ja\'13'GREAT STEP-BY-STEP PROJECTS PINCH, COIL, SLAB AND THROW Issue 28 eeiey eee aa » NCECA teapot challenge Globe mould ® Readers’ makeswe'll be at ICF Aberystwyth July 5-7 Order deadline: Wednesday 26 June See website for details ts) Potclays.co.uk POTCLAYS Clay, materials, tools, equipment and kilns for ceramics. Est. 1932 Meet the team... Jacqui Atkin Ball-mould p50 Tracey Parsons Kincrazy! p68 eee Pere nte ‘2 here was a collective sigh o1 7 relief from a LOT of people ‘Simon Shaw announced that The Great Thrown goblet Portery Throw Down would, at last, be pe : took up the option, and Love Productions opened the call for applicants a couple of weeks before we went to press, The window of opportunity for potential contestants is very simal, though, as the Unda Bloomfield pplication process is open for just @ Wiis material few weeks. If you are interested in taking part, you have until 25 June to enter, Head over to applyforpotterythrowdown.co.uk T know that some people are a bit. sniffy’ about the Throw Down, and it’s true that if you're familiar with the processes behind turning a lump pie of clay into a finished, glazed piece of work, you can see where shortcuts that you wouldn't use yourself are taken, but hey, it’s an entertainment programme, not a teaching resource. And there's the rub, It is entertaining, ‘on so many levels. Trying to spot the winners and losers early on; watching the different ways the contestants Welcome Keith to such an emotional pitch that he sheds a tear If the programme encourages people to have a go, and sign up to a lass, then it can only be a good thing. Even if they don't take it any further than doing a six-week course, hat time will give them a respect for the processes that went into that handmade mug. they see for sale for 225, and they'll understand that it's a craft, and an art, to turn mud into something, beautiful what they learn during Cee approach the challenges; holding your WA breath when you can spot something going wrong before they do, and, of sham, Bator course, waiting to see who will bring nt reduction Conte Cuesey worw kelsey.co.uk Issue 28 ClayCratt 3Contents ESA) 20 Project 2: house number A.quick and easy way to personalise your front door with a unique house number 6 News 8 Project 1: thrown goblet Goblets are notoriously difficult produce, but this method is pretty foolproof 18. Linda Bloomfield Glazing with wild materials 28 Community project Imogen Noble has been taking pottery lessons into residential 30 Project 3: two-part ball mould Abasic globe-shaped mould is probably one of the most Useful the potter can have because it can be used in so many weys| 4° ClayCraft issue 28 38 Readers’ makes 4 Asselection of photos sent in by our readers. See what they've been making b 40 Project 4: storage jars Simple slab builds, with mickcentury inspired trailed decoration 51 Me and my Pot Anelise Bredow shares her quirky vessels 52 Back issues Missed a month? Al the available issues at 54 World record? This year's NCECA was the venue for a teapot-making challenge 58 Doug's Diary Its all go up in Scotland, but a ‘working bathroom is causing the 60 Project 5: extruded handles Continuing our look at different ways to make handles, we turn this month to extruders 68 Confessions of a novice One kiln is desirable, but three? Tracey's hogging the secondhand market in East Anglia 72 Events Find out what's on around the 24 Method at Culford Studio Paul Bailey talks to the potters Who took over Kate Malone's former Londen studio country 76 Courses Fancy signing up for a class? Find ‘one near you In our useful listing 81 Next month Find out what's in store in the 82 Me and my Pot Unique and fun wall planters from, Valerie Zoz 71 Reader evii-lg lolol lim@ No) cola} sue 28 ClayCraft 5If you have a news story, product launch or details of some other topical item you'd like our readers to know about, email claycraft.edi@kelsey.co.uk PRETTY PASTELS Northern Kilns has single-phase supply. This launched a range of pastel- kiln needs to be wired coloured kilns in duck egg into an isolator. Supplied. blue, baby pink and lilac, as. a whole package, with and is planning a ‘bold $7215 10-programme, range, in royal blue, violet 16-segment controller and, and orange. Of course, the four-layer furniture set, trusty grey is stil available, From £3,850 + and the company can also. VAT + delivery offer a choice of colour as an optional extra, tac (@ Duck egg blue EZ Fire Pro EZ Fire Pro FLI45 FL96 internal dimensions 18" MInternal x18"x27"=457mmx dimensions = 457mm x 686mm (width 18" x 16" x (width x depth asa whole package, with x depth x height) 18 - 457mm xcheighd 51215 10-programme, 1S LOOKING FOR THE UK’S BEST External dimensions 33" x 457mm x Electrically _16-seament controller and XS2s'tee" sosenm —57mmcondth raedat Ta,” fourier turtire set HOME POTTE R x1003mm x1727mm~= depth x height) Siamps, utilising 3 From £3,500 + VAT + width x depth xhelght) mlExternal dimensions of single-phase supply. This delivery ua enon WElectrcally rated at «33° 39.5" x68"- 836mm kKinneeds tobe wired See more at: SkW, 38amps, utilising x 1003mm x1727mm- into anisolator. Supplied _northernkllns.com A Sua nomunecoe) Even better! Congratulations Kate! Scarva has announced the __in different lengths and arrival of the Giffin Grip, a shapes, according to how Yes, it's back! The news broke to much celebration, and we're very happy that this show will be back centering and turning aid you want to use them, and ‘on our screens, thanks to Channel 4. By the ROHDE IERS TE-S fromthe US. If younowen't the shape ofthe work you time this issue goes on sale, there wil only be a Seon one of these before, want to held. Using an aid ee ve pee on sal eee oes STANDARD FLOOR HEATING itso wneel head system’ lke this can oreetly speed ieeaen ie cara scoecartneeione te that has adjustable arms up the turning process = applyforpotterythrowdown.cou which slide towards the. ideal for large volumes of Se eee z Centre, holding your work work inthe middle ofthe wheel The standard model costs head, ready for turning. £199.99 and additional Avvariety of sliding rods —_rods start at £12.49. Find and brackets are available out more at: searva.com. RY AST We'd like to congratulate Kate Malone on being awarded an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List, for her services to UK ceramic art. While she became better known to the general public as one of the judges on the Throw Down, Kate has been a ceramicist of note for many years, and is famous for her large sculptural vessels and her amazing, colourful glazes. Her work is on display ina number of public settings and she's a great, eames roo | ee ROHDE® recognised for everything she has achieved. standard floor emperature distribution and al use of the firing chamber ed lsue 28 ClayCraft 7THROWN GOBLET Goblets are notoriously difficult to produce, but this method of making them is pretty foolproof if followed carefully. It's the first of three methods we will show you ‘over the coming issues and is probably the easiest 8 ClayCraft luo 28 a Deere eee ee esayate a Pee ieee) should be large enough to throw at least six stems, plus 2 few extra to accommodate mistakes and variations in You can find full instructions on how to do this at claycraft.co.uk/how-to Note: it's really only necessary that the top half of the clay is centred after coning up before making the first stom, because after that you will re-centre as the next one is made. DIFFICULTY RATING * Isolate approximately 225g of clay at the top of the cone and form it into a knob shape, with the side of the palm and fingers of your right hand. As you work, use your left hand to support the shape on the opposite side. ‘A Develop the shape further by gently pinching the fingers ‘of both hands underneath the knob, as shown, to establish the width of what will be the waist of the stem, which should be no greater than 3cm, Issue 28 ClayCraft 9‘Supporting the clay with your right-hand fingers ‘round the underside and the side of your left palm ‘opposite, press down into the centre of the clay with your right thumb until you reach the section you narrowed earlier 4 Pinch and lift the wall = the fingers of your left hand inside the form and the fingertips of your right hand opposite them on the outside, This first lift should be in an upward direction to form 2 standard cylinder shape. 10 ClayCrait lsue 28 ‘A Now pinch the shape in at the base with the fingers of both hands to establish the shape. Lift the wall one last time to rafine it to the correct thickness and shape. Lift the wall again from the narrow base, with your fingers in the same position as the first lift, working upward and slightly outward to a gentle flare. ‘A Measure the height of the stem - the ideal would be ‘Scm. Mark this measurement point on the stem with a pin, DIFFICULTY RATING * ‘4. Using a rib, or an old bank/store card, cut a groove in the stem at the marked position. ‘4 Holding the cutting wire taut between both hands, wire the stem off with the wheel turning slowly. ‘4 Carefully lft the stem off the hump and stand it on a waiting boars. Issue 28 ClayCraft 11PROJECT ONE Repeat the exercise ~ re-centre the clay at the top of the hump and throw: as many more stems as required for the number of goblets you want to make = PLUS a few extra for matching up and mistakes. ‘Allow the stems to firm up a little, ready for attaching to the cup later. ‘4. Again, you can throw each cup directly on the whee! head, 2809 of clay will make a cup 10 x 10cm in size. Prepare the clay by kneading thoroughly to remove any possible trapped air, Centre the clay. 12 ClayCraft esue 28 Open out the clay to a rounded base, fingers of the right hand pressing down at the centre of the clay to within 10mm of the wheel head - left hand supporting the right for a steady manoeuver. ‘4 Widen the base of the cup a little by drawing the clay bback toward your body with your right-hand fingers steadied by the left hand as shown, 4 Pinch and lift the wall upward into a basic cylinder shape between the fingers and thumb of your left hand, with your right-hand fingers on the outside of the wall to prevent it from bellying outward, Making sure you work all the clay from the base, lift the wall again by knuckling up (or using the tips of your fingers instead of the knuckle if you find it ‘easier on a small item like this) with the fingers of your left hand on the inside, just ‘above the knuckle or fingers on the outside of the wall. Pull out the curve at the base of the cup into the wall to form a slight flare in the shape. DIFFICULTY RATING * ‘A. Remember to compress the clay at the rim after each lift by gently holding it between your finger and thumb while running another finger over the surface. Only if required, lift the wall one more time to refine the shape. You can leave the throwing rings as a feature of the goblet; they can look really good as glaze breaks ‘over them, OR work over the surface with arb to remove them as required. Issue 28 ClayCraft 13PROJECT ONE ‘Sponge out the interior of the cup carefully and A Wire the underside of the wipe avay excess slurry from the rim by pinching it ‘cup, holding the wire really taut gently between fingers and thumb as you did when