Kate Johnson on fri 4 mar 05
Our Lili wrote
>Besides totally and absolutely rejecting the notion of "progress" in the
>arts and crafts--as elsewhere--beyond the matter of better tools and more
>knowledge of materials --(better technology) --I find this timeline bit
>dismissive of the greatness of many. I stayed out of the Leach debate,
>having participated in it often enough. But what exactly is wrong with
>someone loving the gentleness of Rie, the elegance of Coper, the strength
>of both Wildenhains work, the opera of Duckworth, Cooper, Lewenstein,
>Wondrausch, Fournier? And wanting to express Self in that language? Why
>exactly is the idiom of ancient China, Japan, Korea, and its more recent,
>individual, but NOT new expressions valid, while the voice of the 1950s
>should be stilled?
Or earlier. As I find myself attempting far earlier styles (though not
so early as ancient Chinese, Japanese, or Korean) I discover a small but
dedicated group on the same or similar path. Mary Wondrausch, Don
Carpentier and Greg Shooner are only three of the well-known names--our list
boasts several others who are exploring these earlier techniques, including
Lili and Vince, Kate Tiler, Rick Hamelin, Trish Messenger, Rudy Tucker and
others, many of whom are adapting these early techniques to very modern
uses.
As in any art, one size doesn't fit all--I'm sure that wasn't what Tony was
saying, but it bears repeating. There are as many paths as there are
potters, almost...
> AND LAST: it is hard to find earthenware glazes without lead in them.
> There are a few in CERAMIC GLAZEMAKING by Richard Behrens, a CM Handbook.
> Some call for barium (easily replaced by strontium) some for
> lithium--which I avoid.
Frustratingly enough, I just got my copy of the Potter's Palette and found
that almost all the glazes that would give the effect I'm after are either
lead-based or crackle/craze on firing. Siiiiigh....
I actually bought a couple of commercial glazes of Amaco's, to try--Amber
and Dark Yellow. They looked GREAT on the test tile--transparent, lovely,
warm. On the ware, I'm getting a milkiness that gets progressively worse
each time I use the glaze, and in once case, pinholing. WEIRD.
>The easiest way to get earthenware glazes, IMO (actually Cannonball agrees)
>is to start with a frit and just add clay and silica at need.
Next up. Actually I DID try a mixture of that sort, that Rudy Tucker
shared with us a while back. (Rudy's samples were a varying mix of red
clay--in his case Poplar Forest--Frit 3110, and 5% Bentonite, as you may
remember.) It worked fine on the test tile, except I didn't get any color to
it--it's just clear, though a good fit, apparently. I'd added red
earthenware clay, but apparently not a sufficient amount.
Lela Martens suggested half redart and half Frit 3124...worth a try there
too, but I'm wondering if I need to buy this frit, too, or if 3110 will
work...
Best Regards,
Kate Johnson
http://www.cathyjohnson.info/
Art, History, Nature and More-- http://www.cafepress.com/cathy_johnson/
Graphics/Fine Arts Press-- http://www.epsi.net/graphic/
| |
|
