Workshop with Shannon Sullivan

Great day and lots of knowledge gained. Remember to visit the show at Eastfield and see her work in person plus check out her website. Include a response in your sketchbooks for extra credit.

Thanks Adrianna for this laugh!

Remember if you want glaze for after the bisque firing of your 2 or more Heads Bust head to Trinity. They have a great selection of lowfire cone 04 clear and satin glazes. As well as different colors and textures. Just make sure they are lowfire o4!

Cups cups and more cups! Charlie Cummings Gallery

http://claylink.com/zen/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=83_239

A little eye candy for your Thursday morning!

12 expert glazing tips from Ceramic Arts Daily

I have to admit, glazing is not my favorite part of the ceramic process. It’s probably because of its potential to make or break a good pot (and believe me, I have “broken” quite a few with poor glaze application). I tend to be a bit of a sloppy glazer and I sometimes rush through it a little more quickly than I should. Denver, Colorado ceramic artist Annie Chrietzberg is the polar opposite of me in the glaze room: methodical and precise. I know my glazing outcomes could be greatly improved if I followed just a couple of Annie’s tips. So I am sharing them with the community in today’s post (an excerpt from our new free download How to Make Pottery: How to Learn Pottery Techniques and Enjoy Working with Clay). Hopefully you will benefit from Annie’s advice too! – Jennifer Harnetty, editor.

For complex forms consisting of thrown and textured elements, I use a combination of pouring, dipping and brushing to get the color where I want it. Dipping is the easiest way to ensure an even application, and pouring, with a little practice, is the next. Brushing takes more practice, time and attention, and I only use it when the first two methods are not options for a tricky place on a pot. The two troublemakers involved with glaze application are water and gravity. When a bisque pot becomes too saturated with water, it won’t accept glaze correctly, so use the least amount of water possible when glazing, including when you are making corrections. And as for gravity, I doubt there’s anyone who hasn’t experienced the wayward drip of one glaze marring the perfect application of the previous glaze.

This article was excerpted from the Tips from the Pros department of a back issue of Pottery Making Illustrated. To see more of what Pottery Making Illustrated has to offer, check out the latest issue here.

12 Tips for Glazing Success

Click images to enlarge! • Keep bisqueware clean. Lotions, or even the oils from your hands, can create resist spots where glaze adheres unevenly or not at all. Throughout all phases of the glazing process, including loading and unloading the kiln, handle bisqueware with a clean pair of disposable gloves. If you think your bisqueware has been compromised — splashed with something, covered with grime, or maybe handled by a visitor — bisque it again rather than risk a crawling glaze. • Remove all dust before glazing including bisque dust, studio dust and even household or street dust. Use an air compressor for foolproof results, but work outside or in a well-ventilated area away from your primary workspace, as bisque dust is extremely abrasive to your lungs. • Use silicon carbide paper to remove any rough spots you missed before bisque firing. Place your work on a piece of foam to prevent chipping. After sanding, wipe with a damp sponge to remove all traces of sanding dust. Use a damp sponge instead of rinsing, which should be kept to a minimum. Wring the sponge thoroughly and rotate it so each area is only used once. I tend to use half a dozen or so of those orange round synthetic sponges during any given glazing session. • Glazes must be well mixed. I use an electric drill with a Jiffy Mixer attached. If there is dry glaze caked on the sides of the bucket, sieve the glaze, then return it to a clean bucket. • Glaze all the interiors of your pots first by pouring the glaze in, then rolling it around for complete coverage. For complex pieces requiring a number of glazing steps, glaze the insides the day before to give you a drier surface to work with, especially for brushing. • When removing unwanted glaze, scrape off as much of it as you can with a dental tool or a similar small metal scraper to keep a sharp line. A damp sponge removes the remaining glaze with a few strokes, keeping water usage to a minimum. • Use a stiff brush to help clean glaze drips out of texture. • For dipping glazes, select an appropriately sized container for the work at hand. I have lots of different sizes of shallow bowls that are perfect for dipping the sides of my pieces. Wide shallow bowls allow me to see what I’m doing, so I even use them for smaller things that fit into the glaze bucket. • When you can’t dip or pour, it’s time for brushing. Watch your bisque as you brush—glaze is shiny and wet when first applied, then becomes matt as the bisque absorbs the water. If you recoat too soon over a damp coat, you’ll move the foundation layer rather than imparting a second coat. Consider gravity when brushing and hold the pot both to encourage the glaze to go where you want it to and to keep it from running where you don’t want it. • If a drip flows onto a previously glazed surface, stop, set the pot down and wait. Resist the urge to wipe the drip with a sponge. Let the drip dry, then carefully scrape it off with a dental tool or metal rib. Use a small compact brush to wipe away glaze in areas you can’t reach with a sponge. • Don’t brush glaze from the big glaze bucket. Pour a small amount into a cup, then briskly stir it occasionally to ensure that it stays properly mixed. Keep a large, damp sponge nearby to keep the brush handle clean. Stray drips often start with a handle full of glaze. • If you’re glazing pots that don’t have a defined foot, push them across a piece of 220-grit silicon carbide sandpaper. The sandpaper removes some of the glaze from the contact areas, indicating where you need to wipe off the remaining glaze.

