cwarzecha Posted September 4, 2013 Report Share Posted September 4, 2013 I'm looking for a recipe for a buff stoneware clay body recipe. I'm going to be making a scupture from many large slabs, about 2-2.5 feet long, 5-6 inches wide, and between 3/4 of an inch and 1 inch think. I know I need a lot of grog to prevent it from warping. I'd like to prevent shrinkage as much as possible as well. I'm having trouble finding a very reliable clay body (perhaps one people making tiles would use)? I know many people have had success making large, thick slabs that don't warp, so if anyone has any suggestions for that process as well, that would be great. Thanks!! Oh, I should clarify--oxidation firing no higher than cone 6. Also, it could be eartherware too I suppose, I really can't make up my mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biglou13 Posted September 4, 2013 Report Share Posted September 4, 2013 who ru? where u from? so we can suggest localish products a little more information on project? (unless you want a vague answer) like this) google alfred univ. raw materials... http://ceramicartsdaily.org/community/topic/4439-pounding-vs-rolling-slabs/page-2?do=findComment&comment=40352 consensus is dry slowly, more so evenly do you have access to a kiln larger than 2.5 feet? i just recently made my own clay. so im interested. (its not as hard and crappy a task as many will tell you) will this piece go outdoors? so we can suggest clay with low absorption, at given cone.... what clays have you tried that you like? what made them failures to you? why earth vs stoneware? ps(yes, im only being partially sarcastic..... but a more info will yield better results.) pictures (eg gallery) speak a thousand words Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bciskepottery Posted September 4, 2013 Report Share Posted September 4, 2013 You might find the "University of South Carolina Clay and Glaze Compendium", edited by Virginia Scotchie, worth a look. It has lots and lots of clay body and glaze recipes, all temperatures and colors, plus good general information on materials, etc. I'm guessing over a thousand recipes. It can be ordered from her website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwarzecha Posted September 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2013 It won't be going outdoors. The concept for the sculpture is complicated, so I was trying to keep it simple. I'll be making a lot of relatively thick slabs, and I just don't want them to warp. I'd like very little shrinkage, but good plasticity. I just want a good sculpture body so I've been going back and forth between making an earthenware or perhaps a soft stoneware. I've used both for sculptures in the past. I was only leaning towards the soft stoneware because I came across more recipes with a buff color, but I'm having a hard time finding recipes with the materials I have so the simpler the better. I live in Illinois. I've had problems in the past with thicker slabs cracking even though I did a lot of tests/preparation ahead of time so I'm just trying to find a reliable recipe that won't be such a headache. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbo_heff Posted September 4, 2013 Report Share Posted September 4, 2013 Biglou is corrrect about what you can find locally: if you are in the northeast I'll say the same I just recommended to someone else for a sculptural body: "Sheffield has S-14: a really nice workable sculpture body (for up to cone 10): also 2 architectectural bodies if it is going to be super thick (reddish for cone 6 and a buff for cone 10) although temp usually not a huge factor in sculpture since they don't usually need to hold water" I know an artist who uses the architectural body for huge 4' x 3' tiles no problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwarzecha Posted September 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2013 I live in Illinois. Also, I'm looking for a recipe as I make my own clay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bciskepottery Posted September 5, 2013 Report Share Posted September 5, 2013 The Scotchie compendium has a number of sculpture/tile clay bodies, including one listed as "no shrink" (basically, a mixture of different size grog, coated with slip) as well as a number of Val Cushing recipes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwarzecha Posted September 5, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2013 I'd love to purchase it, but I'm looking to get started ASAP, and it will take some time for it to ship. Thanks for the recommendation. I'll have to check it out in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.