Adding Stains To Terra Sigililata

[Alondene]

Everyone go look at this guy first: http://www.artoronto.ca/?p=6908

Ok, now that you're back.

Greg Payce was the Ceramics Department Head when I was at ACAD, and taught my first glaze chem and throwing classes. At the time, he was working heavily in earthenware with terra sig. He did use Mason stains to get all those brightly coloured stripes. He would make up the sig, and because of the particle size already noted, add the stains after. You do indeed have to keep stirring this sig while applying.

One thing he did teach us was that if you ball mill Mason stains (for those that might have access to a ball mill, or even a lapidary polisher) it alters their colour. I would suspect this is particularly true of any encapsulated stains.

 

 

Thanks for this link, really inspiring work. One of the reasons I wanted to try terra sig was to play with colour over different clay bodies but retain an unglazed feel. Greg Payces work is really wonderful - I luckily have a couple of lapidary polishers, so ones now going to be my stain tester.

[PeterH]

You may be interested in the addition of mica-based pigments to terra-sig.

 

See Mastering Mica, on pp21-3 of
http://ceramicartsdaily.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Glazing_Techniques_Sample.pdf

 

The good mica pigments can stand only 1472^F/800^C/cone 015

 

[Alondene]

Hi Deirdre,

Tried a sample of terra sig on bisque and results were good. Never considered that it would work on bisque and applies really nicely. Colours remained the same strength, they are pastel shades. Tried to attach pic, not a very good one but hopefully gives you an idea. Hope your trials go well.

[Callie Beller Diesel]

 

Thanks for this link, really inspiring work. One of the reasons I wanted to try terra sig was to play with colour over different clay bodies but retain an unglazed feel. Greg Payces work is really wonderful - I luckily have a couple of lapidary polishers, so ones now going to be my stain tester.

 

I may not have been clear. When I said that ball milling a stain would alter the colour, I meant not for the better. Blues get lighter, greens break down, and I suspect the encapsulated stains will be ruined. At the very least, they will likely no longer be effectively inert in their unfired state.

[dee3]

Sorry so long to get back with with my my test results, the washes came out beautiful on the plain red sig, the firing I did was cone 6. I used my coloured sigs on some greenware the other day after they had been sitting for well over a month and they came up really shiney, I don't have enough stuff for a lowfire glaze yet but I am well pleased with the results on the greenware. So maybe just letting them sit with the stains helps with sig absorbing the colour and concentrating a bit too. Hope this helps a bit Alondene. I will post pics soon hopefully. My firing schedule has been a bit erratic but such is life.