Clay Times Magazine Volume 24 • Issue 104 by claytimes

CERAMIC

ART

TRENDS,

TOOLS,

AND

Frank Fisher’s Glaze Patterns 10 Studio Tips to Help Keep You Healthy 2018 State of Clay A Pottery Tour of Japan Pete Pinnell’s Frit Discoveries & Glaze Formulas After the Storm: Repairing WeatherDamaged Equipment Screenprinting on Clay with Susan Feagin

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A wide variety of decorative patterns achieved on cone 6 oxidation-fired and raku-fired works by Frank Fisher. Part two of his series on glaze transfer techniques begins on page 29.

contents

features

Cover photo: Bottle by Frank James Fisher. Rakufired stoneware, 6¼" x 4¼". For more, turn to page 29. Cover inset photo: Handbuilt form by Bill Griffith, who will be honored at the 2018 Annual NCECA Conference in Pittsburgh, PA. Further details appear on page 9.

TIMES

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SPRING / SUMMER 2018 Volume 24, No. 104

24 A Cultural Tour of Pottery Through Japan This educational journey across Japan is carefully crafted to highlight unique ceramic culture and tradition, while also including popular tourist hot spots to keep everyone happy!

29 Glazing Off the Grid: Part Two In this second installment of his series on textured glazing techniques, Frank Fisher offers illustrated steps for glaze transfer using different types of stencils.

Master Koga demonstrates his skills for visiting potters in Takeo, Japan.

exhibit 12 State of Clay Exhibition 2018 This biennial celebration of claywork by artists from across the state of Massachusetts reveals high levels of creativity and technique.

Ridges by Sonia Simoun, featured in “State of Clay” May 5-June 3.

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➤

contents

TIMES

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One, Two, Three by Caitlin Marsh — among the many works featured in the Lexington Arts and Crafts Society’s 10th biennial State of Clay exhibition. See story on pages 12-15.

Spring / Summer 2018 • Volume 24 Issue 104

departments 7 EDITOR’S DESK Good news ... (weather permitting)!

9 WHAT’S HOT Clay world news, events, and calls for entries

37 GREAT GLAZES An awesome, metallic cone 6 temmoku glaze

38 THE GALLERY Fellow CT readers share images of their clayworks Susan Feagin’s screens for printing on clay — learn how to make them on pages 21-23.

44 THE SLURRY BUCKET Studio-tested tips & techniques

45 POTTERY CLASSES

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Where you can learn claywork in your own community

49 CLASSIFIED MARKETPLACE Goods and services offered especially for and by clay artists

50 ADVERTISER INDEX Ad support helps make CT possible ... please let our advertisers know you found them in Clay Times!

columns 16 AS FAR AS I KNOW “Intro. to Frit Part 2: New Glaze Formulas” by Pete Pinnell

21 BENEATH THE SURFACE “Screenprinting on Clay with Susan Feagin” Pt. 2 interview by Lana Wilson

27 STUDIO HEALTH AND SAFETY “Safe 3D Printers for Use with Clay” by Monona Rossol

33 KILNS & FIRING “Repairing Storm-Damaged Equipment” by Marc Ward

35 BOOKS & VIDEOS Swan Song DVD review by Steve Branfman

40 TOOL TIMES “More Great Finds on New Clay Tools” by Vince Pitelka

47 AROUND THE FIREBOX “10 Studio Tips to Help Keep You Healthy” by Kelly Savino

Now, back to the subject of the weather: As I write this update, there are blizzards happening up north, and floods in the midwest. Weatherrelated disasters are apparently becoming the norm rather than the exception, so the topic of Marc Ward’s column in this issue — “Repairing StormDamaged Equipment” — is very appropriate. A few other noteworthy mentions for this issue: Kelly Savino’s column, which offers “10 Studio Tips to Keep You Healthy;” and Monona Rossol’s advice on the safety of 3D printers when used with clay.

— Polly Beach, Editor

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Editor & Publisher: Polly Beach Customer Service: Nanette Greene Proofreader: Jon Singer Regular Columnists: Steve Branfman, Books & Videos David Hendley, Around the Firebox Pete Pinnell, As Far as I Know Vince Pitelka, Tool Times Monona Rossol, Health & Safety Kelly Savino, Around the Firebox Marc Ward, Kilns & Firing Lana Wilson, Beneath the Surface

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Contributing Writers: Susan Feagin • Frank James Fisher Sheri Leigh O’Connor ✦ Printed on 100% FSC-certified and 75% post-consumer recycled paper ✦ Published by: CLAY TIMES, LLC P.O. Box 17139 • Amelia Island, FL 32035

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Also highlighted in this issue: Pete Pinnell’s very extensive research on frits, published with a variety of frit-containing glaze formulas. Pete invites us to experiment with these glazes and share the results online. Please visit claytimes.com/frits to view Pete’s informative data on the characteristics of North American frits, and join the conversation.[

So I am pleased to say that Clay Times has once again recovered from the wrath of Mother Earth, and our publishing hiatus is over [hopefully this streak of weather havoc is over, too!] We very much appreciate the patience of our many subscribers who have been anxiously awaiting delivery of this 104th issue.

Clay

TIMES

There may still be a question in the minds of many regarding the reality of climate change ... but after back-to-back hurricanes for two fall seasons in a row down here in Florida, I’m a firm believer!

CERAMIC ART TRENDS, TOOLS & TECHNIQUES

Spouting Off I Editor’s Desk

We’re Back!

CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018 CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018

SYD CARPENTER ROBERTO LUGO SANA MUSASAMA REGINALD POINTER JANATHEL SHAW

JESSE ALBRECHT CRISTA AMES NATALIA ARBELAEZ SHARIF BEY JILL BIRSCHBACH DAVID BOGUS ABIGALE BRADING ANGELIQUE BRICKNER NORA BRODNICKI JIM BUDDE BRYAN & BRAD CAVINESS SEAN CLUTE TARA DALY MATTHEW DERCOLE YEWEN DONG ELHAN ERGIN RICHARD FREIWALD DENNIS GERWIN RONNIE GOULD JOCELYN HOWARD HSIN-YI HUANG STACEY JOHNSON MARSHA KARAGHEUSIAN AHRONG KIM ROB KOLHOUSE BETHANY KRULL PATRICIA MALONEY KELLY & KYLE PHELPS KRISTINE POOLE LYDIA THOMPSON Left: Montage of Abigale Brading, Bryan & Brad Caviness, Ronnie Gould, Dennis Gerwin, Marsha Karagheusian, Kristine Poole, and Lydia Thompson

CURATED BY WINNIE OWENS-HART PRODUCED BY NCECA Contemporary Craft Pittsburgh, PA

VISUAL VOICES: TRUTH NARRATIVES MARCH 14–AUGUST 18, 2018 Reception: 6 PM–9 PM Thursday, March 15

Hot Stuff I Calendar

SPRING / SUMMER 2018

What’s Hot • ceramic art world news • events • calls for entries Clay World News ‰ Baltimore Cla yworks has Re-opened its Door s — Following publication of our most recent issue of Clay Times, Baltimore Clayworks approved an agreement to re-open its doors. An all-new Board and leadership is now installed; volunteers worked to reopen the facilities and welcome everyone back; students and teachers are back in classes; and complete programs have resumed operation. Such great news for the art world and the greater Baltimore community — Congratulations! To learn more, visit baltimoreclayworks.org

Conferences ‰ The 52nd Annual Conference of the National Council on Educa tion f or the Cer amic Arts takes place March 14-17 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. “CrossCurrents: Clay and Culture,” this year’s conference theme, was adopted to reflect Pittsburgh as a city of rivers, bridges, complex immigrant history, gritty perseverance, and reinvention.

‰ The 13th Annual Fir ed Works Regional Cer amics Exhibition and Sale takes place April 13-22 in the Central City Park Round Building of Macon, GA. The

event will feature more than 6,000 pieces of pottery by 65 ceramic artists from Georgia and the Southeast. Fired Works began as a local pottery show and has grown to become the largest exhibit of functional and sculptural pottery in Georgia. Visit www.firedworksmacon.com for complete details. ‰ The 30th Annual California Conference for the Advancement f or Ceramic Art (CC ACA) takes place April 27-29 in Davis, California. The event will feature demonstrations, lectures, and more than 40 major shows of sculptural ceramic work including the annual 30 Ceramic Sculptors show and the California Clay Competition. This year’s featured artists include En Iwamura, Shenny Cruces, Gerit Grimm, Kevin Snipes, Michelle Gregor, and Mark Burns. For complete details of continued on next page

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The Steel City will be a place in which clay people can gather to share knowledge, celebrate, and critique each other’s work in arts, culture, teaching, and learning. Programming will take place at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. Concurrent clay exhibitions, a resource hall of commercial vendors and educational institutions, plus expert discussions and demonstrations by accomplished clay artists highlight the agenda for this annual gathering of energized clay people. For complete details and registration information, visit https:// nceca.net/2018-pittsburgh-pennsylvania/

Bill Griffith, who now serves as the Outreach and Partnership Liaison for Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, will receive the 2018 NCECA Outstanding Achievement Award on Friday, March 16 for his many years of service at Arrowmont and his overall influence on the field of ceramic art. Way to go, Bill!

Part Two of a Series

An Introduction To Frit: The Glazes “Over the last couple of years, I’ve been experimenting with a variety of frits, and have come up with a number of very promising new glaze recipes (some of which are included in this article). At this point these glazes are just being used as is (without colorants), because I haven’t yet done the full testing to develop the color range. I think all of these are particularly promising for color development, and I hope that readers will experiment with them, then share their results.”

BY PETE PINNELL

here is a relatively small number of frits that are in common use by potters in North America.

If you compare the chemical analyses of these frits, you might be surprised to find that virtually all contain the same elements: the fluxes are sodium and calcium oxide, and most also contain alumina, boron, and silica. Because these frits have such similar chemistry, glazes that are made with them tend to look alike. That’s not surprising: if you always cooked with the same five foods, your meals would all tend to taste the same. The same reality applies to glazes. In particular, it’s significant that most of the frits we use are formulated with the same two fluxes: sodium and calcium. A few common frits also contain some potassium, but that difference is so small, it is visually indistinguishable. By contrast, potters mixing glazes from raw materials commonly use (up to) eight different fluxes. We use these different fluxes because it lets us achieve a wider range of colors and textures than if we limited ourselves to just two. Given this fact, it’s not unusual that a lot of potters would tell you that they don’t like fritted glazes, or even think of these glazes as boring. In this column, I’m going to reference three frits that you’ve probably never heard of: Fusion frits F69, F38, and F435. I’m introducing you to these frits because they have a different chemical composition than the frits most of us are accustomed to using. F69 is a magnesium-boron frit that also contains alumina and silica. It has a very low thermal expansion, so it’s useful for formulating glazes that resist crazing. Fusion F38 is a balanced frit that contains strontium, along with sodium,

Frit F69 melts at a conveniently low temperature (about 1900°F), so it is handy as an anti-craze ingredient at all temperatures, from earthenware to porcelain. It works best in a glossy glaze, because boron (a significant part of F69’s formula) tends to inhibit the growth of microcrystals that create matte surfaces. In other words, if you add too much boron (usually in the form of frit) to a glaze, it can prevent the glaze from developing a matte surface. Too much boron, and your “matte” glaze can become a glossy glaze. How much frit can you add to a glaze? I’ve used as little as 5% in high-fire glazes, and as much as 25% in low-fire glazes. You can also try substituting this frit for some (or all) of a different, higher expansion frit. Over the last couple of years, I’ve been experimenting with a variety of frits, and have come up with a number of very promising new glaze recipes (some of which are included in this article). At this point these glazes are just being used as is (without colorants), because I haven’t yet done the full testing to develop the color range. I think all of these are particularly promising for color development, and I hope that readers will experiment with them, then share their results.