Lift the cup off the wheel heag compacting the clay, but using a sponge instead of a ‘and onto a wooden board, finger for @ quick wipe, (WARNING - don’t over-work Allow the cup to firm to leather the sponge on the rim, it will expose the grog content] hard ready for trimming, of the clay to leave a very aritty surface -unpleasant to J Make as many more as required {drink from!) in the same way, trying as far as possible to work to the same dimensions. TRIMMING THE CUP Before you begin, prepare a small ball of clay to make a [pad to secure the cup on for trimming Place the clay on the wheel head as centrally as ‘possible and flatten it out alittle - it only needs to be a litte wider than the rim of the cup once fully flattened out. ‘A Wipe away excess slurry from the wheel head then remove excess clay from around the base of the cup using arib, Finish up by cutting a small bevel around the base with the tip of a rib 14 ClayCraft luo 28 ‘A. Centre the clay in the same way as for the stem and cup, then flatten the clay out with the first two fingers of your right hand, Use the left hand to support the side of the clay 23S you flatten the pad. A Level and compress the pad completely with the side of a rib. This will also remove excess water and slurry from the surface - it must not be wet when in use for trimming, ‘A. Check the pad Is wide enough to hold the cup in place securely for turning. DIFFICULTY RATING * ‘A Position the cup on the pad and tap it to centre - see clayeraft.co.uk/how-to for instructions on how to do this. ‘Once the cup is central, apply a little force to press it down into the pad to secure it in place. This pressure forms a rim in the pad, which can then be used to centre subsequent cups - providing they're the same size of cour ‘With your left thumb at the centre of the base, holding the cup in place and using your turning tool of choice, trim the base of the cup down to refine the shape. Issue 28 ClayCraft 15DIFFICULTY RATING * ‘A. Continue to trim the base, following the curve of the wall Until it’s the same diameter as the waist of the stem section, and the clay wall is the same thickness throughout. ‘A. Check the size of the stem an the cup and make any adjustments to the cup if its too large - don't worry if the base of the cup isa little smaller - this can be accommodated, ‘4 Apply a good coat of slip to the base of the cup then score the surface with a pin. 16 ClayCrait lesue 28 Repeat the scoring and slipping process on the adjoining surface of the stem, then fit it in place on the cup. ‘A Check the stem is running central, then blend the clay ‘around the join down onto the cup with a finger, A. Use a long brush to smooth over the clay at the join on the inside of the stem, 2s shown. Run a damp sponge over the joined section of the goblet to smooth out any finger marks. A. Now use a rib to really refine the shape of the stem at the join until it’s no longer visible. Wipe over the surface one last time with a damp sponge to finish, ‘A Once the goblet is finished, transfer it to a wooden board to firm up in Its upside down position. Turn it over to ‘even up the drying once the stem is firm enough to support the cup. ‘Complete the rest of your goblets in the same way, Bisque fire once completely dry. 4 Glaze your goblets according to the clay type. ‘Amaco, Ancient Jasper, brush-on cone 5 - 6 glaze was used for this goblet. It’s lovely, luscious glaze, which separates into different colours and tones according to how thickly it's applied. If firing to cone 6, it's better fired at the lower end of the temperature spectrum rather than the top for best 3 results. Issue 28 ClayCraft 17WILD MATERIALS: oe ee ee Cr aeee ere sete ranite, a rock composed of feldspar, quartz and mica is easier to crush after it has been fired to around 1000" in a biscuit firing, then it can be ground by hand using a pestle and mortar. ‘The coarsely erushed granite can be kneaded into clay like grog, to give an interesting texture and specks of colour, However, ‘4. Crushing granite in a mortar. 18 ClayCraft esue 28 CLAYS, ROCKS AND ASHES Many potters use locally found materials in their glazes and clays. You can try using locally dug clay, or mix a commercial clay body with sand or crushed granite #. Ml ih i ANG 2A Granite after biscuit 1A Pink granite from fing. Scotland before ing. 4 Crushed granite Feedy for maxing Gay to gota very powder for use in glazes, it may be nevessary fo use a ball mill, a rotating drum filled with ceramic pebbles. Alternatively, you could try asking kitcheni worktop suppliers or stone carvers for granite dust. Other rocks can be used in glazes, such as basalt, rhyolite, aplite, hornféls, voleanie ash, ete, ‘The black sands or voleanie beaches are made from basalt, while lighter sands are mainly silica Coral reef islands have white sand made from coral, Calcium carbonate from crushed seashells can be used as whiting in glazes but may cause problems in cla bodies, as any large grains may explode when fired. Shells are easier to crush earthenware firing temperatures, as the iron can act as a flux at higher temperatures, Ball clays are less common, found in Dorset and Devon, while pure white China clay is found in the UK only in Cornwall, Ball clay and china clay are used for making white ~~ om and grind after ealcining in a biscuit firing. There are a number ofclays in the UK a for making bricks, including. Iden clay and Oxford clay. Clay dug from the ground may be grey, blue, shite, yellow or red, depending on the amounts of iron oxide and carbon it ‘contains. Red clays are high in iron oxide and may only be suitable for ‘A. Pinched bowl made from porcelain mixed with crushed granite. stoneware and earthenware clay bodies, Fire clay is found in Cornwall, Wales and Scotland and is used for making stoneware clay bodies, Always ask permission from the landowner before raking clay ‘Slate and shale are sedimentary rocks yy and can be ‘ground for use in slips and glazes Estuarine mud can be used as a slip or glaze. Try firing on a test tile first to see how much it melts before applying to pots, In glazes, wood ash can be used instead of whiting, and granite instead of feldspar. Grass ash from straw or reeds is high in silica and can be used in place of flint or quartz. Wood ash is high in calcium and potassium, as well ns magnesium, During washing, much of formed from ushed and the potassium dissolves in the water and turns it highly alkaline. Rubber gloves should be used when washing ash. It ean then be sieved through a bitchen sieve and left to dry before using in a glaze Seaweed! ash, high in sodium ane calcium can also be used, but be careful of the firing fumes, which may be toxie. Some potters don’t wash ash before adding it to agi should always be worn while glazing, 1e,in Which case, rubber gloves A Fired bowls made using porcelain mixed with crushed Scottish pink granite and a sandy Wealden clay found on the Jurassic coast in Dorset. ‘4 Martin Miles-Moore and Siobhan Newton, tableware using copper re and crushed rocks applied to greenware with fern resist. Bone ash is composed of calcium phosphate and can be used in glazes in quantities up to around 10%. Some potters make glazes using the ashes of their deceased pets, or even those from their human relatives ‘Transparent ash glaze 1280°C Wood ash 30 Potash feldspar 30 China clay 15 Whiting 4 Flint 21 Copper oxide 1 oxidation green in Wild materials substitutions (© For whiting © For up to 10% whiting use bone ash ise wood ash © For feldspar or Cornish stone use granite (© For china clay use wild clay or slate © For flint or quartz use grass ash Many of the interesting effects obtained from wild materials come from the impurities in the materials, Wood ash contains trace amounts of colouring oxides such iron and manganese, as well as phosphorus which ean cause copalescence. Materials of organic origin 4 Siobhan Newton, handbuilt stoneware vessel with crushed Shap pink granite and tin laze applied to the outside with metal leaf on the inside. A Martin Miles-Moore, tea bow! with Cumbrian ‘nuka’ style glaze with mixed hardwood ash, bone ash, slate and granite fired to 1290°C. with a slow ramp down to 1275°C in oxidation. (Proto: Even Acorns are generally much easier to use in glazes than rocks, which require crushing and grinding, Ifyou don't have access toa ball mil, you can still use wild clays and wood ash in your glazes. aT) Creny s Brian eee Natural glazes, Miranda Forn Ves cern show at the Common Cause nee cere Seed ae eae niston, Cumbri ements Oeste A Martin Miles-Moore, Tea bowl with alder ash interior, bands of Cumbrian haematite brushed on under glaze made from bog oak ash and granite, fired in oxidation to 1290°C. The chasaku matcha tea implement is made from black bog oak. Ogura Issue 28 ClayCrat 19SOON vizis-am (aa once eat Craft knife g Ruler Maes nee Me ete cae od aS SR el acorns oro Pencit STLa MYA (e (Ul -Maese Malena) ole ear " ys Bi Textured wallpaper, or old ace ’ f E Also: Stoneware clay - proferable for outside use because 4 \ it's less vulnerable to weather damage ‘ : Rolling pin. plastic sheet, roller guides (no thicker han Smm) “ * 2 glazes - one bold colour - one pale colour See » J Working on a sheet of plastic, reduce the bulk of a block of clay. It must be a large enough block to allow you to cut ‘out a background, frame and number(s) once rolled. Beat the clay with the side of your rolling pin. Work in measured, even strokes from one side of the clay to the ‘other, to avoid making deep grooves in the surface. ‘When the bulk has been reduced sufficiently, roll out the clay between your roller guides. ‘You will find that periodically turning the slab will make rolling much easier and ensure it’s an even thickness. Smooth over the surface of the slab with a rib to compact the clay. 4 Make a card template for the background, the right size for the number(s) you're going to make. As a guide, the one used here is 15cm square, Next, make a card frame for the background template, 10-20mm wide. } Finally, draw out your house number(s) in a style of your choosing. if you aren't confident about doing this freehand, choose a font you like and print from your computer. Cut it = ‘out and use this as a template to draw around, onto card, E 1 |e 1 The number must fit within the frame of the piate, so take “Turn the slab over onto an absorbent board and peel off care to measure properly. the plastic sheet ‘Smooth over the surface of the slab again with a rib. 2 5 J ‘DY Position the background template on the slab as ‘economically as possible, then, using a ruler or your roller Use the background template to measure a selection of guide to ensure the edges are cut straight, cut out the texture papers then cut these out. shape. ‘Test the papers behind the frame with your card house Cut a second background in the same way. number in place to decide which you like best. Keep any leftover slab for the number(s) later. lesue 28 ClayCraft 21A PROJECT Two Place the frame template over the surface of the second slab and cut it out ~ again using the batten to ensure straight lines. Place attexture sample over / the first cut slab. Place your roller guides either side of the slab, then roll the texture into the clay. 22 