Swelter'd Venom Sleeping Got

Description

Wheel thrown white stoneware, horsehair raku with tinted terra sig. 5.5" widest X 9" tall.

Raku is a form of Japanese pottery. It's characterized by low firing temperatures and the removal of pieces from the kiln while still glowing hot. In the traditional Japanese firing process, the pot is removed from the hot kiln and put directly into water or allowed to cool in the open air.

Western raku differs in this aspect by utilizing a reduction chamber to compensate for the difference in atmosphere between wood-fired Japanese raku kilns and gas-fired American kilns. Pieces removed from the hot kiln are placed in masses of combustible material (ex: straw, sawdust, or newspaper) to provide a reducing atmosphere for the glaze and to stain the exposed body surface with carbon

Horsehair raku surface decoration is the carbon left as horsehair meets the surface of a pot that has been previously prepared with terra sigillata ('sealed earth'), and is removed from the kiln at approximately 1450 degrees. Smoke trailing -- as well as the heavy black of the singeing, burning, and melting hair itself -- can be seen. Other materials that can be used with this technique include fine sugar crystals and feathers. The window for decoration is long as long as the piece takes to cool past the point at which the hair will singe and adhere - typically between a half minute and a minute-and-a-half, depending on the weather and thickness of the pot.

Raku pieces are for decorative purposes, only (ie. non-liquid-bearing and non-food-safe).

I am happy to combine shipping on multiple items if you contact me. Free US shipping on orders over $75!

US shipping is based on the USPS flat-rate box. If you want express delivery or another shipping method let me know. I will ship internationally but shipping will need to be figured individually based on package destination, weight, and shipping method.

Added on Dec 19, 2009