Mark C.
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Posts posted by Mark C.
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I was born in 53
It looks to be missing some parts
at 179$ in 1953 that was spendy back then
Good barn find
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Speaking of Books there is one being made now that is all about the place I learned the most in Ceramics. I wrote a piece for that books which is in the editing stages now.
It was called the Laundry
In the 50's-60s it was a commercial Laundry. In the late 60s it was bought by the Humboldt State University and turned into a pot shop. It has floor drains (wood covered cement troughs that drain out). They added a kiln room off the back. The builing is one huge barrel arch roof. A really great pottery setup for teaching.
Back then my mentor Reese Bullen (who started the Art Dept there) hired a new instructor to help him teach ceramics from Alfreds as a recent gradute Lou Marak -it was 1969. I came a few years later to that program.
They hired another Alfred grad the year I came as well (1972). It was the heyday of ceramics for this school. It was after the war and it was ahuge open learningtyransition time in ceramics-from Volkus to Arneson clay was expanding. Thes e recenty Alfreds guys where on fire from leaning from the greats who taught and wrote at Alfreds. Rhodes and the like passed what they knew down to my teachers who passed that to us. It was a solid 5 years in immersion in all things clay and kilns for me.Many a teacher and potter came out the other side of that Laundry .
In my time I learned slip casting, low fire ,high fire , kiln firing, hand building ,slab work,clay and glaze formulation just to name a few. I Worked in work study program for years as kiln and glaze room tec.( Back then tec was not used) loading and firing kilns of all types.Salt to low fire electrics-with redution cone 10 gas as the standard .
The program slowly after many deacdes switched as did many programs to around the country in schools to sculture and making art-mostly low fire. This slowy in my view turned the ceramics program into a lesser one than the one I was in at that time. I have heard lots of feedback on this from students over the past 30 years
Now the University recently became Cal Poly Humboldt and humanities is at the botton of the pile now. They now have funding to build in massive science expansion 3 new parking structures and you gues it the Laundry will be scraped to put in a parking lot as Joni Mitchell once said in a song. The last 10 yeared ceramics professor retires this year (JUNE) and no one is fighting this stupid mistake. For me the university long ago lost the community support as they do not care about that.
Two of the old ceramic teachers is compiling this book on 50 years of the Laundry-its history and students. I am just one of those and one of the few that choose the production pottery route over teaching and also stayed local and am still producing . In my. time we once had over 20 full timers in this small area making funtional wares now its me. Last man standing full time. The laundry is a special place for me in my brain as well as the people who shared what they knew way back in the early 70s with me. When folks are buying and using my pottery they really are using pottery that came from my years at the Laundry and those who taught there at that time.
Ps this book is being complied and underwritten by a gallery In Davis Ca called the John Natsoulas Gallery. John is footing the bill
He has a press at gallery and has had a 30 year ceramic realationship with HSU ceramics and did a book on the UC Davis ceramics lab already
its a great thing he is doing for our local clay history-if you are ever in Davis Ca stop by that gallery its worth the trip-just look for the 15 foot high ceramic cat you walk to enter the gallery. You cannot miss it.
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Speaking of Books there is one being made now that is all about the place I learned the most in Ceramics. I wrote a piece for that books which is in the editing stages now.
It was called the Laundry
In the 50's-60s it was a commercial Laundry. In the late 60s it was bought by the Humboldt State University and turned into a pot shop. It has floor drains (wood covered cement troughs that drain out). They added a kiln room off the back. The builing is one huge barrel arch roof. A really great pottery setup for teaching.
Back then my mentor Reese Bullen (who started the Art Dept there) hired a new instructor to help him teach ceramics from Alfreds as a recent gradute Lou Marak -it was 1969. I came a few years later to that program.
They hired another Alfred grad the year I came as well (1972). It was the heyday of ceramics for this school. It was after the war and it was ahuge open learningtyransition time in ceramics-from Volkus to Arneson clay was expanding. Thes e recenty Alfreds guys where on fire from leaning from the greats who taught and wrote at Alfreds. Rhodes and the like passed what they knew down to my teachers who passed that to us. It was a solid 5 years in immersion in all things clay and kilns for me.Many a teacher and potter came out the other side of that Laundry .