ClayCrait lesue 28 You will fing that the slab will distort as you roll the texture in - don't panic, this is normal! Simply cut the shape back to its original size. Peel the texture off the surface when you have finished. Carefully place the card frame template over the textured slab ang score around the inner edge lightly with apin. DIFFICULTY RATING 90440 Remove the frame template then position the number template in the centre, making sure itis properly spaced in all directions. ‘Score around the outline of the number(s). ‘Transfer the number template / tothe spare section of slab / and carefully cut it out with a | sharp koife Neaten up the outline of the number by running your fingor along the edges to smooth and round them off. ‘Score the marked position for the number on the texture background and the underside of the number itself, using a serrated kidney. Apply slip to the scored areas then fit the number in place, pressing it down firmly with a finger to ensure no air is trapped between the surfaces. Issue 28 ClayCraft 2344 Remove any slip which may have oozed out from around the number, using an angled wooden tool. Take care not to spoil the textured background as you neaten up - itis tricky but possible! ‘4 Score the position for the frame and underside of the frame itself Apply slip to the scored areas then fit the frame in place, 24 ClayCraft luo 28 Place @ board over the plate and apply firm pressure to Slightly round off the edges by rolling a lenath of ensure the surfaces bond together evenly and all air is batten over them, as shown. forced out ~ a quick, soft thump should work. Continue to neaten around the edges until the join, between the two sections can no longer be seen, DIFFICULTY RATING 333% ‘A Make a round indentation in each corner to countersink the screw fixtures for the plaque. Something like the plastic tack shown here makes the perfect tool for this job, but the Founded end of a wooden spoon or similar would work just as well ‘A Neaten around the edges with a rib, to remove excess ‘A Carefully neaten around the inside of the frame with a slip. suitable wooden tool. Wind the largest screw you have through each corner indentation, You must use alarge screw to allow for | $hrinkage in fring a smaller | eerie actualy ft the plaque mn place, Ry, Issue 28 ClayCraft 25PROJECT TWO Neaten the back of the plate with a rib to remove burrs of clay pushed out by the screw, then soften the surround of the hole with a pointed wooden tool. 26 ClayCrait luo 28 Keep the plaque flat by drying it between two boards with a weight on top. Decorate the plaque by applying a strong coloured glaze to the frame and number, and a pale-coloured, transparent glaze over the textured background to show it off to best effect. Fire to your clay and glaze’s optimum temperature, The glazes used here are Mayco Walnut and Amaco Celadon Fog. Fired to 1200°C in an electric kiln. mere e6e ia ONLINE & IN STORE BATH POTTERS SUPPLIES Sees EA teneOntl < WHEELS & EQUIPMENT a1. 2 aoa) een, 01892 722011NEVER TOO OLD! Last year Imogen Noble began raising funds to provide pottery making sessions for elderly people in a residential care home. Her year-long programme has now finished, but the care staff will be continuing to deliver pottery activities ‘mogen’s involvement began when she worked with a very elderly gentleman living with dementia. He was a resident at Bradbury Grange, a residential care home in Whitstable. He had spent his ie working as a potter, but no longer had any aecess to clay. He wasn't happy abour being in the home and was communicating this hy being very loud and fearful, and complaining. He came to a pottery session that Imogen had arranged in the home and slowly began to join in. He was calm, happy, and engaged; not fearful or complaining or in pain. He was chatty and smiley and was the last person to leave the table Imogen began raising funds to enable her to take pottery making to the residents on a weekly basis She successfully applied for an Arts Council England Lottery 4 Audrey painting a flower. 28 ClayCraft luo 28 and supplemented this with a GoFundMe appeal. With this money, she bought a portable table-top slab roller — many of the elderly residents lack the strength for rolling out clay ~and a table-top potter's wheel, a {go at throwing: Imogen fi glazed the pieces at her studio, so some of the funds went tow: the cost of glazes and kiln firings Both pieces of equipment will stay with Imogen and will be used in fiture community projects. ‘A... and after. Wonderful textured dishes. A Before. Looking back on the project at Bradbury G Imogen said: “Ithas been so amazing. The skills that the elderly residents are picking up and remembering. ‘week to week are really developing. The atmosphere ring the sessions is like a party with clay, helped by some lovely volunteer potters, who themselves range in age from nine years to ‘We mainly work with slabs which have been decorated with textured stamps and textiles. This involves some good rolling out ‘work-outs, and some important hand and arm exercise. volunteers are really brilliant at making sure that the residents do as much as they are able to, and challenge them to use the tools and make their own decisions about pattern and form. They have made dishes, cups, flowers and vases. They recently made bowls with foot rings, which were inspired by a session where T borrowed some beautiful and intact pieces of Samian Ware Roman pottery from the Whitstable Museum for them to handle Imogen continued, “Residents family members sometimes come along to join in and help out, so everyone is getting the benelit of spending time with clay in th hands. One elderly lady with severe sight impairment has taken up pottery this year for the first time, just before her 99th birthday! The first things she made were small dishes for her sgrand-daughters, Imagine how they will be treasured! 4 Stamps and textiles for decoration. “Towards the end of the project, the care staff at Bradbury Grange got involved, learning some pottery skills so that they can continue pottery activities with the residents. ‘The project finished in June ‘and they held an exhibition to display many of the pots th ‘were made, and enough money was raise from this to cover the costs of clay and firings for the next few months, Further opportunities Asa result ofthe first article that ‘we published, last May, Imogen was contaeted by Pauline Davis — previously featured in Me and my Pot—who is from a local Rotarian ‘group. They funded Imogen to provide pottery fora short sixeweck project in another Ioeal eare home, ‘St Martin's in Whitstable, ‘4 Claudia and Quona. A Florence painting a flower. < Molly and. Marie. to March this year. It was very successful, especially as Paul and volunteers from the Rotarian group helped with volunteering. Both care homes will be gifted ‘basic equipment kit to enable them to continue with the pottery sessions. There are plans for volunteers to support the pottery to.continue at St Martin’s and Imogen will fire the pots from both of the care homes. “Lam really keen to encourage potters up and down the country to consider doing something, similar, and I have some thoughts about how this ean be achieved with regards to funding short projects, said Imogen, “Tim really happy to speak to people about how to go about planning something, similar and to share what, some of the issues are, what I found worked well, and what was too challenging: “L don't have any similar projects lined up at this point, but I'm always keen to find ways to open up aecess to pottery ‘making to the wider community and [have a eouple of projects in the planning stage for 2020 ‘which continue with this aim Watch this space! Ifyou would lite to find ont more about what's involved in setting up projects like this, Imogen can be ‘contacted via email at Jmogennoble@maccom Issue 28 ClayCraft 29PLASTER GLOBE MOULD A basic globe-shaped mould is probably one of the most useful the potter can have because it can be used in so many ways. From slip casting to press moulding, you will be able to produce items as diverse as light shades, vases, kitchenware or garden ornaments to name but a few, and all you need to make the mould is a cheap plastic ball \ 30 ClayCraft lesue DIFFICULTY RATING YOU WILL NEED: MA plastic beach ball - available in ecient meet nny DN cag Ta Mion at Drag er eos dn) eens ay Poors) Newspaper faa i “ “ Put some double-sided tape on the underside of the cork then fix it onto the ball, equally spaced over the central ine, as shown, establish a centre line. surface of the ball be th a thin coil of soft clay. Sm th a finger to ensure ‘A Following the line of the string, carefully draw in the centre line with a marker pen, Remove the string when finished the gap 28 ClayCratt 31‘A Using the marker pen, continue the central line up the sides of the cork Place three small wads of clay on a non-absorbent board, then position the ball on top so that the line is as horizontal as possibl Begin to build up a clay wall clay around the ball to completely contain it to the central line. Aim to extend the wall 25-85mm out from the ball. Youll find this task easier and the outcome far more: accurate if you build up the side of the ball in small stages. ‘A Measure the height to the central ine and make small adjustments until i's equal all the way around the ball 32. ClayCraft lesue 28 ‘A Refine the level of the clay at the centre line by filling in, where necessary, with thin coils of soft clay. Use a flat-sided rib to smooth over the surface once the level is correct to the line. i oR 4 a, ‘A. The clay wall must extend from the central line on the ball to include the cork plug (or ‘spare’ as it’s more accurately called) to the same level ‘Smooth over the surface with a finger to establish the level is correct, and once again micro-check that any small irregularities in the surface are filled in with soft clay and smoothed over. ‘A Roughly smooth and level the sides of the clay wall to vertical, so that the cottle will fit flush to it when it’s fixed inplace DIFFICULTY RATING Position your lino, or clay cottle around the model, (Note, it must extend at least 10cm above the top of the ball) and secure it with tape at the base, middle and top. SU ans ar i perfectly acess able fort iHiob providing you wind it around the lino several times. ‘4 Runa thin coil of soft clay around the inner edge of the cottle to seal the space between the clay wall and lino. Smooth the coil in carefully with a finger ~ it may be a little tricky to get your hand into the space, so take care. Issue 28 ClayCraft 33‘A Seal around the outside base of the cottle with a thick coil of soft clay - it's important to ensure there are no Possible escape routes for the liquid plaster when working in this way = everything must be very secure! ‘A Working on the recipe of 2 pints water to lb of plaster, estimate the number of pints it will take to cover the model in the cottle including a 1mm excess at the top. The measurement will vary according to the size of ball sed to make the model so specifics can't be given, but for the model cast here, 7 pints of water were used - itis quite a large ball! Measure the water and transfer it to your