My one of a kind pieces are mostly raku fired. For those of you that are not familiar with raku, a little
bit of information. Raku is an ancient Japanese form of firing in which pieces are fired once (bisqued) then glazed and put
into a kiln and heated to around 1800 degrees. At that point the kiln door is opened and with a pair of tongs the piece is
taken red hot from the kiln and put into a container filled with some type of combustible material (straw, paper, leaves,
etc.) On contact the material ignites. I watch for a few seconds to see when the color begins to change and when it does I
put on a tight fitting lid to "reduce" the oxygen and that's when the magic happens! I'm finding out as the months go by that
so many things can change the outcome of a firing, and every time I think I've got it figured out and that "this time should
be a breeze", surprise!! nothing will come out in the load! I think that's what makes each sculpture even more special, some
may take as many as 3 or 4 firings before I'm happy with how they look.
The crackle pieces are a done a little differently. Instead of putting it into the reduction immediately,
I hold it out for about a minute or so to cool the glaze enough so that it's not liquid anymore. Then I quickly put it in
the can and close the lid so that the smoke darkens any of the raw parts of the clay. After a minute or two I open it, take
the piece out and set it on top of an overturned can. Then I blow on it to cool the glaze really fast to crackle the glaze,
being careful not to torch my eyelashes or eyebrows!! It's then put back in the can and smoked for a while longer to fill
in the cracks with the carbon and "TA DA" a beautiful work of art!! The word "Raku" means enjoyment, pleasure or happiness.
I hope that's what my sculptures bring to you!
If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail me with the link at the bottom of this or any page.
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