If you are going to fire in oxidation, then I recommend that you use EPK (Edgar Plastic Kaolin). EPK works well in glazes: it resists settling in the bucket, applies easily, and provides good surface strength (so glazed work can be handled). However, it contains a trace of titanium dioxide that can

For this reason, I recommend the use of Grolleg China Clay in reduction glazes that are transparent or celadon colored. Transparent reduction glazes mixed with Grolleg tend to have a fresher, bluewhite tone that looks brighter and cleaner. In all honesty, Grolleg doesn’t work as well as a glaze ingredient. While it does keep glazes from settling out, the dry surface can be chalky and more fragile than with EPK. Still, I’m willing to put up with the more fragile surface in order to get the better color. Generally speaking, the higher the clay content (within reason), the better the glaze will apply. However, when the clay content gets too high, the glaze can have a tendency to crawl, especially where it gathers in a thick layer, such as at handle connections and in inside corners. For that reason, I substitute calcined (fired) clay in place of raw (plastic) clay when the percentage of clay (in the glaze) exceeds 15%. To calcine clay, turn a kiln shelf over so the clean side faces up, put a pile on it, and fire it to cone 020. Calcined clay no longer has any plasticity, so it doesn’t take up as much water as raw clay, but it still provides the same chemical content for the melted glaze. So, just to be clear: if a reduction glaze recipe calls for 22% clay, I would use 15% Grolleg and 7% calcined Grolleg. If an oxidation recipe calls for 22% clay, I’d use 15% EPK, and 7% calcined EPK.

Glaze Notes (formulas appear on p. 18-19) Pete’s Blue Gloss Celadon

Cone 6-10 • oxidation or reduction In reduction, this glaze yields a light celadon blue color, a high-gloss surface, and is very crazeresistant. Unlike most celadon glazes, there is no addition of iron in the recipe. That’s because the wollastonite contains a small amount of iron — enough to give the glaze a cool tint in reduction, or a warm tint in oxidation.

Pete’s Blue Satin Celadon

Cone 6-10 • oxidation or reduction This glaze has essentially the same chemistry as the blue gloss celadon, but with a lower silica content. continued on next page

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All of the following recipes call for “clay”, which is not surprising, since virtually all glaze recipes include a clay of some sort to ensure the glaze suspends well in water and doesn’t quickly settle out. The type of clay used in the recipe depends on how you intend to fire the glaze. Since these recipes all work in either reduction or oxidation, and from Cone 6 to Cone 10, it’s important that your batch have the right clay for your purpose.

discolor reduction glazes, giving them a more pronounced gray-green color.

Perspectives I As Far As I Know

calcium, alumina, boron, silica, and zirconia. It helps create flawless, high-gloss glazes at all temperatures. Fusion F435 is high in sodium, but has no boron (which is unusual for a frit). F435 can be useful when trying to get more sodium into a glaze without either a lot of alumina or boron. 1

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Susan Feagin INTERVIEW BY LANA WILSON

In Part 2 of this series, Susan Feagin details her process for screenprinting onto clay STEP ONE: I prepare some underglaze “ink” for printing. I have to let the underglaze dry out some because commercial underglaze right out of the jar is too runny to use in screen printing. I pour a pint of underglaze onto a pane of window glass and leave it out in my studio for a few days. The edges of the underglaze puddle start to dry out. With a plastic putty knife, I can scoop up the underglaze and stir it around. Then I leave the underglaze puddle out on the window glass pane for another day to dry some more. When the underglaze puddle is gloopy like sour cream when I flip it around with the putty knife on the glass pane, I add a teaspoon of an “extender” to help smooth the one pint of underglaze out and get it to the right consistency to screen. You can use wallpaper paste from the hardware store or I use Speedball transparent base. Don’t use too much extender, as it can clog the silk screen. You can buy extender at the art supply store or online. I mix a teaspoon of the transparent base in with the plastic putty knife, not unlike printmakers do when they are mixing ink on a glass or marble slab. I know my underglaze An image of what the transparencies and photocopies look like. “ink” is ready to use when dollops it off a plastic spoon like pudding. I store my underglaze “ink” in one of those Ziploc screw top plastic storage jars.

Perspectives I Beneath the Surface

Screenprinting with Penland Clay Coordinator

Next I buy some EZScreens ® from www.ezscreenprint. com. I pick the mini-stencils from their standard stencil options, although plenty of other sizes are also available.

Here is the exposure “kit” just before exposing it to the sun.

I want my image to be simple black-and-white. Think of a basic line drawing or handwriting. Most photographs aren’t suitable for this process because they have shades of gray. (Find more suggestions at https://ezscreenprint.com/pages/ diy-silk-screen-printing-quality-artworktransparency) continued on next page

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STEP TWO: Prepare your artwork.

A Cultural Tour of Pottery Through Japan “I’ve never taken anyone to Japan who didn’t absolutely love it!” — SHERI LEIGH O’CONNOR

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Volanic ash-glazed pot by Unzen potter Hami Ishii

ierra Nevada College is a small, private liberal arts college, located on the north shore of Lake Tahoe. It is very surprisingly worldly, offering numerous travel courses abroad including “Ceramics, Sushi, and Sightseeing in Japan!” This trip is open to any adult, and people have traveled with SNC from across the U.S. to go on this unique visit to parts of Japan that aren’t readily accessible to foreigners, as well as popular spots like Kyoto.

Each year’s itinerary varies, but is hosted, in part, by Ken Takenaga in Japan, who arranges very interesting visits to local potters and art facilities on the island of Kyushu in southwest Japan. We visit Master Koga in Takeo, who fires a large noborigama and conducts short pottery workshops with our group; as well as Master Ogata, who teaches an awesome indigo dyeing class.

Above: Tour participants at Kinparo Ryokan in Yatsushiro. Opposite page: Hashizaki Schingo at the Heike-so Ryokan, Gokanosho.

continued on page 26

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A Pottery Tour of Japan continued from page 24

Arita, a porcelain destination town, has the beautiful Kyushu Ceramics museum. In the Shimabara area, there’s a female potter, Hami Ishii, who shows us her amazing metallic, local volcanic glaze (pictured on page 24). In Yatsushiro city, we visit a 14th-generation Kodayaki potter, and we experience a Japanese tea ceremony while dressed in kimonos (page 24). The part of the trip that people often say they enjoy most is the visit to the remote village of Gokanosho, in the mountains, where the last of the Heike samurai clan hid centuries ago. There we experience incredible meals, make pieces out of freshly cut bamboo, and learn Shodo calligraphy. The trip wraps up with a visit to Kyoto and side trips to Shigaraki, where we visit the Ceramic Culture park, local potters, and the gorgeous temples in Nara. In Kyoto, we visit the Raku museum, ceramic artists, and iconic sites.

