A holdup in production

I was using my Easter break for catching up with my work and now there is nothing more I can do.
The studios were opened but there was no technician which means no materials and no kilns firing...
I have used up all my supplies and produced enough work to fill the kiln on my own.
I can't wait to glaze my tiles, I don't want to mention how eager I am to see my tests results from 2 weeks ago...

I just want my own kiln :)

I feel sad when I can't work in the studio... On the other hand there is an essay assignment and I haven't started yet so I better do some reading and writing and as a dessert I will do few pages in my sketchbook :) that will cheer me up! :D

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Naked Raku

In the end of January I have attended a Naked Raku workshop in Thomastown organised by Ceramics Ireland . I already was familiar with both Raku and Naked Raku but wanted to extend my knowledge in this field. Naked Raku is a firing technique in which the pot is masked with the slip and then glazed and fired @ 1000 C then the kiln is opened and pots are transferred to the reduction chamber filled with sawdust, and covered to accommodate the reduction process. The difference between the Raku and Naked Raku is that in the second process the glaze is pealed off after firing and the pot unglazed- Naked. It all seems quite confusing and a bit complicated but in fact it is very simple, fast and effective way of decorating ceramics. The only disadvantage is that the pot is porous and can be use only as decoration as it is not food safe. With time the smoke marks can get lighter which can be slowed down by applying oil or floor polish paste on pots. ...

Porcelain Paperclay

I still don't know exactly how my finished pieces are going to look like but I know that I want to make something light and translucent. That is why I had decided to work in porcelain. Some of the forms can be too difficult to construct in porcelain without risking that they will collaps in the kiln. In order to overcome this obstacle I had prepared some paperclay which is lighter and hopefully will keep the shape better. First I cut porcelain in small pieces and let them get bone dry. Then I crushed them even more and added water to make smooth slip. When I had porcelain slip prepared I teared up some toilet paper and soaked it in hot water. After some time I sieved it and mixed with porcelain slip.

Some glazes and more textures

I am almost done with the preparation for the Degree Show and in last 2 weeks I've tested some glazes on the tiles. I didn't want to loose the definition of the lines and decided to glaze only insets and I am very please with the results :D I also had a chance to take better photos of my glazed prints and textures. On top of that there are some new textures here and I think that I will live them unglazed. So here it goes: Still hot from the kiln :D

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