Pres

working on pieces for Invitational at one gallery, a wood firing in June, and seasonal gallery opening in Nye, Mt. 
 

Thanks for posting my question Pres. 
hanging planters for succulents

 

What's on my workbench?
Clutter.  It's far too cold and damp to be out there this time of year.
My shelf at the centre, however, has rolled clay waiting to be turned into Herb Labels, there is an Owl drop mould sitting upside down, waiting to be fettled and put into the kiln, and there are mugs and spatula rests waiting for a ^6 firing.

Elephants!

I got ^10 copper reds in Oxidation using silicon carbide for local reduction back in 1973. hadyn
red was the base. It was a common approach back then.
there are many solutions to challenges in glaze chemistry. I might add that the Selsor in Selsor red copper reduction glaze is me.- and I used this glaze for many years as did my students.
 
Marcia Selsor
 
 

I'm with Callie- why the iron? There should be plenty of CO produced by the charcoal. Iron is sometimes used in copper red glazes (although tin is much more common) to provide a nucleus for the growth of the red crystals. I'm not sure how it would affect the glaze by being in the saggar, though. Plus it'll goober up the bottom of your saggar,  which should otherwise last for many firings. I would run the same test without the iron and see if there's a noticeable difference.

Interesting approach. 
Im curious why the iron oxide?

Week 41

 
A kiln design that contains the walls and the arch in one curve is the________________ kiln.
Sprung arch
Bound arch
Catenary arch
Barrel arch
Domes and Crowns differ from sprung arches in that an arch describes a portion of a cylinder, while a dome or crown describes a portion of a _____________.
parabola
sphere
hyperbola
cone
One Principle of kiln design the author states is that the chimney is approximately one-fourth to one-fifth of the ____________________ diameter.
chamber
damper
door
total inlet
An _______________________ kiln is an example of a _________________ type kiln.
Down-draft
anagama
cross-draft
updraft

 
This weeks Pottery Quiz of the Week questions come from: The Kiln Book, second edition, Frederick L. Olsen, c. 1983, Chilton Book Company/Radnor, PA

 
Note from Pres: In the 80's as a new art teacher, new to ceramics, I considered building my own kiln. Alas, it did not happen, but I read a lot of books on kiln building, firing, and repairs. Some of which I have used over the years, some not. However, for anyone starting with kiln construction this book is a gem. There may be newer techniques out there today, but he does cover Fiber construction, alternative fuels, and multi chambered kilns.
 
 
Answer Key:
3. Catenary arch-from the text.Pp. 35
2. Sphere—from the text Pp.36
1. chamber-from the text Pp61 Principle 6
2. anagama, 3. cross-draft-Crossdraft kilns originated in the Orient. The exact location and time is impossible to determine, but it is probably safe to assume that China, Korea, and Japan simultaneously developed similar crossdraft kilns known as bank or hole kilns. The hole kilns were in use during the Asuka period in Japan, the Sui period in China, and the Silla period in Korea. In Japan they were called Anagama, ana meaning hole or cavity and gama meaning kiln.

LeeU posted this question in another strand under Chemistry: Maybe a topic for a future question of the week....is "it" (like the spodumene effect) a problem (as in the science/craft sense it may well be) or is it a blessing (in the sense of the  aesthetic/philosophy of the ceramicist)?  I love cracks and "flaws" in my pieces (go out of my way to introduce them)  but it does set me up for "having" to explain to the guy/gal  whispering to the person with them that "This gal isn't very good-look at all the cracks and pinholes." that actually, I know what I am doing, I just choose a different path.  Kinda like life! aaarrrggghhh
 
best, Pres

Glazenerd,
I really am pleased when posts are able to help others out. However, I can not take credit. . . . it takes a community.
 
 
best,
Pres

Learning to throw does take a lot of practise. AN instructor can only do so much. I'd say it takes hours /week of practice to get it. Michael Cardew said it takes 7 years before the level of mastering the skill. It is like playing a musical instrument. It takes focus and practice.
 
Marcia

Idaho, I like your take on the mixed bag doing the handbuilding and the throwing. I often would have students that had one thing in mind to do. It may have been a handbuilt pasta bowl, or making ceramic molding, or learning to make a teapot, or some other specialized project. I would always have them fill our a little survey 4X7 card with their contact info, their hobbies/interests, their experience with clay, and if there was anything they really wanted to accomplish in the class. This would lead to the types of demonstrations I did, and how the demonstrations would branch to specific types of projects. In the case of the molding the extruder, the handbuilt pasta bowl to hump or slump molds. I a student was interested in throwing, I would have a group that once I started the handbuilders, and had done a throwing demonstration of a cylinder form, would meet at the wheels those just beginning would get the hands on hands treatment. They were always taught to master the clay-pushing up and pushing down, a good preliminary to centering. Pressure with the hands, and bend of wrist/positions were reinforced constantly. More advanced students would often ask what was going wrong, why things weren't light enough, what caused ripples etc. These things I would explain and demonstrate corrections. Many times a student would complete a second plain cylinder after much work, and I would coax/help them shape it into a more interesting form with their input of what they wanted to do with it. Next have them repeat the same with the next cylinder.
I only ran classes the same as you, with no practice time-the studio was used during the week by my HS classes, and most of these folks couldn't/wouldn't come in after school. However, as I was there late most of the time some folks would ask and come in to work. The last class was a glazing day, and then folks would come in to pick up their work the following week. Towards the end, they begged to have an extra day where they picked up their work, got to see everyone's work and could talk about it-and party, I could not turn them down. We had great fun.