Master Agano, 14th Generation Koda-yakipotter, potter,Yatsushiro Yatsushiro Kodayaki

Japan is an incredible experience. There is so much to see, do, and eat! The people are so incredibly hospitable and kind — they make you feel like royalty! [

CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018

Breakfast at the Heike-so Ryokan, Gokanosho

Author Sheri Leigh O’Connor loves taking people to Japan, and to date, she’s been there 10 times, and can’t wait for the next trip. She is the chair of the Fine Arts department at SNC Tahoe, where she also teaches ceramics and directs the Summer Visiting Artist Workshop program. Kiyoko Koyama, potter in Shigaraki

For more information about SNC’s Japan trips, please visit: www.sierranevada.edu/japan

BY MONONA ROSSOL

hile 3D printers look like such innocent fun, there are hazards you need to consider before you purchase one. I’ve been collecting studies and articles about these hazards and I’m concerned about the increasing use of these printers in schools, studios, and homes.

One of the best summaries of the data was from the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, Health and Safety Report, Volume 14, Issue 8. Their article, “Safety in 3D: Desktop 3D Printer Safety” reviewed a number of studies from around the world showing that ultrafine particles (UFPs) are emitted from the hot extruded plastics in amounts that are alarming. These particles are invisible, so people do not understand that they are being exposed to them. Users also are being told by 3D printer manufacturers that using “natural” plastics or polymers derived from substances such as corn are “safe.” According to the report:

These particles are also so small that they will remain in the air for quite a while — up to 100 minutes after printing was over, in one instance. And all types of plastic filaments used in the printers emit varying amounts of these particles, as well as some gases and vapors of concern. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in an article in the NIOSH Research Rounds monthly bulletin, Volume 1, Number 12 (June 2016) outlined five specific steps to reduce emissions from 3D printing: 1) Always use the manufacturer’s supplied controls (full enclosure can be more effective at controlling emissions than a cover). 2) Use the printer in a wellventilated place, and directly ventilate the printer. 3) Maintain a distance from the printer to minimize breathing

in emitted particles, and choose a low-emitting printer and filament when possible. Avoid staying in the same room with a printer for long periods of time. 4) Turn off the printer if the printer nozzle jams, and allow it to ventilate before removing the cover. 5) Use engineering measures first, such as manufacturersupplied equipment and proper ventilation, then use materials with lower emissions. Finally, wear protective equipment such as respirators if necessary. In other words, if you are planning to get one of the common plastic extruding 3D printers, you should buy one that has a plastic enclosure that you can modify by making a port in it and connecting it to a flexible duct and a small centrifugal fan that exhausts to the outside. This system is similar to the typical underthe-kiln ventilation system for electric kilns, but without a bypass box. 3D PRINTERS FOR CERAMICS No ventilation is needed if you are using a printer that creates no emissions. If hot extruded plastics are replaced by roomtemperature extruded wet clay, there are no emissions. This is a project you might want to consider adding to your studio. continued on next page

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• The emissions also varied by the material used. Filaments made from natural materials like corn emitted smaller particles than plastic filaments and calculations showed that the risk of particles lodging in the lungs was three times higher for the small particles made from natural substances compared with the larger plastic particles.

• Exposure to small particles has important health implications. UFPs can penetrate the lungs and lead to inflammation, headaches, and negative cardiovascular effects. Inhaled UFPs are deposited throughout the respiratory tract and may pass through different protective barriers into the bloodstream, harming other organ systems.

Studio I Health & Safety

Thinking About Getting A 3D Printer for Clay?

Studio I Health & Safety

Choosing a 3D Printer for Clay (continued from previous page) While I am clearly no 3D expert (and am only able to operate my computer and iPhone with fear and trembling), I am trained to know when a process is safe and when it is not. So I looked at promotional material and videos of two good clayextruding systems: • The Clay Extruder Kit 2.0 for the WASP 3D printer • The 3D PotterBot You might take a look at these two. There are others that are on the market, and some of these also are safe models for your studio.

CHOOSING SAFE SYSTEMS It’s simple to choose a safe system. All the systems that only extrude clay mixed with water don’t need ventilation or precautions any different from those you would use in your own studio to clean up an area where you wedge or handbuild with premixed clay. Watch out for 3D systems that involve dry clay powder. These are not safe and put you at the same risk you would have in the studio with any clay mixing process that has you brushing off or cleaning up silica-containing powdered clay. In fact, one of these powder methods I saw

CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018

Come see live demonstrations at NCECA by Alison Wheeler and Michael Mastroberti

Make Trimming Fun.

during my research for this article was a British powdered clay printing system. They clearly were aware of the silica issue because the operator transferred the powderencrusted clay model into a typical enclosed chemistry glove box for brushing off the powder to avoid exposure. But if you are extruding wet clay into various forms, enjoy! There is nothing to worry about except the same clean-up issues that you would have with any other forming method. Monona Rossol is an industrial hygienist/chemist with an M.F.A. in ceramics/glass. E-mail her at: ACTSNYC@cs.com

Achieving Patterned Glaze Effects, Part Two

Simple Glaze Transfer Techniques With the Use of Stencils BY FRANK JAMES FISHER

n this second part of my series, the stencil method of glazing decorative patterns is described. Stenciling has long been used by ceramic artists, but not typically from found objects. Searching for potential stencils during everyday life has extended my creative process beyond the studio walls.

continued on next page

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Raku-fired stoneware bottle by the author, decorated with the use of bumper pad stencils (pictured at top right). Bumper pads are used as a cushion on the back of picture frames. Full sheets can be purchased with each pad attached to a carrier sheet (purchased from Aftosa). Remove and discard the pads. The carrier sheet can be used as a flexible stencil.

There is ingenuity, inventiveness, experimentation, and resourcefulness in testing each possible object and its resulting pattern â€” all of which maintains an active atmosphere of creativity in the glazing process. There may be a lot of trial and error, but adding new stencil patterns to your glazing methods provides more opportunities and greater flexibility in your glazing process.

Glaze Stenciling (continued from previous page) Wet the pounce with water and wring it out before glazing. This will help it absorb the glaze evenly, and makes clean-up much easier. After mixing the glaze, dip the pounce against the glaze so only the flat surface of the sponge is coated with glaze. Test the saturation of the glaze on a scrap of paper to be sure you have the right amount. Mentally divide the pot’s surface into manageable sections. Pounce the glaze onto the stencil pattern, then carefully lift and reposition the stencil onto the adjoining undecorated area.

