Shand and I are getting ready for the Art and Music Fest next weekend in Paducah, Ky. Shand has been working up a storm in her studio casting silver knots and assembling jewelry while I have been glazing bowls and sake cups for the high fire.Today, I plan to deliver some work to Bebe's Artisan Market in downtown Paducah. I unloaded the kiln after lunch and saw consistency that I thought I'd never get from my shino and ash glazes. Not a lot of drippy drips from the ash glaze but overall good looking pots.
Also, I have been raku fining all this week with a friend, Karson Kelley. He is a local beautician interested in clay and has been taking ceramic classes from the Paducah School of Art. We tested some old raku glazes and they are working out pretty well. We were able to get five firings out of a five gallon propane tank and we fired over fourty pieces.
We fired my wash tub kiln and pedestrians were drawn in by the flames. I even invited our artisit in residence, Dave Malone, to come by and film the process. He said he got some really good shots and left with a huge smile on his face. I will have my ceramic work dispayed in several places during the festival: Bebe's Artisan Market, Studio Miska, Etcetera Coffee Shop, The Canvas Room, and The Yeiser Art Center. I hope by spreading the work out that more people will see it and ultimately buy it.
The last thing that I pln to do this weekend is work on my displays. I will make some shadow boxes, "show boxes"- which hold smaller works in a 9x9 display shadow format box, and a folding screen for other works. Lots to do and not much time, so until next Saturday...keep turning and burning.
I love your raku cups. I just got a raku kiln and have been doing a lot of experiments. I'm curious, what did you tell the people that bought your cups about the food safety of raku? I have heard so many opinions, I can't decide how I feel about it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment about my raku cups. I inform people that raku is not meant for food purposes, but historically, it was meant to drink from. I occasionally will drink from my cups...
ReplyDeleteI tell people that they are not meant for "wet" food, but they can serve dry foods like chips, nuts, and the like.
I also tell people they are merely decorative as art objects. I never drink from any cup with copper and tend to only drink from "liner" glazes like the crackle glazes. Hope this helps. :)
mitch
I sort of say the same thing. I'm using a white liner glaze with nothing too toxic for my cups. Maybe I'll start drinking from my cups and see how long I stick around:) Another thought is to just make things that are obviously not functional for food.....
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