Glazenerd,
I really am pleased when posts are able to help others out. However, I can not take credit. . . . it takes a community.
 
 
best,
Pres

Pres:
i threw my new formulated porcelain for the first time today. Incorporating the advice here and elsewhere: actually made a piece I was happy with. Uniform wall thickness, went much smoother.   TY all

Tom, 
The biggest advice I would give my students came with a hand on hand assistance to the first pull and the second. (Assuming you are RT handed )Create the donut after opening up. That is a donut attached to the wheel head, centered. Then using your left hand with the thumb down at the base of the wheel head on the outside, and the fingers bent to the floor on the inside with the rt hand with a sponge on the roll of the donut. . . . begin squeezing firmly with the thumb and fingers of the lft as you push inward on the roll with the sponge in the rt hand.  As you feel the roll going up, ease slightly on the pressure and continue to rise with the roll just above your fingers and thumb. Continue until to the point that you have gone off of the clay. Never stop the pull motion at the top of the pot, always imagining the clay to be 1-2" higher.
Second pull, begin with lft on inside, rt with thumb or pointer or whatever edge you use to pull with. Elbows braced against the body leaning to the rt. Firmly squeeze the clay between inside and outside fingers of lft and rt hand. As the roll moves up, ease slightly on pressure again and continue up with the pull as before. 
The firmly here is important, as that is where thinning the base comes in on a pull. Without firmly squeezing at the base level of the pull, the pull actually starts above the base of the pot leaving a heavier area in the base. You must firmly squeeze that roll on every pull to get it to move out of the base.
best advice I have, now practice. . . 
 
Pres

yes, I have established the basic shape with fingers, then finish the bellying with CD from top to bottom, last touch of rim and that's it.
this way I know the rim can handle the expansion of the interior.

Tom, 
The biggest advice I would give my students came with a hand on hand assistance to the first pull and the second. (Assuming you are RT handed )Create the donut after opening up. That is a donut attached to the wheel head, centered. Then using your left hand with the thumb down at the base of the wheel head on the outside, and the fingers bent to the floor on the inside with the rt hand with a sponge on the roll of the donut. . . . begin squeezing firmly with the thumb and fingers of the lft as you push inward on the roll with the sponge in the rt hand.  As you feel the roll going up, ease slightly on the pressure and continue to rise with the roll just above your fingers and thumb. Continue until to the point that you have gone off of the clay. Never stop the pull motion at the top of the pot, always imagining the clay to be 1-2" higher.
Second pull, begin with lft on inside, rt with thumb or pointer or whatever edge you use to pull with. Elbows braced against the body leaning to the rt. Firmly squeeze the clay between inside and outside fingers of lft and rt hand. As the roll moves up, ease slightly on pressure again and continue up with the pull as before. 
The firmly here is important, as that is where thinning the base comes in on a pull. Without firmly squeezing at the base level of the pull, the pull actually starts above the base of the pot leaving a heavier area in the base. You must firmly squeeze that roll on every pull to get it to move out of the base.
best advice I have, now practice. . . 
 
Pres

I have a friend that I bowl with, he was having severe health problems, and was finally diagnosed with a blood test for gluten intolerance. Now he has gained back up in weight, eats gluten free, and has gained back his strength. These things hit us as we get older and are weaker to fight them off, and it may be that our bodies reach a peak point where exposure becomes too much.
Joseph, if you post the bowls, that would be helpful. If anyone wants to share the print out, go ahead what its here for. Teachers also. Just don't take credit.
 
It would be nice to build a strand of beginning projects to help along those looking to gain/improve wheel skills.
best,
Pres

Ron, I realized that, just pointing out that for some the need to do things differently is important. I haven't had a full cookie since 2009. 
 
I had not thought about ring holders. . . ceramic would work to. Wonder how many Apple Bakers have been re serviced as ring holders. Maybe someone didn't know what it was?
 
best,
Pres

Baking apples. . . Tablespoon of water, teaspoon of butter, spices-I use cinnamon and ginger, sweetener(sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, honey), as a diabetic I use none, others(nuts, granola, etc) Liquor(?) 
 
Apple baked 7 1/2 minutes in microwave oven. 40 minutes will work in a regular oven. Great Winter desert.

A few thoughts on Apple Baker
 


 
The throwing skills here are similar to a  bowl as it is a wide flared cylinder with a second interior cone wall. This form will expand your throwing skills. 

Baking apples. . . Tablespoon of water, teaspoon of butter, spices-I use cinnamon and ginger, sweetener(sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, honey), as a diabetic I use none, others(nuts, granola, etc) Liquor(?) 
 
Apple baked 7 1/2 minutes in microwave oven. 40 minutes will work in a regular oven. Great Winter desert.

Thanks for the help Joseph that would be helpful. Have you ever thrown an apple baker?
 
best
Pres

Dear Jessica 
In the 15 downloadable ^6 glazes there are typos on each glaze saying 06.  FYI
Marcia

Carlo Zauli (Faenza-Italy)
Prof.Dr. Gaetano Ballardini (Faenza)
Hans Coper (Germany)
Robin Hopper (Canada)
Eva Zeisel (Hungary and USA)
Otto Lindig (Germany)
Horst Kerstan (Germany)
Edmund de Waal (UK)
Roberto Lugo (USA) "this machine kills hate"...
Lotte Reimers (Germany)
 
Will think of more.....