Woven nylon scrub cloth, used as a stencil on pot below

Linking two patterned edges together requires a little finesse. Often if a gap is left between the two merging edges, the gap can be blended by individually stenciling elements to bridge the design. Overlapping a design in a different glaze color can create a multi-layered pattern of colors. The methods described in this three-part article can be used with low-fire through cone 10 glazes. I’ve had success with all of the clay bodies and slips I’ve tried, with gloss and matte glazes, and underglazes, too. I’m especially fond of the results from western raku firing using cone 06 glazes. [

CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018

Frank James Fisher is an American ceramic artist living and working in Milford, Mich. Fisher’s art is recognized for its strong graphic design aesthetic and unique approach to the ceramic medium. Fisher is an author and exhibiting artist, and teaches workshops revealing his methods and philosophy on art.

At left: Raku-fired stoneware bottle by the author. 6" tall x 3½" wide.

’m writing this on a beautiful Sunday afternoon in Tennessee. Light breeze, and not a cloud in the sky, but as native Floridians, my wife and I can’t help but worry about our family and friends in the Sunshine State. Hurricane Irma has just crossed over the Keys and is headed toward landfall in Southwest Florida. There is a high probability of storm surge and flooding in many areas of Florida. There is also a chance of flooding in many areas of the South. The chance also exists that there will be some kilns inundated with floodwaters. If one of those gas-fired kilns is yours, what should you do? If you weren’t at your kiln location during the flooding event, you’re most likely going to see some sort of high-water line that will let you know the depth of the water around the kiln. If the water was just rising and not moving, the foundation of the kiln may be fine. A good eyeballing and a level will let you know if things are still level.

will put more stress on a damaged structure.

should be considered a loss, and be replaced.

The water rose enough to submerge your burner system. Now what? Venturi and pipe burners are going to be pretty immune from damage. A patina of rust may appear over the whole burner, but a wire brush or a trip to someone who can do some sandblasting will get them looking newer. A little bit of rust is not going to hurt the performance of these types of burners. If they were already heavily rusted and they were submerged in seawater … well, it could be time for new burners.

There is another electrically operated valve that may be part of your system that you may not consider as an electrical component.

Manual valves that have been submerged should be fine as long as they were in the closed position when flooding happened. This should be true for gas piping as well. As long as things haven’t been moved or torqued by moving water, the integrity of the pipe should be fine. It held pressurized gas in, it can hold water out. If you see bends in the pipe or smell gas, perform a bubble test with soapy water and a paintbrush to locate any leaks. The electrical components of your system will not benefit from its time below water. Electric solenoids, blowers, blower speed controls, or anything that receives voltage

Baso or thermocouple-driven safety valves are electric valves. They are just not hooked up to the electric grid. They run on the millivolt charge produced by heating a thermocouple and producing a flow of electrons (current). A bit of rain that seeps down around the button on a safety valve can ruin it. Complete submersion underwater will certainly do it in. Plan on replacing all safety valves. Thermocouples are sealed units and can survive a dunking, but you should always have some spares around, as they are considered consumable items. The refractory components of your kiln can usually deal with getting wet or becoming submerged … unless, of course, you have ceramic fiber as a part of your kiln. If your kiln took on rising water and your ceramic fiber is still in place and mechanically sound, your fiber should be fine… it’s just waterlogged and needs extensive drying. continued on next page

CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018

Foundation movement or distortion may mean taking the kiln down, rebuilding the foundation, and starting over. Be aware that if a kiln has visible cracks and separations, it will get worse when fired. A foot of linear brick wall expands ¼" at cone 10. This growth and subsequent shrinkage

BY MARC WARD

Shop Talk I Firing

After the Storm Repairing Studio Equipment

Shop Talk I Tool Times

NCECA Past & Present

More New Tool Finds BY VINCE PITELKA

MKM Large Hand Roller

Hsin Measuring Set

CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018

t’s always a treat seeing the new clay studio tools available each year, and there are some especially interesting ones this time. In my column a year ago I mentioned the fine stainless steel trimming tools and wood bowl ribs from Hsin Tools. Now Hsin-Chuen Lin has come up with a precision measuring set, a contemporary version of the classic Japanese “tombo” traditionally used for checking the height and diameter of a teabowl. Hsin’s tombo is marked off in millimeters for depth, and the rubber O-rings on the horizontal arm can be set to the desired diameter. We think of the tombo as serving primarily for cups and bowls, but this instrument can be used to check depth and rim diameter of any vessel within the range of its arms. Go to hsinchuen.wixsite.com/mypots/hsintools to see all of the Hsin tools, watch videos of the tools in action, or to access the Etsy shop. MKM Pottery Tools has further expanded their line of pattern stamps and rollers. New variations are the Large Handrollers and the Twig Rollers. The terminology might be a bit misleading, because I have previously mentioned the “Big Handrollers.”

MKKM Twig Rollers and SMR Stamps The Large Handrollers are 1”-diameter like the Big Handrollers, but almost 8” long. Both have rounded ends so they do not leave a stepped edge in the impressed band of pattern, and thus successive bands can overlap to cover a large area of slab. The Twig Rollers are 3”-long with straight-cut ends, and thus leave a distinct “edged” band of pattern. Also new are the small “SMR” stamps, approximately one centimeter in diameter with a nicely-sculpted handle. Go to mkmpotterytools.com and click “stamps4clay” and “rollers4clay” to see the extensive variety available.

