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Mixing Clay Bodies


Maddie H

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Hi All- I am a college student in Maine working with the local clay on my island and am wondering if you all have some tips for me. 

I have tried throwing with the screened/cleaned clay and it seems to crack reguardless of what I have put into it to add elasticity. 

I have an idea that I could apply the clay as slip onto a a green piece and fire it in a ^06 bisque and then lowfire glaze kiln and am wondering if anyone has experience with this? 

THe local clay vitrifies around ^06 and the white stoneweare vitrifies at ^6/midfire range. 

Thanks for any help or advice you can offer! 

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18 hours ago, liambesaw said:

What's your goal? Just to use a local clay somehow?

I wouldn't glaze fire a cone 6 body to cone 06, it would be very weak

What if I applied a slip of local clay onto a bisqued piece and bisqued it again, creating a shell of sorts? That would seem to solve the weakness of unvitrified mid fire clay as well as well as give the color/appearance of the red local clay. Let me know what you think, thanks for your help so far! 

 

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2 hours ago, Maddie H said:

What if I applied a slip of local clay onto a bisqued piece and bisqued it again, creating a shell of sorts?

Really high odds that the slip applied to the bisqued piece will crack and / or flake off the bisqued clay. 

What happens to the clay when you take it up to cone 6? Does it turn into a puddle?  Is using it as a slip on lowfire clay an option or do you need to use midfire clay?

21 hours ago, Maddie H said:

I have tried throwing with the screened/cleaned clay and it seems to crack reguardless of what I have put into it to add elasticity. 

What have you tried to add plasticity so far?

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Thank you for your help everyone! I just got my test out of the kiln, applying local clay slip over a bisqued mug ( photo attatched!) It didn't crack or flake off and I am excited to keep refining to a product I am happy with. I next will screen it finer to get a smoother appearance as well as test glazes over this method!

To answer some questions all at once,, I am doing my senior project on using the local clay and doing a study on place based art/ connection to local landscape here in Acadia. I have added ball clay as well as beer for elasticity, and am still finding that it is cracking which is my reason for experimenting using it in other ways, i.e. slip and glaze. When fired to ^6, it melts down to a glaze and turns a deep brown! 

Screen Shot 2020-02-08 at 9.19.04 AM.png

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