bucket. Weigh out the correct amount of plaster and sprinkle it into the water unti it’s all absorbed. Stir the plaster with your hand (WARNING - wear a rubber glove if you have any allergies), ‘A As you stir the plaster, bubbles will rise to the surface. Scoop these out with your hand and deposit them in the paper-lined bowl. 34 layCraft leue 28 ‘When there are no more lumps in the mixture, all bubbles have been removed, and it begins to thicken, quickly pour it over the model. ‘You may find it useful to have someone to help you if you think you'l struggle to lift and pour the plaster. DIFFICULTY RATING * ‘A chemical reaction in the plaster will cause it to heat up as it sets. Once this has happenea, it’s safe to remove the cottle. ‘You now need to turn the whole thing over to remove the clay from around the model without pulling it out Of the plaster. If you find this difficult because the clay has sealed onto the work surface, simply underwire it, {as shown, to release it before turning It over. Remove the clay carefully to avoid disturbing the model and the cork. Store the clay in a clearly marked bag - CLAY FOR PLASTER - and don't use it for anything else, A If the top of the plaster is uneven, level it off with the side of 2 metal ruler, as shown, Surform the edges to remove sharp burrs which would otherwise break off and possibly contaminate your clay when using the mould. Issue 28 ClayCraft 35— ll the plaster. ‘Shave away any sharp areas around the edge of the plaster with a surform before continuing. ‘A. Wipe away all traces of clay from the ball and surface of ‘A Make three ‘natches' in the plaster, equally spaced around the model, using something like the rounceed tip of a knife, a penny or melon-ball cutter. The natches ensure the two halves locate together properly, and hold the mould in place when casting. 36 layCraft leue 28 | ‘A Thin down a couple of spoonfuls of mould maker's size Goft soap) with boiling water, to a brushable consistency, ‘Once thinned to the correct consistency, store it in lidded plastic container for future use. Brush the size over the plaster surface, up to the ball and slightly over the edge where the cottle will ft back onto later. Be sure to include the natches - this is very important. ‘A Wipe back the size with a damp sponge then repeat, the whole process at least twice more. Note - the more times you soft soap the surface, the lower the risk of the plaster surfaces sealing together when you cast the second half. Some makers repeat the process Up to seven times. ‘4 Position the cottle back around the model as you did for the first half, making sure to tape it several times to secure it safely Seal the space between the cottle and edge of the it with a finger. Remember to seal around the outside base of the cottle with a thick coil of soft clay. plaster with another thin coil of soft clay, then smooth over DIFFICULTY RATING * Open up the mould carefully - it should come apart easily if you soft-soaped it sufficiently, but if it resists, put a towel over the seam and give the whole thing @ tap with the end of a rolling pin - with luck it should 27, Pe > then ping opent Wipe away all remaining traces of clay from the ‘mould with a damp sponge. Close the two halves together again and put the mould somewhere warm to dry out. Try the airing cupboard, or on top of a range cooker like an Aga if, you have one. Be aware; it will take several weeks to dry out thoroughly - you will have to be patient. We will use this mould in a future issue, to make a light shade, which is why we've shown you how to, make it in advance. ‘A Mix exactly the same amount of plaster-to-water as, vyou made for the first half, skimming the bubbles off the surface as required, before pouring the mixture over the model when it reaches the correct consistency. When the plaster has heated up and started to cool ‘again, remove the cottle and clay seal between the two halves of the mould, ‘A. Surform the eciges of the mould again to remove sharp, ‘areas which could otherwise break off and contaminate your clay later.READERS’ MAKES HESKETH ‘A selection of photos sent in by readers. if you'd like to share your work with us, email a high-resolution photo and some details about your piece to: claycraft.edi@kelsey.co.uk POTTERS’ SUPPLIES FOR ALL YOUR SUPPLIES INCLUDING KILNS, WHEELS, RAW MATERIALS, CLAYS, GLAZES, COLOURS , ‘WE ARE DUSTRIBUTORS FOR RHODE GMBH & POTTERYCRAFTS ITD KILNS, OFFERING ADVICE AND ne (QUALITY AFTER SALES SERVICE {WE ALSO OFFER A COMPREHENSIVE SAMPLES COLLECTION ON OUR WEBSITE ‘TEL: 01323 896444 EMAIL: CHRIS_HESKETH@HESKETHPS.CO.UK WWW.HESI UK became inspired by your recent birdhouse project. live close to Brighton, with its spectacular Royal Pavilion, which inspired my design. | am really chuffed with how it turned out! Andrea Arogyaswamy This is beautiful Andrea. The Pavilion influence is clearly there, and your choice of glaze was perfect! Ed 2: | thought I'd share my efforts in attempting project 6 in issue 22. used SWE clay fired at about 1040°C first, to bisque, then | used @ brown underglaze and wiped it off to accent. Then I refired it I'm fairly new to pottery (since my retirement) and concentrate on plaques and garden-type hanging ornaments. | am going to have another go, maybe with a bit of fine-tuning; | might add another foot (in response to a comment) and maybe some colour. Bill Kett nstore Bil, this is wonclerful. 1's hard to tell it apart from our project piece. Well done! Ed -..@ proper potters sho; 5: You may remember publishing my two ibis character in CayCratt BORE. P some time ago. Now, lke 0 share my cassowary with your readers. As you can imagine, the head needed a lot of support while drying, but with the BLU EM ATCH BOX help of my tutor, Suzie Retold, the big bird survived the kin 1 POTTER'S SUPPLIES \ added some real feathers to make him a bird with styl! Nikki Abramson : (wen bleemetchbee nk: Vii 205 Walls Road Tiehust, Reading Berks R630 PT do remember your ibises (ibii?) Nikki. They were featured this time 0118 9455933 last year, In Ise 17. Ts cassowary is such 9 character and the real enetetit 8S an feathers area great touch! Ed a 38 ClayCraft luo 28PROJECT FOUR 40 ClayCraft Issue 28 STORAGE JAR These simple storage jars make a stylish addition to your kitchen. The surface decoration takes inspiration from the mid-century designs of Jessie Tait, but you can finish yours in any way you like a RT DO uu eee inner rolls a ets cre Roe eae Cae) Thin card oO Coal Neatly roll the tube former in newspaper, making sure there are no creases, Stuff the excess into the ends of. the tube, then secure the overlap with tape. Working on the sheet of plastic, reduce the bulk of a block of clay. It must be a large enough block to fit, around the forming tube once rolled. Beat the clay with the side of your rolling pin. Work in measured, even strokes from one side of the clay to the ther, to avoid making deep grooves in the surface. With the roller guides in place next to the clay, roll out the slab into a rectangle, long enough to fit around the tube with a little extra ‘Smooth over the surface of the slab with a rib to compact the clay. Issue 28 ClayCraft 41DIFFICULTY RATING ok ‘A Carefully cut out the slab to the size needed to fit around the former tube. This example uses an A4 sheet in landscape to measure the slab and is a manageable size to work with if you're making the jer for the first time. Be aware that you may need to cut the slab longer than that to fit around your individual former. Use a batten to help ensure you cut the edges straight. ‘4 Once cut out, roll the slab around your former, taking care to ensure the clay is level with the bottom edge of the tube. ‘& Remove the excess slab then score the cut edges with a serrated kidney. ‘Apply slip to the scored edges then fix the surfaces together, pressing the clay carefully to avoid making ‘deep marks. ‘4 Overlap the ends of the slab then turn the whole thing upright and place it on a board. Place a length of batten { upright against the overlapped clay, then, resting the blade of a knife on the batten, cut through both layers at an angle, as shown, 2 ClayCraft Issue 28 4. If you own one, roll printing brayer over the join to seal it and even-out the clay surface, otherwise, paddle it gently with a wooden spatula, ‘A. Romove the paper from inside the cylinder, taking care not to distort the shape in the process. ‘A Work over the join with a rib to neaten it up. It should be impossible to see the join once finished. ‘A Remove the newspaper stuffed inside the end of the former then carefully lift the tube out The paper will remain lining the \W clay cylinder. \ ‘A Roll out a second slab of clay using the same thickness roller ‘guides. Place the cylinder on top of the slab and mark the outline for the base with a pin, : Repeat to make a second circle. — Position the cylinder as economically as possible when marking the two circles ~ ‘you will need the rest of the slab later. ‘A Cut out the circles, slightly larger than the marked size. Issue 28 ClayCraft 43DIFFICULTY RATING ok ‘4 Score the rim of the cylinder and the corresponding positions on each of the circles with a serrated kidney. ‘Apply slip to the scored areas on the body and one of the circles, Carefully fit the cylinder on the base then tap it up ‘and down a few times to ensure the seal is good., Reinforce the join on the inside with a coil of soft clay - this is too difficult to show because of the depth of the jar, but blend the coil in with a finger then neaten up with a suitable tool. ‘4. Returning to the outside of the jar, cut away the spare clay around the base with a sharp knife. ‘4 Work the clay from the base slab up and over the body with a rib, to ensure the surfaces have sealed, ‘A. Repeat the process to fit the prepared circle to the ‘opposite end of the jar. Neaten it in the same way as the base. a a ‘A Cut out a long strip of card, 2-3em wide. Place the card strip on the board at the base of the jar ‘and wind it around the circumference, as shown. Score along the upper edge of the card with the tip of a sharp. knife, ‘A Neaten around the join with a rectangular rib, removing ‘excess clay as requited. Sit the rib on the board against the side of the jar, and draw it around the side as you rotate the shape on a whirl. 