Mudtools Thumper Chatter Carvers

Mudtools Carving Bow in Action

Mudtools has come up with a very innovate extruder accessory. All extruder dies for hollow tubular shapes must have a bridge structure to support the center portion of the die. Anyone who extrudes hollow shapes knows of the problem encountered when such pieces sometimes crack along the seam where the clay rejoins after passing the bridge, and this is greatly exacerbated if you attempt to alter the shape immediately. Mudtools has created the “Zipper Bridge Extrusion Dies,” featuring an innovative bridge structure that “re-knits the clay, eliminating seam failure during drying & firing” and “allows for immediate manipulation of your extrusion into other forms.” The set features Mudtools’ consistent standards of craftsmanship. In looking at the image for the first time, I thought I might be viewing a dramatic abstract sculptural wall-relief. As of right now, these dies are only available for a 4" square extruder barrel. At www.mudtools.com you can explore the broad range of finely-crafted Mudtools studio clay tools and watch video demos. I am a proponent of paddles in thrown and handbuilt work, and Stanley Hirsch’s Mecca Pottery Tools makes the best assortment of paddles, including flat, patterned, and ropewound. A new variation is the “Whale Fin Paddle,” with a lovely shape that may well fit a need that other paddles do not satisfy. You can continued on next page

CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018

Mudtools Zipper Bridge Hollow Extrusion Dies

I have previously mentioned the Mudtools “Mudcutter,” and there’s also a smaller version called the “Carving Bow,” equipped with either a straight or wiggle wire. As with the Mudcutter, the Carving Bow is designed for roughing out solid-formed sculpture, cutting facets, trimming the rim of a thrown vessel, and innumerable similar tasks. We normally stretch the cutoff wire between both hands for such tasks, while the Carving Bow frees up one hand. The image shows the bow in action cutting corrugated facets, with the other hand providing support inside the vessel.

Shop Talk I Tool Times

In a recent column, I mentioned Mudtools’ beautifully-made “Petal Knives” with their carbon steel blades designed for carving and trimming. As a variation on the Petal Knives, Mudtools has come up with the Thumper Chatter Carvers for creating chatter patterns. The image shows several variations, and a chatter-carved bowl in the background.

Resources I The Slurry Bucket

NCECA BOOTH 314

The Slurry Bucket Lip Protection

Recycled Damp Box

No, we’re not talking about lip balm here! This has to do with keeping the lips, or rims, of your pots protected when you cover them with plastic. Since plastic can sometimes mark up the pristine surface of the smooth lip you took the time to perfect while forming, you’ll want to do this to maintain that effect: Simply cut up some newspaper squares larger than the diameter of your pot’s rim, and place the newspaper on top of the rim prior to covering with plastic. Not only will it protect the rim from unwanted marks, but it will also help prevent warpage during the drying process.

If you’re one of the lucky folks who receive occasional shipments of freshly-caught fish or other perishables packed in dry ice, these often arrive in insulated cardboard boxes or Styrofoam® coolers. Don’t throw these containers away — they serve as great damp boxes for work that needs to dry slowly!

Go With the Flow Getting bored making the same old line of claywork? Consciously open your mind to collecting fresh ideas from everything you see and do! [

CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018

To view lots more helpful clay studio tips, visit www.claytimes.com often — where a new tip and a different glaze formula appears each time you log in!

Check out these listings to ﬁnd local programs for wheel-throwing, handbuilding, sculptural techniques, & more … Classes are listed alphabetically by state

COLORADO

FLORIDA, cont.

MAINE, cont.

Spinning Star Studio — 427 East Colorado Ave., Studio 129, Colorado Springs, CO 80903; http:// www.spinningstarstudio.com; jennifer@spinningstarstudio. com. Wheel-throwing, handbuilding, electric firing, raku firing, classes for adults; wheelchair accessible wheel available. Open studio is available as well as electric kiln rental for firing up to cone 6.

Morean Center for Clay — 420 22nd St. South, St. Petersburg, FL 33712; 727.821.0516; www.MoreanArtsCenter.org; valerie.scott.knaust@ moreanartscenter.org. Wheel-throwing, handbuilding, electric firing, gas firing, raku firing, wood firing, guest artist workshops, classes for adults and children. Children’s summer camps and week-long adult camps.

private lessons, retail gallery, shows. Wheel-throwing, handbuilding, electric firing, guest artist workshops, classes for adults and children.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

GEORGIA

Hinckley Pottery — New Location! 3132 Blues Alley NW, Washington, DC 20012; 202.745.055; www. hinckleypottery.com; info@hinckleypottery.com. Resident and associate work spaces; glaze firing in cone 10 gas kiln. Wheel-throwing, handbuilding, electric firing, gas firing, guest artist workshops, classes for adults and children.

Callanwolde Fine Arts Center — 980 Briarcliff Rd., Atlanta, GA 30306; 404.874.9351; www. callanwolde.org; gdair@callanwolde.org. Located in Midtown Atlanta, Callanwolde offers basic and intermediate wheel and handbuilding classes for adults, as well as electric, gas, raku, and soda firing, plus guest artist workshops.

FLORIDA Boca Raton Museum Art School — 801 West Palmetto Park Road, Boca Raton, FL 33486; 561.392.2503; Fax 561.361.8306; artschool@bocamuseum.org; www.bocamuseum.org/ artschool. We offer handbuilding, wheel-throwing, clay sculpture classes for kids, teens, and adults as well as classes in jewelry, painting, and photography.

Clay Times® Art Center — NEW! 112 S. Third St., Fernandina Beach, FL 32034; 904.624.5824; 800.356.2529; claytimes@gmail.com, www. claytimesartcenter.co. Studio space rental, gallery, lessons, open studio, visiting artist workshops. Glazing, firing, tools, books, equipment, and classes for all ages in wheelthrowing, handbuilding, sculpture, glass art & more. Custom internships for college students. Feel free to ask questions!

Johns Creek Arts Center — 6290 Abbotts Bridge Rd., Building 700, Johns Creek, GA 30097; 770.623.8448; Fax 770.623.6995; jcacinfo@ bellsouth.net; http://www.johnscreekarts.org. Located in Johns Creek, GA, the Johns Creek Art Center provides ceramics instruction for adults and youth with wheelthrowing, handbuilding, summer camps, cone 06-6 electric firing, and guest artist workshops.

MAINE The Red Door Pottery Studio — 44 Government St., Kittery, ME 03904; 207.439.5671; exfpottery@yahoo.com; www.reddoorpottery.com. Year-round classes, all skill levels, monthly workshops,

MARYLAND The ClayGround Studio & Gallery, LLC — 3715 Old Columbia Pike, Ellicott City, MD 21043; 443.812.1158; claygroundonline.com; clayations46@ yahoo.com. Pottery classes for all ages, with wheel throwing, handbuilding, and electric firing. We do birthday parties, scout troops, home school, and corporate teambuilding events. Renaissance Art Center — 9250 Gaither Rd., Gaithersburg, MD 20877; 301.987.0377; www. rcarts.com; info@rcarts.com. Pottery classes for all ages, teaching wheel throwing, handbuilding, and glazing techniques. Electric firing. Our new studio features 12 wheels and over 2000 s.f. of studio space!

