What is my
motivation?
As artists we do
something that fundamentally satisfies the soul— of
both of the maker and the receiver. it is both an
opportunity and an obligation to think beyond the
pragmatic reasons or at least include abstract,
evocative reasons in our conscious thinking. In the
end I can best speak to my own position.
Whatever I am working on stems from a central
place—that is that this material, this clay has
grabbed hold of me.
But it is only a starting point.
The ever-changing, fluid relationship between
how I work, what I work on and why I am working form
spiraling pathway that surrounds my exploration.
Through which
door I go, which path I follow, is an ever-changing
evolving choice that is in response to observation,
investigation, and reevaluation of my work and my
ideas. It is
the result of asking questions, answering them, and
asking more.
What is my
inspiration?
The process,
the material, and the end result are all
inextricably woven together. One seems to feed
the other. Sometimes I am responding to the
behavior of the clay, sometimes to the process of
rolling and manipulating thin, fabric-like slabs of
porcelain. Sometimes I am trying to solve a
puzzle, express an idea, or investigate my family
history.
What Kind of Kiln
Do I use?
Most of my work is
fired in a 30 cu ft Minnesota Flat Top Car Kiln. It is
fired with natural gas and the firing takes about 16 hours.
I call it my "Stone Soup Kiln". I purchased the kiln
from a potter in the area and moved it brick by brick to my
kiln shed. Over time, for various reasons we have
replace the burners, the roof, brick and the chimney hard
brick. The last modification (we hope) will be to
rebuild the kiln above the damper and the burner ports as a
catenary arch car kiln.
I also have an
electric kiln in my studio which I use for bisque firing and
for cone 9 firings of unglazed porcelain paper clay pots and
sculptures.
Why do I bisque
fire to cone 010?
I bisque to a cooler
temperature because it gives me work that is more porous and
will absorb glaze more quickly. This means that I can
make my glazes thinner and a little goes a longer way.
My bisque firing take about 10 hours.
How do I get good
carbon-trap Shino results?
My glaze application
is very thin, I find that I get more carbon trap in
the areas of the pot where the glaze was thinnest.
I have also found
that I get better results on the pots that are themselves
thinner
I try to apply the
glaze quickly. when a pot gets saturated and takes a
long time to dry I have found that I tend to get too much
soda ash on the rims and shoulders. This can result in
a white frosty result, as if the glaze has gotten foamy.
Sometimes even leaving brittle blisters.
I increase the gas
volume a lot from 012 to 010, and decrease the amount
of air from the burners.
These are
solutions that work for my kiln, my glaze, my clay and my
forms. |
