mel jacobson on thu 2 aug 07
several thoughts.
how you shut down your kiln, all depends on the glazes you are firing.
how you fire, when you reduce, when you add oxygen at the end
will all depend on your load. it is never a `always the same way` sort
of thing.
when hank murrow is firing shino he has to consider that we wants
a slow cool and wants to develop wonderful crystal growth in his glazes.
he would not crash cool with oxygen. he would in fact, re/lite the kiln
at 1900f and slow down the cooling. that would ruin celedon. and of
course muddy the temmoku...but, make perfect shino.
clear shinny glazes will benefit from oxygen at the end...so, the best
advice is:
know what you are firing, keep `like` glazes fired together. understand
what happens when you turn off your kiln. that is why so many pots
fired at `art centers` are spotty. too many unhappy glazes fired the wrong
way. some students are happy and dance, others are pissed off at the tech.
typical. no one knows what is going on. just guessing. one firing with
56 different glazes....not a good way to fire.
in fact...at the end of my firings..i add small sticks to my kiln and
close it up tight.
a warm, smokey conclusion. but, i want that sort of reduction.
and, i would re/lite my kiln at 1900. but, there is no celedon, temmoku
or clear glazes in the firing.
the iron saga pots were fired in pure (as close as possible) to an
oxygen rich atmosphere. and, cone 13.
many do not believe me...but then, when you have limited trust
and knowledge...everything seems strange. i know what i do, and
have 700 pots to prove it. i know when david mcbeth fired with me
at the farm...and took home a few dozen perfect iron saga pots, he
became a believer fast. but, to the point....you fire your kiln to make the
glazes do what `you` want. fast fire, slow fire, heavy reduction,
lite reduction,
fast cool, slow cool...crash cool, tight cool. each has a reason and
a different
affect.
often potters are not getting the result they want because they do not know
how to cool their kilns. or, they try the `one size fits all
theory`. never consider
what they are firing, and `how can you make it better`.
tom wirt.
you love to make sets...`BECAUSE YOU CAN`. very few can do what
you do. it is all guess and hope for most. those that are trained,
understand their
craft, love to do detail and make perfect sets because they have been trained
to do it. in your case....you learned from your own desire. you
forced yourself
to be a potter....and, i know....`i watched you do it`. just as
betsy (st. betsy)
learned to glaze and control the firing process. you both ask
questions, you follow
good advice from professionals and you trust your own skill and intelligence.
why can tony clennell do `art pots` in 2007?` because he has all the
skill and knowledge to make anything he ever wants to make. he just has
to make up his mind about what he wants to do. tom wirt and betsy could
decide tomorrow to change everything in their studio...they could become
shino potters, or floating blue potters, or clear glaze potters using
porcelain. they would
master the change in months. they have the knowledge and experience
to make those changes.
the entire field of ceramics starts with science, physics and
engineering. clay, fire,
water....and of course, how those chemicals and natural elements come together
to make pots, or sculpture, or `knick/knacks`... the human has to train the
`self` to make that science work for them. it is a long and wonderful journey.
that is why we stick with it...not because we have a business to run.
it is `the adventure`...if we wanted a business, we would have opened
a bait shop on `lake of the woods`, kicked back and watched the sunset through
the pine trees.
mel
from: mel/minnetonka.mn.usa
website: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/
Clayart page link: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/clayart.html
Edouard Bastarache Inc. on thu 2 aug 07
Hello mel,
"no one knows what is going on, just guessing.
one firing with
56 different glazes....not a good way to fire."
mel
Last time I had close to 150 different glazes
for 200 pots and they all came out fine.
"Impossible n'est pas Français" said Napoleon
(Hehehehehe)
Later,
Edouard Bastarache
Le Français Volant
The Flying Frenchman
Sorel-Tracy
Quebec
http://perso.orange.fr/smart2000/livres.htm
http://www.pshcanada.com/Toxicology.htm
http://www.ceramique.com/cerambooks/rayons/technologie.php
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30058682@N00/
http://myblogsmesblogs.blogspot.com/
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