44 ClayCraft Issue 28 ee. ‘A Turn the jar upside down and neaten around the edge with a rib or a finger to round it off and slightly soften it ‘A Cut along the scored line with the card strip stil in place. Make sure you keep the knife level as you cut out the lid for the jar. Carefully neaten around the cut edges of the lid and body with a ib. Do take care not to alter the actual level of the cut, because this would affect the fit. Issue 28 ClayCraft 45DIFFICULTY RATING ok From the slab reserved from earlier, cut a long strip of clay to form the locating ring for the lid. ‘The strip must be at least 10mm deeper than the lid to locate securely. Fit the strip inside the lid as shown and overlap the ‘ends - cut off the bulk of the overlap if it’s realy long, then carefully cut through the overlap at an angle with a| sharp knife. ‘A Score the inside edge of the lid with a serrated kidney and half the width of the locating strip, along its length, ‘Slip the scored areas, then fix the ring in place, gently ‘squeezing it onto the wall of the lid between fingers and thumb. ‘Seal the ends of the strip together in the process. Reinforce the join on the inside of the lid with a coil of soft clay, Blend the coil in with a finger, then neaten it up with a rib, 46 ClayCraft Issue 28 ‘A Carefully neaten around the outside of the locating ring with a rib, to remove excess slip from the join, ® 1 ‘A Fit the lid back on the container then allow the jar to dry out completely - this may take a day or two. From now on, you must handle the jar with great care {as you work on the surface decoration - itis unfired, and so it's quite vulnerable. To begin, remove the lid carefully and put it to one side. Measure the height of the jar and divide the height into six sections (or more if you want thinner stripes). Cut out another strip of card to the size of one of the sections, and use it to divide the wall of the jar into equal stripe sections, as shown. Don't worry about the pencil marks; they will burn away in firing. (Sa ooo Ty Issue 28 ClayCraft 47@ Using the first of the underglaze colours, paint-in alternate stripes around the body of the jar. Try to keep the colour within the pencil ines, but don’t worry if you go over them slightly - absolute accuracy is not required. ‘A Move to the lid and draw a small circle at its centre, Draw around something like a small cookie cutter. Paint around the circle and down the sides of the lid in whichever colour will continue the alternating strips on the body of the jar. If you used six sections and started at the bottom, this will be the first colour you used (blue in this case). Using the second underglaze colour choice, paint in the circle on the lid and the alternate stripes on the body of the jar: Allow the underglaze to dry out completely before continuing. AB ClayCraft Issue 28 Re eet RT| Pees fi Sen Per) Pee oe Poesia cea ot eee eater eater mr erent eae them for you - they're very handy in the clay studio) eel eae ‘4 Water the underglaze down to a single cream consistency. Holding the sieve over the funnel, pour the underglaze into the bottle. This is important, so don’t ignore this step - the underglaze must be free of all lumps and a good, even consistency to go through a fine nozzle without blocking, ‘Once the bottle is full, put the nozzle on it and carefully fill the slip trailer bulb, Fix your chosen size of nozzle tip into the bulb and make sure it’s secure. DIFFICULTY RATING 30 ‘A Practice using the trailer on a spare scrap of clay Until you feel confident using it. Trail your design onto the wall of the jar. You don't have to copy the design shown here but whatever you decide, try to relate it to the coloured stripes underneath for a more visually balanced composition. Issue 28 ClayCraft 49PROJECT 4 It’s unlikely you will be able to work around the entire surface in one go, so complete small sections then rapid-dry the area with a hairdryer before moving on. A thick wad of foam is useful to support the shape as you work on it, particularly as it reduces the need to handle the form so much, Repeat the trailed design until the whole surface is completed, Finish the lid in the same way, trailing the design’ over the edge, as shown. 80 ClayCraft sue 28 8 “tue TRO Mal ma 4A. Bisque fire the jar with the lid in place. Once fired, simply cover the jar in transparent glaze and fire to your clay's optimum temperature. Remember to wipe glaze away from alll areas where surfaces touch ~ the rim of the jar and down the inside to the depth of the locating ring must be glaze-free, plus the locating ring and underside edge of the lid ~ not forgetting the underside of the jar itself. se jars are made from white stoneware clay, fired to an electric kiln ME AND MY POT Anelise Bredow (Photo: Eduardo Rammé) ae ree vee a er P z etry eer ares mee Cement ert cnn israel Ee: Poe ee US Ue uo Tec ad rece ey ie ey Sees ees Issue 28 ClayCraft 51FOR MORE INFORMATION ON EACH ISSUE AND TO ORDER PLEASE VISIT: FOR MORE INFORMATION ON EACH ISSUE AND TO ORDER PLEAS! shop.kelsey.co.uk/ccback OR CA\|: 01959 543 747 jit:°r"....., shop.kelsey.co.uk/ccback O CALL: 01959 543 747 =<"DEDICATION, THAT’S WHAT YOU NEED! Fast-forward to October, ‘opening up our emails one day, there was one from NCECA. It couldn't be that our proposal had. been aceepted? Oh yes, it could! and without really knowing anyone. We decided to take most of the workshop materials and tools over with us in our suiteases, as we STIS ciety Perna? Minnesotal Diane and Mary, from Muddy Fingers, attempt a world record at NCECA Minneapolis. Mad? Bold? Ambitious? You bet We were actually feeling quite fer last year's trip to > Ateapot- NCECA Pittsburgh, making where we volunteered in Session in the return for a conference pass, we IK. knew that we just had to go back in 2019, So, last April, we hatched presenters in aplan to goover the Projects Space. If you've never heard of NCECA, it’s one of the biggest ceramic education conferences in the world. And itis neg! Among the many things going fn at the conference, including exhibitions, lectures, cup sal expo room, is the Projects Space. This is a platform for ceramic artists to ereate and present works during the annual conference that ineorporate clay as a medium in time-based, performative, relational or site-responsive work. This was where we knew we would fit in with our project. We ‘wanted to set the record for the world’s largest pottery class making teapots. ‘4 The Mammoth Site was one of our favourites. 54. ClayCraft lesue 28 We run night clases four times throwing classes and ‘one-off workshops at the weekends we're use fo running events, and teapot-making sessions are something we are getting a reputation for in the North East. Weve hosted these classes in venues like Middleport Pottery, the Laing Art Gallery, York CoCA and the Biseuit Factory. The largest class we had held had 26 students participating in one session s0, because we wanted to set a world record, we thought ‘we'd aim for 200 at NCECA. In May 2018 we wrote our proposal anc submitted it — half thinking that we had no chance af Doing accepted, but stil, Shy brains get no sweets’ as they say in shocked! and half disbelieving that we had got in as presenters. fabulous Marianne MeGrat assistant professor of art at CSU ‘Channel Islands in California, was on hand to lok after us and help us organise the project, so we had some emails back and forth, then a chat on the phone. No room at the inn All was going well, the panic organising had started, and we were feeling confident(ish). Until it turned out there wasn'ta spare room at the conference centre that was big enough to hold 200 people. We were totally gutted, as wwe were planning everything for 200 participants, but eventually, we figured out we could get 70 people into the room that we had been allocated, Not as impressive 5 200, Still, there was no world recon set as yet, owe were happy with that Ie took so much planning for this event. It takesa lot to ‘organise a good workshop in this country, and we hal to Figure out how to do it in a different country waited, and waited, and by the time it got to July, we gave up, thinking that our application had been rejected. We booked flights to go over anyway, as we knew we could try to goas volunteers again (being poor potters, we cant afford to pay {ull conference price) As we like to cram as much sights trips as possible, we arranged a week travelling around South Dakota before the week of the conference, We wanted to see Native American sites, along with other tourist sites such as th Badlands National Park, Black Hills State Park, the Mammoth Site, the Crazy Horse Memorial and Mount Rushmore, Mary, carrying the large sign, weren't 100% sure that we could _get what we needed over in the USA. Couple that with the fact that we had a week's holiday planned before the event, and it didn’t Ieave us with much free ‘ime in Minneapolis to sort workshop stuff before the ‘conference started. ‘Tha meant we had to do some smart packing and adjust our regular teapot-making equipment to suit. There was no space to take our bisque-fired moulds, stamps, sprig moulds, ete, so we narrowed it down to ancedle tool, a pencil, two paintbrushes, aplastic pudding bow, a kidney, a paper cup and plastic for ‘each person. We also took ‘over cardboard boxes so that people could take cheir ceapots home with them if they wanted. ‘The other bits and pieces like Gold! ling film and pens, ete, we could buy from a supermarket over there. We had a half-ton of lay very kindly donated to us by Bracker's of Ohio, for which we were massively thankfil, and we had a local Minneapolis potter, Natasha Poppe, saving newspapers for the workshop too. as Applying for a world record... isnot as straightforward as it sounds. The first three or four times [filled alld website crashed. Every time. ‘When I eventually completed the applieation, it actually takes 12 ‘weeks for them to get back to you about whether or not you can attempt the record. Because I applied in December, details in, the ‘got an email the Friday before we left, confirming that we could go & Come on ahead with it and with the int an: MASSIVE list of bits of paperwork that I needed to sort out. I needed two experienced timekeepers, ow0 witnesses, v0 stewards, «clear division between the groups of tables in the room (because an invigilator can't have more than 50 people to look after, filming of the whole of everything, and the lst went on. After spending two days in Minneapolis on my phon devising sign-in sheets and name labels, and then hours in Fed Ex | event, pietur monNCECA TEAPOTS Rattlesnake Randy (yes, we found ‘gold! And garnets, and mica and all sorts of stuff interesting to potters) Then we drove back to Minneapolis, which we had flown into, after driving 2.000 mies in five days, and settled into our Airbnb for the next 10 days. Logistics planning ‘We were staying about halfan hour's walk from the conference centre; it was either an easy wall or expensive car parking downtown. Obviously, we chose to important things, like pottery tools and books. “The open night for the Projects Space was on Tuesday, so we headed down with our leaflets and networking heads on, with the ‘goal of talking to everyone we could about oxir world record attempt. We knew it would be hard to fill our workshop, as there's so much going on all through the day (and night) to compete with, so we made sure to promote ourselves on the NCECA app, Facebook page, the Clay Buddies group on Facebook and 4 Bev with her teapot. shops printing everything out, it was eventually organised. And we were set. It actually takes another 12 weeks after submitting the evidence to see whether we got the record or not, so that’s still a work in progress. Anyway, back to our trip. We packed our eases to within a few grammes of our limit, and off we flew! Y Maggie, making slip. Sightseeing We had a great time in South Dakota, seeing the sights. Our favourites were the where a sinkhole trappest hundreds of woolly and other mammoths where they all died and got preserved. They gave us some dirt from the site that we are going to try to make a glaze from the Badlanls National