Good firing. Firing notes for me (and you, if you so choose) and tour of unloading for you.

Kiln pack was semi-normal. Full brick bottom shelf. Sculpture in back from here up, tallest a few inches shy of the roof (not enough for another shelf). Front two shelves stacked straight across and ranging from half to three quarters brick. Top of kiln had highest shelf staggered to better suit the ware available.

Torch-lit far burner with bad thermocouple. Night before, candled about an hour with peeps out to dry the kiln. Fired slowly at the beginning, within 30 degrees top and bottom by the three hour mark and dead even by body reduction. Was half to full hour slow turning up the gas and opening the damper a quarter inch at one point, wanting to keep top and bottom even. That cost some time. Temperature remained even by the numbers but c.1(?) fell 1.5 hours earlier on bottom than top; slowed the kiln down again while trying to even out. This kiln can move fast but it likes to be hotter on the bottom. Cones from there out fell half hour to hour apart, making me wonder why we fire with a pyrometer. Soda went in after c.8 fell on bottom and as it was falling on top. Used a full batch, mixed with pine bedding rather than wood shavings or mulch, seemed like there was extra wood in there, but texture was nice. Two batches, 1.5 on each side then 1.75 each side, recovering temperature in between. Dropped c.10 bottom past 2300 on the pyrometer turned down and dampered in for half hour to drop c.10 top and get a little more soda time, gaining no temperature, before turning off at 16.5 hours.

Good results.

Soda coverage was generally good, and not overly heavy. Bottom blasted, front and top heavy soda, varying elsewhere, the usual. I was worried about getting enough soda to the sculptures in back, but they came out well. The upper shelves had lighter soda away from the front and could have been packed more loosely at the side edges to encourage flow to the middle of the shelf.

Reduction was generally sufficient but didn’t seem overly heavy. The copper red glaze was oxidized or burned out throughout the kiln, though the affected persons were happy with the results. Soda got in a little later than it did on the firings where I’ve gotten excellent reds, but still within the usual window. Other glazes looked good. Carbon trapping at bottom, especially front, and lower edges.

Soda travel seems mostly to be front to back. Soda got over the top of the kiln from the sides and into the lower shelves from the sides; the upper couple of shelves had soda movement front to back with limited less-directional soda. This may have been due to the staggered arrangement. The lower shelves had soda movement front to back but also had a good amount moving back to front as well as from the sides, enough to gloss the primary exposed surfaces. The bottom shelf was distinctly front to back movement.

If I have not previously mentioned, I fire Lillstreet’s soda kiln. Any given kiln is - maybe - a third full of my work, the rest being other students’ work. Typically I’ll lead the loading and unloading teams for ‘my’ kilns - soda students participate to learn more about the process. It works wonderfully if the same team loads and unloads - we can talk about what we think will happen as the kiln gets loaded, and examine each piece on the way out. This kiln has only only a few pieces of mine - twentyish teabowls, some more pods.

And now for the tour:

Unbricked. I had a bunch on the front line. This firing I figured out where and how I wanted every piece loaded, glazed, and wadded, well ahead of time. Not everyone works that way, but it’s easier for me.

Top front. I have a teabowl to the left of the post. I tried three new wadding recipes on the soda teabowls and am pretty pleased with them. Also tried out two new slips on the soda clay, but haven’t run them on the porcelain yet. After seeing the results, they’re worth trying on porcelain too.

Middle front. Lots of my porcelain teabowls. I tried a copper glaze as well as an iron saturate. Both pretty nice, need to do some more. Ran the moon rocks shino again, the one that sugared, but thinner - and while it developed that lovely purple color again, the surface is glossed over, so I’m happy. The carbon trap shino again worked fine but I’m not sure I’m enamoured of it. None of the porcelain is slipped this time, either; I think I prefer some slip on it.

Bottom… blasted with soda, lots of carbon trapping. Not sure how I feel about the carbon trapping on the porcelain yet. Definitely liking it on the soda clay, and that brain crawl shino teabowl at the lower right is fantastic. I don’t know why I didn’t put the front line closer to the edge of the shelf throughout.

Second shelf back at the top; the box at the bottom has half a dozen cups that go with it. They’re pretty sweet together.

Had to pull the work off the next layer down because the bricks were stuck. This is the level below it. Seeing the top of Elena’s sculptures in back, too.