MASSACHUSETTS Purple Sage Pottery — 3 Mechanic St.,Merrimac, MA 01860; 978.346.9978; www.purplesagepottery. com; iris@purplesagepottery.com. Wheel-throwing, handbuilding, sculpture; electric, gas reduction, and raku firing; guest artist workshops; classes for adults and children.

MISSOURI 323 Clay — 323 West Maple Avenue, Independence, MO 64068; 816.254.7552; http://www.323Clay.com; kimberly@323clay.com. Wheel-throwing, handbuilding, electric firing, gas firing, raku firing, guest artist workshops, classes for adults, classes for children. continued on next page

CLAYTIMES·COM ■ SPRING / SUMMER 2018

Carla’s Clay Inc. — 1733 Northgate Blvd., Sarasota, FL 34234; 941.359.2773; www.carlasclay. com; cobrien@carlasclay.com. Classes for adults and children in wheel-throwing, handbuilding, electric and raku firing. Guest artist workshops; retail supplies and gallery.

The Hudgens Center for the Arts — 6400 Sugarloaf Pkwy, Bldg. 300, Duluth, GA 30097; 770.623.6002; Fax 770.623.3555; info@thehudgens. org; www.thehudgens.org. The Hudgens is located north of Atlanta and offers year-round fine art classes. Wheelthrowing, handbuilding, electric firing, gas firing, raku firing, classes for adults and children, open studio for students.

Resources I Classes

Community Pottery Classes

Opinion I Around the Firebox

10 Studio Tips to Help Keep You Healthy You want your nose right above the pot — your body close enough to brace an elbow inside your hip to center, and use your leverage to the best advantage. Some throw standing, and find that better for their body type. Mastery at the wheel takes many hours. While it may not hurt now, you are likely to pay later. 2. Protect your joints. Wedging feels natural and easy once you get the hang of it, but it is a repetitive motion that can lead to problems. Make sure your wedging surface is below your center of gravity — at the level of your hanging hands, so that your upper body weight does the hard work. In her 80s, my friend and mentor Edith Franklin would get downs on her knees to wedge on the floor to protect her back when she did demos. She was one of many retired potters who travelled with a card in their wallet for airport security, detailing titanium hips and shoulders, or who was able to point out which wrist, thumb, or elbow surgery left which scar.

CLAYTIMES·COM n SPRING / SUMMER 2018

If the volume of clay in your studio makes it practical, look for good deals on second-hand pug mills. Many of us who buy bagged clay — especially groggy stoneware — can cut it into careful blocks and do no wedging at all, except a quick coning on the wheel. Think of your wrist like a car: lower mileage means higher value.

3. Dust. I am not one of those people prone to running around with my hair on fire screaming “Silica! Silica!” — but some of the farmers I grew up with plowed clay soil on open tractors, and ended up with emphysema. My Irish ancestors who worked in the mines died of black lung. I know that inorganic sediment in

(continued from previous page)

the lungs is not a great long-term plan. I developed asthma later in life, and now shake my head with regret about how little thought I once gave to simply being able to breathe. So: never sweep a studio with a broom! Use a big squeegee. Clean up while the clay is still wet, using fat sponges and mops. Wear an apron, and don’t wear it home — soak it in a bucket and wash it once in a while. If you work with glaze materials, ventilate the area and wear a decent mask. All these things are especially risky if you smoke, since smoking temporarily paralyzes the cilia that filter the air you breathe. Open windows if you can, since fine airborne silica is invisible and stays afloat for hours. 4. Glazes. If you mix glazes, you likely have some idea what is in them and whether they are safe and stable and appropriate for food vessels. If you are dipping your pots into buckets in a community space, find out! Some glazes look spectacular on sculptural work, but should never be inside a functional pot. Yes, you can write “not for food” on a tag, but there are pots in museums that are thousands of years old, so remember your pot will outlive the tag, and you, and the buyer. Sell each piece as if somebody will buy it at a yard sale one day and give their baby orange juice in it every morning. If you buy packaged or bottled glazes, you don’t know what is in them: exercise caution accordingly. “Food safe” means “after being fired to appropriate temperature.” It certainly does NOT mean it’s safe in liquid form, or as fumes that are released from the kiln during a glaze firing. 5. Kiln v ents: Yes, you can often find a bargain on a kiln at an estate sale, when a hobby ceramist

moves to senior housing. And often, those kilns have been fired with mold-poured ceramics at low temperatures, and are still in pretty good shape. (But always check! New elements can cost more than you paid for the kiln.) Before you set that kiln up in your garage, remember that kilns ALWAYS need venting, and kiln vents run about $350 these days. If you have an empty shed with windows, or a covered porch not attached to your home, you might be tempted to bypass the vent — but remember that fumes even from bisque ware will corrode metals, and that if the former owner fired lead glazes, that lead will still volatize and become fumes when your kiln is at temperature. Opening a garage door does not keep fumes out of your house, nor does a box fan in a window. And if you check firing cones without eye protection – remember that cataracts could often have been preventable. 6. Consider others. You may choose to take risks in your workplace, and that’s your call. But if you are using a recipe from 1978 and are not sure about the cobalt leaching from your liner glaze, the results of those risks extend to others. If you don’t care to turn on noisy ventilation systems when you mix glazes, you are deciding for other potters in the studio. Keep in mind that women of childbearing age carry every egg they will ever have, from birth to motherhood — and what they are exposed to can also affect their unborn children, so our choices also choose for them. Also remember that just because your lungs can recover from a night at the cigar bar, doesn’t mean your fellow potters or family members don’t have different sensitivities. continued on page 50

Classes

Opportunities, cont.

Tools for Potters, cont.

• Throw like a pro! Hone your craftsmanship with this proven method. I will teach you in your studio. Your skill will grow substantially. See reference letters at: Jepsonpottery.com; neverleavetheplayground.com

• Emergency relief and recovery resources for artists affected by recent disasters are available from CERF, the Craft Emergency Relief Fund. Log onto studioprotector.org for details on how to get help from the arts sector, relief providers, and your community. The site, created by artists for artists, also offers strategies for becoming better prepared for craft emergencies altogether — like the upcoming hurricane season!