Par the plains, where we saw praivie dogs, pronghorn deer, wild goats and ‘eagles —along with bison, whieh I was particularly desperate to se the Crazy Horse memorial, from where we also brought rocks home; gold panning with 56 ClayCraft lesue 28 face-to-face at the conference. Tt was a fun night, and we got to rect Marianne, the board of | directors and our fellow Project Space presenters, who were all lovely. Americans are always really friendly and open; the ones ‘we've met are, anyway. We went ‘and checked out our room and made sure there was plenty of clay there, which eased our minds a lot as although it was a really exciting thing to be doing, it was worrying 100. ‘The conference runs from Tuesday night opening to Saturday morning closing. Our ‘workshop was on the Thursday afternoon, so we had all day Wednesday to set up. Then we needed to pack up by close of play. ‘on Thursday. It seems like sueh a short time for all the organising. that we had to do, “The Wednesday morning walk, down to the conference centre involved us pulling a big suitcase and carrying wooden boards down the streets of Minneapolis ~ although it’s probably not the strangest thing they've seen there! In our room, we started cutting, slabs and wrapping them on each table so they wouldn't dry out for the next day’s workshops. NCECA provided us with an amazing volunteer in Maggie. Such a happy, friendly woman, even when she was asked to make slip all day! We also had a random person volunteering for us, whieh was really sweet of her. She made the cardboard boxes up so people could take their teapots aay with them. Wel: person had their tools ready, and the slabs were cut. Marianne had volunteered five of her students to ‘come and help us the next day, and swe were pretty much done by 3pm. We did hit one snag; we forgot to bring our handle puller with us. We tried various tools from the stalls there, but nothing. was 1 the tables, so each, > Tho class in progress. working. Then, as if by magic, a \wondlerful man called Tony Ferguson came by. He asked what wwe were doing, and, hey presto, he makes handle-pulling tools! He had one in his pocket and very kindly donated it to us, Cheek out his website if you can, Perfect Pottery Tools (tonyferguson.net). Te was a wonderful handle puller; wwe usually make them by twisting fencing wire around in the shape ‘we want, but this was much ceasier on the hand and much prettier too, So, handles pulled and panic over, we headed off to chill before the big day. When I say chill, we actually went to the First ‘Avenue music club (made g Famous by Prince) tose ve post-punk band, Viagra Boys (who were excellent by the way) = And the support band was called Pottery! 4 Rakuina suitcase. It's a * Note to anyone going to a gig in the US—take your passport! thing! They wouldn't let us in without them, Because we didn't think we'd need them, we had to go back to the house to pick them up and missed half of the support. Another side note, they ID anyone Gas- who looks under 40 in liquor with local stores so take yours there too. potters. The big day NCECA gave us another fabulous volunteer hy the name of April She was designated bouncer and ticket-taker for the afternoon, and did a great job of talking to people about what we were trying to achieve. Marianne's students came along to help us out too; Patty, Macgregor, Jonelle, Natalie and Caitlin. We dished out the jobs ~ timekeepers, witnesses, invigilators and instructors Everyone was briefed and ready to go! Thankfully the advertising had worked, and people started ‘turning up. We ended up with 45 people at 1p and we had to make a vision to start the class Te turns out that another 40 people came along after we had started, but due to world record regulations we couldn't et anyone enter or leave once the session had started. At the start ofthe class we did a quick demo, and then everyone got on with making their pots. We walked around helping them but, to be honest, they were mostly potters already, so they didn't need too much help. There were some fantastie pots and we called an end to the class afer about an hour and a half, We couldn't believe the great feedback we got from the participants. It makes all the stress and expense so worthwhile when you've got people saying that your session was the best thing about the conference! Most people took their pots away with them too, to finish off and glaze at hhome. One lady who we met on cour travels in South Dakota who attended the session even had her hand luggage planned to include her teapot! Everyone was so enthusiastic and loved the session, they want us to go back next year, and we really want to Well-deserved downtime ‘The rest of our time in Minneapolis was spent in the art museum, Prince’ studio and home Paisley Park, and generally just relaxing afterall the planning and time we'd spent on the workshop. Wee did, however, manage to participate in a g Minneapolis potter Natasha Poppe, who kindly invited us over to pop a couple of small pieces in her kiln. It was great to meet some ‘other local potters and experience a communal firing. We don't do ‘enough of this at home Afier getting home, we were straight off to Portugal to run raku workshops, and that’s where wwe are as Tm writing this; sitting ‘on a farm in the middle of the mountains, planning our next NCECA trip. Were going to apply again to set a world record for the largest pottery class, hopefilly with 150 participants this time. But we will also design another workshop around raku and portable kilns. Fingers crossed. For our current Portugal trip, we've designed a raku kiln that fits ina suitease, and we are trying ‘ut portable pottery, so we ean potentially run raku workshops in any part of the world, But that's another story, which hopefully you ‘ean read about soon! #8 Follow our story on Facebook via @muddypotters Issue 28 C ring with the salt 87Berea replacement, dressed in green slip and he life ofthe potter is an ever ‘ being part dried with the gas torch to varied one. During the past few ; prevent the heavy slip from making it ‘eck, anna and Tame bean Cape Tuskers, painters andl decorators drain . T was a it unsure ofthe design at & vile nuance pater rand Stas ail nent oo eee eeepc the ear inwales he Sidi! nang iar ete an Meagan hing Boao cecerpe lls » OnaotHannais Gece Steele aur hake eet oe sect 5 Premade stapeedjag ireungly acomplia eke scinnyilin cet woe o weve been etme ote the wieditonafl lid wi Matsuri sane at se SSingoat hoop an Tank ea fom, wich Scrcune eens sept bat naval tice get ese curmuigywatmpkued perl ‘A. Baluster jugs, unfired height 40cm, reminder that, (although rarely), there are expressive oohs and aahs, all delivered in The successful sales from Spring Fling form, which Eve not made in a while. Jugs more important things in life than unison, bringing a smile to my face. They have brought about a life changing of this type were typically made in Britain pottery attend a Japanese school called development in the past week. What ring the medieval period and L love It’s been horribly hard this month and Kilqubanity, which is situated about five could be more exciting than a brand new their sleek, anthropomorphic contours. ete starting to feel che strain. [ miles from our home. Pupils come over bathtub and shower? Ifyou do a filthy job Our pots are feutured on the publicity could fall asleep in an instant whenever I sit down fora minute. We just about from Japan far three week blocks, to Tike we do, not much material for three ofthe shows that were experience the Scottish culture, such as Our house didn'thave a bath, just a __deing this year, whichis lovely and preves rain and midges. On occasion, Hannah shower, which stopped working back in the point that ve made in previous posts ‘A Blasting the heart jug. Cireled: Hannah multi-tasking, ‘manage to it one has been and done a day's teaching at the January. Since then, we've endeavoured to about the importance of good quality deaaline in the nick of spent an entire day got used to them being in the workshop school, it’s nice to have that contact get a number of plumbers to come and fit photography. In the long term, it pays for time, betore panicking decorating a pot recently with us. particularly as we exhibit frequently in anew shower, but trying to get one to itsell. about the nest. Its andl in my weary haste to Wee not had time to move in to the Japan, travel out in to the sticks has proven Next for me is making pieces fora joint frustrating, because we endl up making silly, really basic mistakes through tiredness or cutting corners. 1 igeton to thenext thing new space properly yet, its going to take a and not concentrating, while before we work out how best t0 use trapped some air while filling _itand we've become accustomed to ‘We sold a lot of pots over the weekend, difficult, At last, after many nudges, one exhibition entitled Slipped, with Dylan \which was great, although some of them finally came, only to tellus that the Bowen and Nigel Lambert at the Craft were actually orders that we had to wiring was lethal and that weneeded an Potters Association shop, Contemporary in the base ofthe handle, which working in the confines of the po exhibit as we were so short of stock. This electrician, Our regular electrician saved Ceramics, in London, [really hope [ean ‘then blew off in the bise firing Itwas so there's no rush, [ want to lay an week I've been hurriedly remaking those the day, repaired the fault, told us we were get some top drawer pieces through for fortunate that itdidn't damage anything insulated wooden floor on top of the conlers. One piece was ajug decorated Tueky to be alive and een brought in his dat else. These things happen when ane can concrete slab before winter comes around with hearts, The one in the picture is its team of buddies, who have fitted a brand Well, late nights to come for a few ‘4. Demoing for the Japanese school 58. ClayCraft lesue 28 least afford the time or the money “The new workshop extension is starting to get into some kind of order at last, with all ofthe silver fil-backed insulation boarded in and a cout of paint ‘over most oft I's one of those jobs that we've had to fit in around other things, but we needed it done before some chaps get here who are making a film about our work. They should be arriving at any moment as sit writing this and they're staying fora few days, so Tm confident they'll get some good footage once we've again, We need to save up to buy the ‘materials for that and 'm hoping that the ‘upeoming Earth & Fire show will raise the funds to pay fori Last weekend we took part in Spring Fling Open Studios. We weren't able 10 actually open our workshop to the publi, Dut we took the wheel a mile and a half, down to the village hall, where we exhibited with our painter friend, William Spurway, It was a great suecess, with over 6600 visitors through the door during the three days, with folks travelling hundreds ‘A Me multi-tasking, new bath tub and shower. This may not be newsworthy to many, but to a pair of potters who have been bathing every ight in a baby bath since January, its ‘more than just a little amazing? (Our focus now for the next week is on ‘making final pots for Earth & Fira which kes place