Our ceramics work is wheel thrown and altered porcelain and white stoneware. Our work is fired in a wood kiln. The unique characteristics in wood fire can support a simple, direct decoration and the development of a more complex, multiple layered effect. Some vessels are decorated with a clay wash and glaze, others with terra sigillatas and slip, and others with a wash, terra sigillatas, slip and glazes.
We both share an interest in color and how color is affected by reduction, neutral firing and oxidation. Along with understanding the effect of these atmospheres on color, an important part of wood firing is learning to work with the natural flame paths which deliver ash to the pots and create flashing on the sides of pots. This “mark of the fire” speaks of the cycles of nature and of transformation. Flashing and ash build-up across washes, terra sigillatas, slips and glazes can evoke a multi-dimensional world.
The photographs below are from a typical group wood firing involving four to eight people, sharing the costs, wood prep, kiln loading, firing, unloading and cleanup.