Yes, that’s a lean. The guy on the bag wall is mine; I made up an ash glaze and put it on a couple of the soda clay teabowls. The results were unexpected and perhaps profound. Is that sculpture leaning into the copper glazed vessel? Why, yes it is. All were loaded stably enough. Fortunately the marriage was not permanent. The copper glazed piece was bare on the outside; now it’s gray and pink and tan… I love having copper glaze on porcelain at the back of the kiln.

Here’s the bottom shelf. Directly in front of the flue entrance were a pair of unglazed pieces. One is my mixed reclaim and the other is soda clay. Nice, both. One of my ash glazed pieces is down back as well; it’s also a gem.

Beautiful weather and I was inside all day. The light quality from our north-facing monitor windows was amazing. I wanted to post this photo last night, but was a little tired.

Sometimes I can focus and do a lot of work while I’m firing. Other days, like yesterday, I’m not in the frame of mind to make ten or twenty pieces. So I relaxed, wandered around, talked with people, started some more of the star/jacks, and worked on a long tray I started in Monday’s class as a demo on wet clay molds. I think I like this one, so I’ll probably make another to use as a bisque mold.

The firing went well and smoothly. We’ll unload Tuesday evening. And then the conversation continues, the work cycle starts again, and I’m looking ahead to the next month’s firing.

Though I am firing, I don’t know as much as I’d like about the equipment I’m using. When it just works, this doesn’t matter. When it doesn’t…

Tonight we loaded up the kiln; I have a couple more experiments in there… more porcelain teabowls with shinos, a little cornell iron saturate, the first of my mixed reclaim (that’s another story), a made-up ash glaze (I don’t know a lot about ash glazes either but it’s not stopping me), and a couple more experimental slips. No, I haven’t given you more than a glimpse of the last firing’s work, but I actually have some thoughts to share at this point. Soon.

It’s fun to brick up the kiln door. Good bye, pieces, safe journey, see you on Tuesday.

Burners. Had a bit of a panic; went to candle and sparky on the far burner wasn’t sparking so the burner wouldn’t light, safety equipment turns the kiln off. It took two of us to figure out the non-sparking, since the far burner is audible but invisible from the gas valve. One of the resident artists was still in. Some fussing, call to Lillstreet’s kiln goddess, not finding extra parts to swap out, and more fussing. (If I found anything other than new wires, would I have figured out what to take apart?) In the end, used a torch as a pilot to light the other burner. Candle away.

And then I did an elated happy dance; we found a solution and the firing is still on. It would’ve been schedule havoc for all, otherwise, to push it off. I will be learning burner anatomy shortly, as well as participating in whatever repair is necessary.

The roof of the kiln has been moving, too, to an extent that causes concern. The roof as a whole, perhaps, but definitely some of the individual bricks. Nobody knows if it’s just the wear on the kiln, or if doing longer firings with (18 hours to the normal 14-16, 20-22 on occasion) is causing accelerated wear. It’s been said by some that the roof was never right. I wonder where the problem lies.

In a few short hours I’ll be starting the firing… good night!

“The objects were not designed for deep contemplation but rather as simple expressions of delight, amusement or reverence. They were created by the spirit of the craftsman. Invented and fashioned by an individual for the enjoyment of others.”
Attributed to Alexander Girard

When I read this quotation at the end of an article about Girard, contemporary of Nelson and Eames at Herman Miller, it resonated. While some of my work is decidedly contemplative, other work is made in the spirit of play, and for the latter it serves well as a description.

The apparent need (of some, to be fair) to draw a distinct line between art and craft has long troubled me. So Girard’s words also suggest a descriptive, rather than divisive, means of understanding art and craft. The two needn’t be mutually exclusive. I appreciate that.

I share this quote to accompany my photographic selections for this tired and very warm evening. Rather than put everything, myself included, under the lights, I snapped these two photos of work on my shelves.

Jacks, to 4″ h, handbuilt, stoneware, various flashing slips, c.10 soda fired. Full size here. I’ve been making these sporadically, but for over a year.

Pods in glass vase, 9″ h. overall, handbuilt, stonewares, flashing slips, temoku glaze, c.10 soda fired.
Simply said, I enjoy making these. A lot. I have about two hundred so far.

Tried some new directions in glaze. (And clay, but that’s a long story.)

I like these. Terra cotta with white slip, green glaze inside and out, with the dark glaze over it on the inside and rim. I like the layering of colors and materials, the legs the glaze developed as it ran… and the fact that the foot kept all the glaze off the shelf. Also makes a nice dark line, that’s nice as well. First time I’ve seen this form with a glossy skin.