Only the highest quality materials are used including exotic woods and Kirinite; each tool is a work of art. Some of our latest tools even glow in the dark! Check us out online at https://www.etsy.com/ shop/SegersPotteryTools

Summer Internships • Attention College Students! Clay Times is now interviewing for Summer 2018 internships in graphic design, journalism, marketing, and studio management. Earn, learn, and get your clay kicks at our beautiful new island art center in Fernandina Beach, FL. For details, e-mail your resume and cover letter to claytimes@gmail. com with “CT Internship” in the subject line. Opportunities • The Annual National K-12 Ceramic Exhibition is a yearly juried clay competition for Kindergarten through Grade 12 (K-12) students in the United States.

Ceramics, Sushi, and Sightseeing in Japan — October 4-18, 2018. $3,800 fee includes: tuition, rail pass, accommodations, activities, and select meals. $525 deposit due at registration; balance due 8/4/18. For details visit: www. sierranevada.edu/academics/ summer-art-workshops-2/japanoctober/ • Order print and digital back issues & posters, original potter’s t-shirt designs, and more available exclusively from Clay Times! We’ve also got the Great Glazes I & II collection of glaze recipes, Teaching Techniques how-to article PDFs by Bill van Gilder, and lots more at www.claytimes.com/store.html Tools for Potters • Segers Tools is a family-owned business creating originally designed, handcrafted tools.

Reach tens of thousands of active clay artists with your message in Clay Times! Classiﬁeds as low as $ 75 Display ads as low as $ 151 YOUR PRINT AD in any issue EARNS YOU a FREE 3-MONTH AD ONLINE!

Order your Clay Times classified at www.claytimes.com/classifieds.html or call 800.356.2529 display ad details

CLAYTIMES·COM ■ SPRING / SUMMER 2018

Designed to showcase the best K-12 ceramic work made in the country, the exhibition takes place in a different city each year in conjunction with the annual conference of The National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA). Visit the 21st annual show in Pittsburgh, PA, March 14-17, 2018. For complete details about the show and the entry process, log onto www.k12clay.org

Pottery Tours in Japan

• If you ever enjoyed the Spirograph® — that geometric drawing toy that produces mathematical curves technically known as hypotrochoids and epitrochoids — then you will probably enjoy ’The Steve Tool’, which produces the same in 3D on clay. The next time you throw a pot, or spin-form extrusions, try this device to add texture to your cylinder before stretching out the shape. If you teach beginners and they just can’t limit the glaze they apply to a pot, hand them a Steve Tool to get the benefit of holding back some of that slobber thru crazy texture. For full details, visit www.graberspottery.com or e-mail steve@graberspottery.com [

Resources I Classified Marketplace

Classified Marketplace

10 Studio Tips to Help Keep You Healthy 7. Maintain your body. Many potters recommend yoga as a way to keep joints limber and balance out all the hunching, clenching, and pushing that come with our line of work. Move and stretch, eat well, take breaks, and break up long blocks of repetitive tasks with some activity that uses different muscles — or a long walk or bike ride in the fresh air and sunlight. Potters and nurses recommend decent shoes like Keens or Merrells for long periods of standing, and one of the best ways to strengthen your spine is a daily walk. 8. Get Assistance. I decided two years ago that unloading the one-ton pallet of 50-lb. clay boxes and stacking them one-by-one in the clay guild basement was likely not worth the toll it took on my back, so I decided to pay some young, muscular college students to do it for me. I have no regrets. I have also learned from my elders to put wheeled dollies under heavy buckets and equipment, to change up the ergonomics of

(continued from page 48)

chairs and wheels where I spend long hours, and to make more trips carrying less weight. I recommend following an online community of other clay artists where tips and ideas for healthy studio practices are constantly offered. 9. EVOLVE. Sometimes limitations are the best thing that can happen to us, allowing us to find new skills outside our usual pursuits and pushing us out of our comfort zones. We know of a young potter, injured in an accident before her MFA show, who focused on surface design and found her passion. The same can happen as we age. A friend who once made large-scale work and was known for atmospheric firings and sculptural raku, moved to assisted living in her 80s and threw delicate little porcelain pieces on a tabletop wheel. Some long-time studio potters reach a stage in life where they move to another medium completely — print making, fiber arts, jewelry. It is perhaps easier for creatives to see a new situation as

a challenge, and find a way to work with the hand they are dealt, as long as we don’t define ourselves by what we have “always” done. 10. Finally, spread the word. Explain safe practices to the potters around you, even if it means contradicting someone who dismisses it as “hysteria.” Some proclaim, “We’re all going to die anyway” as justification for taking risks — but from where I stand at mid life, I can look to my elders for evidence that “alive” and “dead” are not the only possibilities. Your choices (along with genetics, of course, and luck) can determine the quality of your life (and work) in later years. We may all require, at some point, the assistance of a walker or cane, surgery to repair a joint, medical assistance to help us with the effects of aging. But whether that happens — or when — can depend on what habits we form in our 20s, or at any point along the journey. [ E-mail Kelly: ksavino@buckeye-express.com

CLAYTIMES·COM ■ SPRING / SUMMER 2018

Index to Advertisers

Advancer Kiln Shelves ............................. 3 American Ceramic Supply Co. .............. 20 Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts ....... 20 Carolina Clay Connection...................... 36 CERF Studio Protector .......................... 37 Clay Times Products ............................. 34 Continental Clay .................................... 20 Diamondcore Tools................................ 43 Dolan Tools ............................................ 44 Euclid’s Elements .................................. 51 Giffin Tec................................................ 28 GR Pottery Forms.................................. 20 Great Lakes Clay & Supply Co. ............. 36 Hi-roller Vertical Slab System ................ 44 Japan Pottery Tools ............................... 36

Koala Tools ............................................ 10 L & L Kilns ............................................... 2 MKM Pottery Tools .................................. 3 NCECA .................................................... 8 Robin Hopper’s Swan Song Video ........ 37 Silver City Clay Festival ......................... 11 Skutt Kilns ............................................. 52 Slab Mat ................................................ 36 Splashpan Pottery ................................... 7 State of Clay 2018 ................................. 10 Ward Burner Systems ........................... 34 Xiem Tools USA ..................................... 11

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