In my time I learned slip casting, low fire ,high fire , kiln firing, hand building ,slab work,clay and glaze formulation just to name a few. I Worked in work study program for years as kiln and glaze room tec.( Back then tec was not used) loading and firing kilns of all types.Salt to low fire electrics-with redution cone 10 gas as the standard .
The program slowly after many deacdes switched as did many programs to around the country in schools to sculture and making art-mostly low fire. This slowy in my view turned the ceramics program into a lesser one than the one I was in at that time. I have heard lots of feedback on this from students over the past 30 years
Now the University recently became Cal Poly Humboldt and humanities is at the botton of the pile now. They now have funding to build in massive science expansion 3 new parking structures and you gues it the Laundry will be scraped to put in a parking lot as Joni Mitchell once said in a song. The last 10 year ceramics professor retire this year and no one is fighting this stupid mistake. For me the university long ago lost the community support as they do not care about that.
Two of the old ceramic teachers is compiling this book on 50 years of the Laundry-its history and students. I am just one of those and one of the few that choose the production pottery route over teaching and also stayed local and am still producing . In my. time we once had over 20 full timers in this small area making funtional wares now its me. Last man standing full time. The laundry is a special place for me in my brain as well as the people who shared what they knew way back in the early 70s with me. When folks are buying and using my pottery they really are using pottery that came from my years at the Laundry and those who taught there at that time.
Ps this book is being complied and underwritten by a gallery In Davis Ca called the John Natsoulas Gallery. John is footing the bill
He has a press at gallery and has had a 30 year ceramic realationship with HSU ceramics and did a book on the UC Davis ceramics lab already
its a great thing he is doing for our local clay history-if you are ever in Davis Ca stop by that gallery its worth the trip-just look for the 15 foot high ceramic cat you walk thru to enter the gallery. You cannot miss it.
- Hulk, Chilly, Callie Beller Diesel and 1 other
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Black is from an over saturation of colorants or stains. So to make black kiln wash one would need to oversaturate or stain. Often this comes with fluxing ( think sticky) and thats exactly what you do not want with kiln wash
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A piece of cardboard between them will work fine (thats how they ship most of them) . You need to keep them from slipping apart(tape the bundle as one) blankets can work Or bubble wrap. They can be shipped flat or on edge but on edge they should be held tight so not to fall over.
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Well I just billed my second quarter accounts that are on a quartly basis. Not all up but some
One is the same as last years (a boom year for me last year) the others where down slightly .
Seems sales are getting back to a normal year in most outlets.
I am just now packing up my largest gallery order ever in my career . This gallery ordered twice a year. Thgis is the fall order as I do not have time thgis fall to produce it. So did it over past two months.
My fall is booked with show and other orders and a 24 day dive trip to Indonesia . Been a few years now away from serious diving and need to get back under.
I have my largest show in 30 days and it most likely will be my last show there after 30 year run. I am not having to leave my area anymore for sales as I have all I need locally .This also will be my last out of state show after 40 years of them . I'm a little sad about it-,I could keep the door open another year and am thinking that over. Show pots are more work as you need it all-teapots to cannister sets where local wholesale and consign is much easier form wise (less forms to make). I will still have two local sales this fall/xmas for at least this year or next.
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seattle pottery still has some mobiliCer C left-you need to call them to get it. Make sure you talk to someone who knows the wax product line.
I have a thread just on wax if you search for it
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Sculpture,clay with names ,mugs or whatever as well as baby prints or the like all are custome one offs and demand that.
My line of work is 35 forms in production so one offs get in the way. Now its time in life trim the 35 forms to much less and make less and do less in clay (or at least next year)
So for me its no custom work-I did it for 3-4 decades. Looking back it should have always been now. Would have made more $ and worked less except for friends and family. Thats my experience.
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I know of no base that works with all colorants for all the colors you are asking about-its just not that simple.I have 50 years in now experence wise with cone 10 glazes in a production studio and I have no base that works in my 15 weekly glazes I use they are all different. No single base . If you find one let me know as that would simplify mixing all 15 each.