Another glaze combo, not as wild about the liner glaze combination next to the exterior glaze.

But the inside glaze texture is amazing, so I had to show you. The whole surface is glossy and the glaze thickness is even, but wow. A bit unappetizing, but amazing, and relatively stable, too.

To the other end of the stability spectrum. I am intrigued by these. Kind of enjoy the monolithic quality. The finish is pretty flat, with the heavier overlap picking up some gloss. Under all the glaze are terra cotta cups with white slip. Thank goodness for that foot, otherwise I’d be scraping glaze off of shelves.

Most of my teabowls made it safely into the second dirty firing. (More on that later.) This firing was exciting for a bunch of reasons. First, I used six new flashing slips. Second, I used four new glazes. Third, all these new recipes were applied to new forms. Anything could happen. Loading went well and was a cheerful event: I coached while three of us loaded. Two or three others visited, one bearing beer. Any kiln event should be a social event!

Safe journey, see you in a couple days! Loaded kiln, pre-firing. Click here for full-size image.

Next day was the firing. It went fine. Not completely smoothly, but fine. I worried mid-afternoon for a couple of hours when the kiln started doing its own thing, hoping I wouldn’t be up all night. But the kiln recovered, and so did I. And then there was the time that a piece of wood went in a little too vigorously, landing just shy of the mouth of the burner, shutting the kiln down. Luckily I was still in the room fussing with something, though it took a few minutes to get restarted. (Note to self: reset the electronics first, next time, even though theoretically there are three failed restarts before it’s necessary.) The firing was not such a social event, but Fred and Moji were around to help get the soda into the kiln. Soda can be done solo, but two are always easier. Made it to temperature easily and under good reduction, with enough wood to make it to the end. Added some water post-turn-off as well as burning some more wood. The end sequence was completely improvised, but well enough recorded to repeat. When I left, the outdoor air was perfect for cycling; I rode around the neighborhood for a couple of miles and tumbled into bed at 3am. Just one more reason to fire on Saturday.

First peek. Click here for full-size goodness.

Monday evening, the unloading. Great carbon trapping on glazes. A lot of purple, some black. Not much gray on the porcelain, surprisingly. (Was it the water? I need to do more reading.) Some super-blasted work. Good coverage everywhere. Very well-reduced slips and clays, too. Helmer-based slip went earthy black. And, mysteriously, there was a copper red that seemed to completely oxidize, near the top of the kiln. Glossy sky blue. I was in the kiln, pulling pieces out, and pretty excited about the results. I can’t stand full height in the kiln, so alternated between standing/stooping and crouching.

Success!

Then the cleanup. Cleaning the firebox was a toasty experience; the kiln walls were holding a lot of heat, but Emily would be loading the next day so it had to be done. Did I mention that it was hot? Not bad, a very few glaze runs, the kiln floor had some particularly unhappy spots. Huge thanks to Fred, Mike, and Judy - these three dirty firing enthusiasts each had a bunch of pieces in the kiln. They pitched in for the unloading and cleanup, which was speedy and cheerful. Here they are scraping shelves:

Four pairs of hands make for quick work!

So, though the firing was back on June 21, it’s taken me a long time to digest the results, and I’m still digesting. The teabowls are boxed and at the studio, so I can pull them out for show-and-tell with anyone who missed seeing them. And so that I can pull them out and look at them. There’s a lot to take in.

Next installation: a few results photos and more commentary on the new forms, slips, and glazes.

These three pieces are currently at Womanmade Gallery in current show The Secret.

The opening was concurrent with Drawing on Experience, where I also have one piece. A lot of fun, some good conversations. I circled through the gallery, including the two solo shows, several times. A few pieces caught my attention again and again - so take a look at the online exhibits and see what catches your eye. (Link to Charak’s solo show. Link to Rosen’s solo show.) Sorry not to have any crowd shots to share!

On my mind since then is juror Nancy Charak’s question: what is the difference between drawing and painting? While some media would tend to produce drawings and others tend to produce paintings, this isn’t necessarily true, so the line isn’t drawn there. And there are drawings done in pencil with such amazing gradients that it could be a painting, yet I still call it a drawing. Painting media can create drawings, but can drawing media create paintings? I wonder where watercolor pencils fall. So, the difference between drawing and painting. What do you think?