Glazing a Mug Using Mutiple Glazes with Hsin-Chuen Lin

Make sure to write down glazes and techniques you use for your work in your journals. This video is especially for Janet, Adrianna, Jane, Ashley and Jenan. Beginning students shuld stick to one dip and/or pour of 1 to 2 glazes. If you use 2 or more glazes consult with Nathan, Jane, Janet or I which ones work and do not work well together.

The Human Condition

The Human Condition: The Stephen and Pamela Hootkin Collection of Contemporary Ceramic Sculpture at Chazen Museum (Madison, WI Sept. 5­ – Nov. 30, 2014) is huge and sprawls with fluid ease through the Rowland, Garfield and Mayer galleries of this elegant institution. Its scale is not just due to the number of works, over 100, or the number of artists, 34, but because of the large scale of many of the pieces.

Judy Fox, Rapunzel

Glaze Application tips for Bisqueware

Application is a very important factor in determining the fired surface quality.
 Thickness and method of the application can drastically affect results. Experiment with sponging, brushing, pouring, dripping, scratching into surface, layering- to list just a few possibilities.
Before you start some basic rules for all types of glazing techniques:
NEVER add water to a glaze, slip , oxide or any materials in the studio. If it looks too thick or thin tell the professor or Nathan asap.

Always sponge off your bisqueware to remove dust and oils that may have collected and will prevent  glaze from working correctly. Let bisque dry thoroughly before glazing.

Have your sketchbook ready to record what you do. You will NOT remember and I will ask you "How did you do that?

Wipe off the bottom of all work as glaze melts and will stick your work to the shelves. Leave 1/4 inch from the bottom for room for glazes that might run as you are learning.

WAYS TO GLAZE:
Painting: Even applications are best. • Use soft brushes- sumi Japanese brushes work best as they load up liquid and flow smooth and evenly)
• Apply in short, loaded strokes • It is usually necessary to apply 2- coats to be sure all parts are evenly coated. I suggest painting in one direction. Letting that dry and then painting in the opposite direction to cover more surface.
 • Let dry completely between each coat to prevent pulling off layers*
Advantages: • Requires only a small amount • May be best method for small scale work • Easy, low tech
 Disadvantages:• Even though 2 coats are applied, painted glazes often appear splotchy after firing due to uneven coating • When the 2nd coats are applied, the brush tends • to pick up patches of glaze, causing thin spots*
 
Dipping:

I'll be passing out a I'll be passing out a handout and giving a demo but this post is important to read and reread for help. Always stir bucket well. Glaze tends to settle. 

Make sure to let glaze dry before you dip again especially if it is another glaze.

Look at the test tiles on the wall to see what type of glaze you are using. Matte glazes tend to stay put while glossy glazes tend to run. Never dip more than twice and be aware if it is a Matte or glossy glass so you can predict how high your second dip should be... grinding glaze off of kiln shelves is never fun a and it will be your job if it is your fault.

Always wipe off the bottom and 1/4" up the side of your piece when finished. Again because glaze will fuse to kiln shelves.

Spraying: Advantage is it's great for a even coats and covering larger forms. Disadvantages are set-up, clean-up and it takes many more coats... 5 or so... ask Janet as she is the spray booth expert!

Another disadvantage is that it can be hard to do sections or smaller areas. You can tape off or wax... I'll talk about this next Tuesday.

Stains and oxide tips for Advanced and Beginning Glazing

Some really good tips here.