You can use a white base and add cobalt for blue or try copper for green but its a try try try test test test deal. I would start with a simple 4 ingredient glaze base thats white. The white base glaze will have zero colorants in it.I can post one if needed called honey white. Next time I'm in glaze area I'll jot it down-its very simple white-likes heat so not good in cold spots
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Its all going up and most places are out of most equipment and only now getting a few items in stock again.
If you see it and need it buy it is my advice
Laguna clay prices went up across the board last month.
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Another option is a small gas kiln and just keep firing to cone 10 -Gas kilns tend to be a bit more of ahassel to get a permit and install but its still an optione depending on where you live
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I did custom work for about 35 years-it was alway a murphys law deal.all pots came out great except for custom order.Its just the nature of that custom. It takes to much time to many tries and never pays off.
I laid down the law of No about 15 years ago and it has been the best thing for me and for the business.
Custom work is for those who have yet to learn this lesson -thats also tru for me on small variations as Mea pointed out still happen now and then.
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Manually firing is the way to go. Burners should never cycle off or up and down. Thats a given . I doubt that kiln ever needs 7inchs (full on) start low and turn up a bit after quartz enversion (1100) then up some more around 1800 thats where I start light reduction . and around 2,000 maybe gas is at 3/4 on or 5-6 on guage.
You will need to see cones try for two cones if hole is small say a 7 and a 8 if you are firing for 8. Use a small soft brick or clay piece thats solid so cone stand out against that visually.
I have zero gas experience with a controller . I think Neils idea of 999999 so its out of the picture is a good one
in the kiln specs its says high limit controller and thats what I think it should do limit the top end for safety. set that above cone 8 and fire with cones and eyeball
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I have a bag of Cimbar unopened . It will be some time before I open it as I have 4 other kinds of Talc opened now. I mainly use serrialite. I also have some Desert talc and some HR100 talc (asbestos type) and some pioneer talc going as well. Depends on the application for me.
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a few questions
is this new kiln with natural gas offices ? Or a used kin that was hooked to propane before ?
Most natural gas is piped in at 1/4 pound or 7 inches on manometer
is the kiln pipe a 1 inch size as recommended ?
If yes to all these questions-(no propane orfices which are smaller than natural gas) I'm wondering how you are getting 13 inches of gas presure?
can you address this as its near double what most homes are?
No need to fire blind you need good kiln glasses and move the cones a bit further in in a small spy hole situation with a soild brick or clay backstop to help see the cones.This is leraned skill set a small laser pointer can also aid it this.
To even the kiln out temp wise the stacking is the thing that will control the evenness the most.
In terms of full on with the burners it should not be necessary to have them full on. I would work up to about 3/4 on and let it glide up. The damper setting is whats critical in reduction downdrafts such as this kiln. When in reduction the flame should lick out the botton spyplug a little now and then during heavy reduction
Reduction will aid in evening temps and the stack will help as well
was the lower shelves tall or small pots? was the top tall or small pots
You say 3/4 full where was the empty zone?
How was the flue exit area packed loose or tight?
I set the air plates to one postion and fire with no changes on all my kilns
for me to help I'll need more info
I sent you a pm which may speed up the fix
Please fill in more details to aid us helping you
also are you new do downdrafts or an old hat?
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No we do not know yet just shooting from the hip
serrialight may also be worth testing.
I use 5 kinds of talc now myself just not in low fire bodies
3 of them are no longer in production
so test test test.
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Just use another talc and do not sweat it. Cimtalc may work fine
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For me watching videos or reading books would not have been enough to get me on my path that has made me a production potter for 5 decades . Those things are just ad ons to the real education I got at school from those who knew more in ceramics than most.Nothing beats the learning directly from teachers especially with throwing,glazing and firing. Maybe as a hobbist it will do fine but for a professional no way.My 2 cents
Junior collage can be done on the cheap these days
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Since you are in England I am on this side of the pond I'm not familiar enough with English insurers. I would shop this around to various companies.
You could start out as a hobby and later switch to a business which may be easier with insurers
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Rutile is way up as well.Just another heads up
Sawdust firing in a gas kiln
in Studio Operations and Making Work
Posted
Paint cans can be plastic bottoms and metal lids and now even all plastic lid and bottom
those fumes must have been bad