on the weekend of gist 25rd ine at Welbeck, Notts. There are so many things that I woukd have loved to have made, but have not had the time. As ever it's going to be lots of jugs from ‘me, with Hannah providing the flat weeks yet, but right now, Im off to bed, Tim knackered! Goodnight. ‘A Good photographs pay off! Issue 28 C raft 59, EXTRUDED ones Y selection of equipment and tools that can be used i Cecio st Top left - Tiny extruder with dies - widely available eats eau eer Ceo ey hic tue ara) the dies extru a Geieacs Cerra cee ative handles on the sides of vessels. eo Rua ECC ee MECN Rotten Rotate ae Se eee) Cre ret hai 4 Gq ~_ It may seem a litle extraneous to explain how the extruder works, but this one did not come with 2 instructions and one part, in particular, tooksome time |} Roll a coil of clay just thick enough to fit in to work out! of the extruder then drop It into place. Unwind the cap at the lower end of the extruder and Now, press the clip just above the handle, to release the fix your chosen die in place inside it. For demonstration J rod that pushes the clay through the tube. Draw the rod purposes, we allowed the clay to come through both backwards as far as it will go. IF you're familiar with using patterns on the dies with two holes. To make only one |} cauiking guns, it's the same process. shape, use the semi-circular, blank die to close off the w the handle onto the tube, unwanted pattern. ‘Screw the cap back onto the body. the tube ToC To] eect Large, wall-mounted extruders aren't included in thi Seas eRe ear project because they tend to be seen more in te ete CURT er eet eee etc Y ce et cnet hay else r aetna eet easter a re use, Mobile phones ar eet ee RC ee fe eae ca eT extrude the clay. Be make sure your clay e clay cames through the die, let the ends fall onto the work surface, then pull the extruder backwards so that the rest of the section comes out in a straight line, 60 ClayCraft lesue 28 Issue 28 ClayCraft 61DIFFICULTY RATING 333% ‘A When you have extruded the length of clay you require, cut the section off at the cap with a metal rib or sharp knife, A Really experiment with the extrusion, adding smaller sections to make the handle more functional - or more ‘orate. ‘The sections extruded from this type of device make really strong handles for larger wares - like the simple strap shown here, which would be perfect for a large jug but could also be utilised to make lugs for cookware, ‘4 You will note that this die is extruding two different clay handlle forms. This is a quick and useful way of producing samples for testing, 4. As an exercise in finding the right handle for a particular shaped form, draw a series of vessel outlines on sheets, Of card, using a thick marker pen. Make the outlines the actual sizes, for greater accuracy when deciding ona handle. Make a note on the card of what the shape may be in reality ~ for example, the ‘large jug’ shown here. Put an arrow at the top of the card to indicate which way up it should be. Now fit your extrusion to the drawn line to test itn different positions and proportions. 62 ClayCraft Issue 28 ° ‘A Try the handle against a different outline to test which ‘works best visually. ° ‘A Be bold and creative with the shape of your handles, but be aware that they must work functionally as well as visually 4 Here you can see just a small selection of shapes you can make from this type of extruder. Some are very plain and practical, but the more ornate versions are great when used with glazes that break over texture; they can add real character to an otherwise plain form. ‘Make heavy-duty lid handles for hardworking vessels, bby twisting the extrusions into curls so that the ends point in opposite directions. Try the shapes out on the work surface, Cut the ends of the extrusion to a point then impress the ends with a finger or thumb. ‘A Of course, the extrusions can be used in creative ways to make lid handles and lugs, as well as traditional shapes. Try curling sections into circles. You might find that some extrusions curl naturally as they come out, which is useful. ‘Think creatively to make the best use of sections like these; they make great lugs for cookware or handles for lids, but if you really want to experiment they can be used as sprigs, or other forms of relief decoration for surfaces. ‘A. The same type of extrusion is perfect for making sturdy lugs for the sides of ovenware. ‘Simply twist the extrusion into a semi-circle. Cut each end to a point or shape of choice and fix tin place with a finger impression. You can decorate it more with stamped details if you want to. Issue 28 ClayCratt 63¥ AS — ‘A Use thinner extrusions to make more delicate handles for cups, mugs or small jugs. Draw appropriately sized outlines of cups and mugs (on smaller sections of card to test out your handle shapes as you did for the larger items. Play with the proportions; they are quite different on a smaller scale, 64 ClayCraft Issue 28 ‘A Again, test the shape, adding small sections to make the handle more ornate. Thinner extrusions will curl more readily to make delicate features, Working in this way allows you to decide what will and won't work, before applying the handle to a form, A. Try wacky! Who says handles always have to be a particular shape? Wavy curves work well, providing you can use the handle practically. | cee iecioaetdnt esctataey a eee tea See eet Maat J Z ‘Once a handle is fixed onto a form, you can make it more ornate and stronger, by embellishing it with small balls of clay at the ends, as shown. They can make lovely features if blended down to a point, with ‘additional tiny balls of clay added, and they have the added benefit of acting as reinforcement, to strengthen the handle. SMALL EXTRUDER ©) ° ee A. This type of extruder can really only be used for small wares like cups, mugs and small jugs, because only a short lenath can be extruded at a time. However, some of the dies are large enough to extrude a decent handle for a delicate vessel. In addition, many of the extrusions can be twisted or plaited to make stronger handles. The image shows just a few examples. DIFFICULTY RATING ‘A. Square extrusions are really ‘quite strong - play around with shapes on your outline templates. adding smaller detalls to make the handle more ornate. ‘This would really suit a delicately made teacup. tok Make simple circular handles from club-shaped. extrusions. This type of handle is surprisingly comfortable to use, ‘You can clearly see how it works well on both curved and relatively straight-sided cups, but it also looks great, and very contemporary, on completely cylindrical forms. ‘You can also use this type of extrusion as a decorative feature on bottles and jars. Issue 28 ClayCraft 6‘Make stronger handles by extruding double lengths of Coil, then joining them together witha little slip. Manipulate the double coil to a shape of your choosing - testing it against your outlines, as before. Try twisting simple extruded coils together to make a roperlike handle. Twisting it more, or less, will dramatically alter the shape, but definitely make 2 stronger handle. Note - the clay must be very soft ‘and plastic to be able to twist without cracking, and even then, you can expect some, but the twisting acts to strengthen the whole structure. Continue to experiment with the different extruded shapes - there are many more possibilities. A. These bisque-fired handles have all been made from extrusions, and show just a few of the possibilities. Next month, we'll show you how to make your own loop tools for pulling handles from a block of clay. 66. ClayCraft Issue 28 Roderveld wheels, equipment & POTTERYCRAFTS kilns are bull by our dedicated team to an exceptionally high standard at our factory in Compbell Rodd) Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 4€T Tel: 01782) oe co.uk GwWyl Serameg Ryngwladol International Ceramics Festival 5th —7th July 2019 soin us for an exciting weekend ‘of ive demonstrations, kin frings, performances, lectures, exhibitions, ‘ims, hands-on actviies and more! ‘The 2019 Festival wil feature intemational ‘ceramicists from China, France, tay Japan, Latvia USA and Uzbekistan, plus celebrated ceramicisis from the UK ‘and emerging makers. Tickets and information: Box Office: (+44) 01970 623232 wawinternationaleeramicstestival.org ‘op an a apa AMP Lae Bin SA wp Ox ERG SE etConfessions twas so easy to take a lump of clay home from class and, make pinch pots and coil pots and slab mugs, and it was joyous! Without a kiln, though, these wer destined to remain bone dry, dusty and fragile, I know there are plenty of ‘you out there in the same boat, making more than your class éan keep up with firing, aware that you're pushing the goodwill of your teacher to the limit with your proliferation of pots and enthusiasm-verging-on- obsession. How many pottery tutors have to face the arrival of grinning students whose faces drop when they hear that no, their pieces haven't yet, made it through the kiln? Tean see it from both sides: the student has been bursting with excitement to see their work finished, and the tutor has been filling and firing kilns as fast as humanly possible, busting a gut to ‘A The Stafford $1222 can easily convert a (British) plug-in 15 kiln to digital 68 ClayCraft Issue 28 6) From the moment | first laid hands on clay, | was smitten but also stuck get through a greenware mountain that regrows as quickly as they can shrink it. So T'm ecstatic to report that finally, two years after my ob: began, [ now have a working kiln. As it turns out, I've got three, but Il get to that in abit. Remember I borrowed a kiln from Rachael at Sudbury Pottery Class? Well, that sat unfired in my _greenhouse ~ mocking me~ from September 2018 until March 2019, when the electrics were finally in place. I wasn't willing to fire in the house ~ due to fumes ~ oF to plug in Via an extension lead — due to fire risk —and you can't wire up a bin in a greenhouse. Believe me; I'd have done it. So I had to clear the shed beside the greenhouse (which was full to bursting), dig a deep trench across the garden, lay armoured cable with warning tape on top, climb a ladder to run it up the side of the house and get an electrician to wire it all up from the loft to the shed. ‘This was not cheap —all in all, it cost in the region of £500, entually, there came a day when I could fire it up. It's controlled by a kiln-sitter, which consists of two prongs, onto whi cone or bar, and a third prong that rests on top of it. When the mini cone reaches the temperature its rated for, it becomes soft and bends down under the weight of that top prong, which moves downwards and Gm nlelulas My kingdom for a kiln... or three! ‘A Walking on air as my first bisque firing is a success! switches off the kiln, That's it. No thermometer, thermocouple, pyrometer, whatever you want to eall it, absolutely no way of knowing the temperature at all, until that cone bent ‘There is a knob ranging from ‘off? to ‘low’ and then up in half steps to “7, Rachael had told me that she'd simply set the knob to low for a certain amount of time, then up to somewhere in the middle, before cranking it up to fall. ‘This would work fine, but you know me; I'd been reading about firing schedules and hankering after single firing. T wanted to know how fast the temperature was increasing so I could troubleshoot problems. Pd read that increasing temperature too quickly at certain stages of bisque firing can result in impurities not burning out, which can then cause flaws during, the glaze firing. I didn't see how I ‘A Somewhat underfired, but nonetheless pretty fantastic for my first glaze firing! could monitor that with just this one knob and no idea of temperature. Plus, there is a geek living inside me. Way back in the day, I started a chemical engineering degree, before switching to something more interesting (oh for a time machine and someone to point me at ceramics). Ym not ashamed to say that 1 still love a good graph. I couldn't justify the .