firing down....you will never go back.
i am so pleased that tony tried it. i am pleased
that kurt is getting better firings with some new
firing strategy. and, remember, the glazes are different.
one cannot look at what you did three years ago and expect
the today pots to look that way. look for the new, get used
to it.
we are never to old to branch out, try new things...look
to good science and combine that with natural talent
and creative thought.
having skill, scientific knowledge and using those
tools will never never never cause you to be
NON-CREATIVE. that concept..that is often spouted
by folks that do not have skill or knowledge is the
world's greatest bullshit. (well, there are seven others)
racial prejudice and religious zealotery lead that list.
well, anyway.
i am happy for tony. when your life's blood is on the
line...it takes courage to step on new sidewalks.
mel
From:
Minnetonka, Minnesota, U.S.A.
web site: my.pclink.com/~melpots
or try: http://www.pclink.com/melpots
new/ http://www.rid-a-tick.com
Hank Murrow on sat 28 feb 04
On Feb 28, 2004, at 5:29 AM, mel jacobson wrote:
Snip.........
> i must join in here and remind folks
> how many times i have mentioned the
> work of firing down and how much i have
> gained in my life from hank murrow.
Snip.......
> we are never to old to branch out, try new things...look
> to good science and combine that with natural talent
> and creative thought.
And the Hank mentioned above should point out
that he was firing for 28 years before trying
the soak in oxidation. And 33 years before trying
a cone 10 oxidation fire. Please God may I have
enough years to get this right. My personal firing
prejudices were a long time in dissolving into
a more inclusive r=E9gime!
Cheers, Hank in Eugene=
Lee love on sun 29 feb 04
mel jacobson wrote:
> there are better ways of firing. slow cooling
> in many cases is perfection. listen to ron and john.
> for some glazes it does not work...temmoku and
> celedon suffer from it.
Firing down helps make up for some of the deficiencies of a softbrick
electric kiln and controllers help make it easier. In traditional,
large, hard brick kilns, where you cool for 3 days to 2 weeks, you don't
even have to think about it. Computers, pyrometers and Ron & John help
us correct the shortcomings of our modern equipment. .
And of course, as you mention, speed of cooling really depends upon your
clay and glazes. Euan Craig crash cools to 1100*C to avoid crystal
formation in his high silica clay and to help keep the color in his
porcelaineous clay body . Remember, slow cooling helps crystals develop.
I am not convinced that fast cooling causes clay body problems in my
clay, but I have fired both ways and have dis coved that I have more red
fire color when I fast cool.
> we are never to old to branch out, try new things...look
> to good science and combine that with natural talent
> and creative thought.
Science and knowledge are tools. The problem is never in the tools but
the way they are used. (Did you hear about the Space Station space walk?
The American and Russian astronauts took a space walk to install
scientific equipment on the outside of the space station. For the first
time, they made a space walk without an astronaut staying behind to
monitor things just in case there was problems. And there were problems
with the Russian's space suit! It is stupid what we are doing to the
space program because our government doesn't have its priorities straight!)
> having skill, scientific knowledge and using those
> tools will never never never cause you to be
> NON-CREATIVE. that concept..that is often spouted
> by folks that do not have skill or knowledge is the
> world's greatest bullshit.
I've never heard anybody here speak against, skill, science and tools. I
have only offered alternative techniques. There is a need for a
diversity of approaches, and an appeal that folks don't totally turn
their backs on traditions that have been built upon for over 17,000
years. I don't know why folks feel threated because there is not "One
True Way" of knowledge.
One ofthese diverse ways is described by Shoji Hamada. Here are a few of
his words about the topic:
"I did not choose to use my technical training when I went to Mashiko. I
did not need it. My work materialized by merely adjusting myself to the
conditions there.
I have used the clay and glazes of Mashiko and have never given up the
objective of making first-class work from impure , lower-rated natural
materials. I thought it was much better than doing second- or
third-class work with top rated, chemically purer materials."
This is an age old and tested way that fewer and fewer people know about
and even fewer people practice.
What is so wonderful about working in clay is that there are so many
approaches and so many different ways to explore.
> i am happy for tony. when your life's blood is on the
> line...it takes courage to step on new sidewalks.
As I said above, knowledge and science are developed in many ways. If we
read Hank's explanation, (read for yourself here:
http://www.ceramicsmonthly.org/mustreads/shinofire.asp) , on how he
discovered and perfected cooling and holding temp, we discover that he
did it by using a very traditional method: by the drawing of test rings
from the kiln as the kiln cooled.
So what we have to thank, along with Hank's natural curiosity, is the
combination of the old method of pulling test rings, combined with
checking the temperature against a pyrometer.
I've been planning on trying Hank's method since I first heard him talk
about it. I even included side ports on my kiln design, specifically so
I could add oil drip burners for the heat work at the end of the cool
down. (you really don't want to add ash with wood firing at this temp..)
My plan is to quick cool to 1100*C and then firer up the oil ladders for
holding.
And always, the work never lies. If you let the work speak for itself,
there is no mistaking gems for bullshit.
Lee In Mashiko
Lee@Mashiko.org
http://Mashiko.us
"With Humans it's what's here (he points to his heart) that makes the
difference. If you don't have it in the heart, nothing you make will
make a difference." ~~Bernard Leach~~ (As told to Dean Schwarz)
Lee love on sun 29 feb 04
Hank Murrow wrote:
>
> enough years to get this right. My personal firing
> prejudices were a long time in dissolving into
> a more inclusive régime!
My kiln certainly has taught me a lesson or two. It has taken me
too many firings for me to realize that I can't "man-handle" it. The
more I listen to what she needs, the better the work turns out. I
just have to learn to listen better.
--Lee in Mashiko, Japan
http://mashiko.us
"It seems to me what you lose in mystery you gain in awe" -- Francis Crick
Steve Mills on sun 29 feb 04
Like you I have learnt that a Kiln will always tell you what it needs.
All you have to do is learn the language!
In message , Lee love writes
> My kiln certainly has taught me a lesson or two. It has taken me
>too many firings for me to realize that I can't "man-handle" it. The
>more I listen to what she needs, the better the work turns out. I
>just have to learn to listen better.
>
>--Lee in Mashiko, Japan
> http://mashiko.us
>
> "It seems to me what you lose in mystery you gain in awe" -- Francis Cri=
>ck
--
Steve Mills
Bath
UK
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