£1,000 to convert the kiln sitter to an cleetronie controller, but I did find a controller that goes between the kiln’s plug and the wall socket, and which costs about 2300-2350 plus a thermocouple. I nearly bought ‘one, but decided to start with just the thermocouple (the tube that pokes through into the kiln) and a pyrometer (the calculator-looking thing you plug it into). 1 would the be able to monitor the temperature and adjust the knob manually. If youre happy with a cheap pyrometer that doesn't have a USB output, you can find them online for less than £20 (I ean’t vouch for the though a decent thermocouple will need to come from a pottery supplier and will be at least 250. Now, if 'm a medium-sized geek, then my partner is off the scale. He makes his living designing things like computer chips and eircuit- boards, and writing the software to curacy), run them, Having shown no interest in pottery whatsoever, and ~ shock horror ~ once accusing this of being. ‘a phase’ [ was going through, he suddenly became very interested in the kiln, Note that this later turned out to be because he thinks we're going to cast a sword from scrap metal. In any cease, he said he would design and build a controller himself, plus the software that would run it. This has yet to appear, but it has kept him very busy, and he seems to be enjoying himself For my manual firing, I stuck the thermocouple through the top. peephole, which would mean that peep was out of action, but I decided that would have to be okay. L made an attempt at candling, so T could be absolutely certain my pieces were dry. Interestingly, the kiln being so small, even on its lowest setting and with the lid cracked open on a prop, the temperature would've gone over 100°C within about half an hour! Without a temperature reading, I'd have assumed that ‘low’ meant ‘low and merrily left my pieces to dry, little knowing they were getting. BLOG mutch too hot, much too fast found a bisque-firing schedule that went slowly through 150°C to 15°C, when it said organie carbon burns oif, and between 700°C and 900°C when it sad inorganie carbon burns off. As the kiln temperature began to rise, I could export the data from the pyrometer to a spreadsheet and plot a graph. Ifthe temperature was rising too slowly, [could turn the knob up a notch, and vice versa. In practice, you have to turn up the knob periodically —and quite often = to keep the temperature rising. Finally, after much babysitting, staring at numbers and tweaking of Knobs, the 04 mini-bar bent, and the kiln switched off breathed a sigh of relief, and the next day, Teonducted my very first solo kiln unloading. I really Was in my element (pardon the pun). When [ried a glaze firing, however, things didn't go so smoothly. As the temperature reached about 100°C, it started to level off even with the knob all the way to the top. Without a way to measure temperature, 1 — A Underfired and with one or two pinholes, so | thought I'd refire Circled: .. with disastrous results. Good job | used a cookie. lesue 28 ClayCratt 69CONFESSIONS OF A NOVICE ‘would have had to assume it was getting slowly hotter and hotter, and waited and waited for the kiln-sitter to shut off, which it was never going to do. Luckily I did have a temperature reading, and I could see that it was just not getting: any hotter than about 1115°C. This wasn't going to bend cone 6, however long | waited. I turned off the kiln, gutted. When I unloaded the next day, however, things weren't as bad as T thought. The witness cones Id included told me we hadn't even 5, but you wouldn't know it because the pieces actually looked great. I understand that the clay wor't be fully vitrified, and the glaze may not be as, well, glazy as it should, but they still looked good. I'd done it! For the first time, I'd taken a Jump of clay, formed it into something awesome, bisque fired, glazed, and glaze fired, all by myself! ‘Temperature issue notwithstanding, it was a big success! Iwas now a potter! I carried the new mugs into the house with a huge grin on my face Several recommendations came in from my pottery network about new elements, and went with Clive from reached coni ‘A From nil to overkill. And none of them are big enough! 70 ClayCrait luo 28 Roman Instruments, who was able to supply them by post the next day for only about 260. I made a deal with Rachael to buy the kiln and fitted the elements with, [ must say, minimal trouble, thanks to my partner's confidence with electries and Clive's instructions. Thave since done a few more glaze firings and some single firings (smug-mode), all manually, which takes a lot of babysittin to monitor the temperature from inside the house, first by using remote desktop to connect to the shed laptop and later by using Skype with automatic answer, Could there be anything better than making a video-call to your kiln? I think not There have been disasters as well as successes, including a re-firing to get rid of a few pinholes that instead created bigger, better pinholes and ran the glaze right down onto the ‘cookie’ beneath it. Thankfully, since Thad no idea of the effect of this particular kiln or firing schedule on even my known Amaco glazes, I'd decided to make these little round disks of clay to catch any runs, These have saved my kiln shelves already. Another time I set fire to a glove without realising it, and was lucky that Pd left it on a non-flammable surface so that it just sort of smouldered for an hour, leaving the thumb peeled like a banana. Lesson learned. And I leaned too close to a hot bung as I held it out to look in the peephole and suddenly caught a whiff ‘of Vaporised hair, I've very quickly learned to respect the immense temperatures. This equipment to take lightly. ‘Then, of course, just as I finally had akiln up and running, another was advertised, and it had a controller! Now that I had some basic knowledge, and already tired of the babysitting, I snapped it up from Anglian Potter Janet and once again, Clive sent me the elements before 1 could say ‘hang on, is that a free kiln being advertised’ It was, and it was nearby, It also weighed a ton and T found a is not a piece of A“Hi kiln, it's me again. Are you done yet?” took four of us, plus a hired van, to get into my shed and won't be wired up for some time. Ultimately, [only need one of these three beasts, ‘They're all much the same size inside, but the front-loader should be easier to use and is slighty taller, so will hopefully hold two layers of mugs, which the other two ean't. I never intended to end up with three kilns, and it makes me laugh after so long waiting for just one, but it really was the lack of @ place to put them, along with lack of knowledge of what to look for in a second-hand offering. Operating a manual kiln has taughe ine lots in a short space of time, and I'm looking forward to really getting to grips with i all. Ifnothing else, it means that my’ blogs ean nos (hopefully) include finished, Follow me via @pottlemuddery BX red Mice romaninstruments.com ree eeu Beas Our cles te eeu) Cn Ceun etc Laiey READER OFFER PINCH, COIL, SLAB @M AND THROW aoe SPLIT-LEG APRON Perfect for keeping you clean while throwing, handbuilding or glazing. Our heavy-duty 100% cotton canvas apron is soft, strong and hardwearing, and comes in dark blue with an embroidered logo. Each side split is 45cm wide, offering generous coverage for each leg without the need for constant adjustments. 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Earth and Fire rose.org.uk = — = Salisbury FamilyColection | oc koto EEE oaraorsak . . efstudteceramis.* surehandtrecoate Handmade Oxford [30JUNE emnmal femaseumcamacak | EXECICERET iva Soefuperomeniase “ ; aaa Summer Celebration Waterperry Gardens, Oxford 7 i os Ferrers Gallery, Ashby-de-la-Zouct handmadeinbritain.co.uk/ devon-pop-ups.co.uk 2 CLL foe sssleoccc ie 5 3 Na a een Ban (ALL WEEKENDS) Sutton Coldfield ArtTrail Silverdale & Arnside Art er Suffolk Open Studios atts working in 1D venus & Craft Trail esa - Det 10 arts galleries nd suttoncoldfieldarttrai Lancashire International Ceramics makers opening fer doors t2 ‘wordpress.com silverdalearttrail.co.uk Festival @o Shine SS ES ET ternationalceramics sufolkopenstudios.org Southwold Arts Festival Gower Open Studios festival.org “ - ‘Coram Waloe 12-14 ay THE INTERNATIONAL a= per 109 | SEES tee PANN 1D) VNB) =8@)sveyccl) §~CONTEMPORARY ARTS FESTIVAL Meet | Shop | Learn | Engage | Eat | Drink | Explore ca EsrerNs over 20 venues Culture Avards 2019 Annual Brockley Potters Great Northern sydenhamarts.co.uk. tywivalleyopenstudios.wales Exhibition Contemporary Art Show fis-2ijury art of Sydenham Artist Ta greatnorthernevents.co.uk Preererig Celebrating Ceramics piesa rESrsNg Crain Focus in collaboration vith 27 = 30 June 2019 se =e their wo in the Park Waterperry Gardens, Oxford fourier | ica ee ts Sar enmie mecca | Ce meenees toners sydenhamarts.co.uk check website for details the UK in the past eet ™ -_ Isleofwightarts.com celebratingceramics.co.uk fe Cumbr BOOK YOUR FESTIVAL TICKETS Sa Potfest.co.uk . _t. ‘Sydenham Arts Trail Ea EE a handmadeinbritain.co.uk/oxford The Ith year of this event wil Ceramic Wales Marlborough Open Studios EYEETSITSS norspemeneeer matin Cneneaayceam: Cet parboroughopenstudis. Marlborough Open Studios sydenhamarts.co.uk iectures co.uk Tam-Spm Zn, CREAM Svisicwsics cok” axon BZ a woul Marlborough Open studios The London Artisan = Tam-spm cEESIAIING Curated design and SoS ( marlboroughopenstudios.co.uk Marlborough Open Studios "nnn don » STK tam-Spm thelondonartisan.com ‘Summer Exhibition EERE Maiborcushopen studios : farOpen studios Trail a oe ert stat netenite om TywiValley Openstudios orestl Coot Hye yond | Sydenham Arts Tall Ronan? Seatweria HANDMADE = faropencouk asa a orient attra ue fae SANDMADE ASHMOLEAN Wat pen. * in| Camarthntee Ckbrato Issue 28 ClayCraft. 73METHOD IN THE WORK A group of new ceramic makers have opened their own studio, which is bucking the trend for ‘open access’ facilities. Their studio aims to be an area for makers working at the cutting edge of fine art ceramics, while at the same time becoming a part of the local creative community in London. The studio is Method at Culford Studio. ossibly one of the biggest challenges facing ceramic makers leaving wniversity has to e finding suitable and affordable premises to start ther careers. Next, is making sure they are not isolated from ather makers who they need to share experiences and knowledge with A group of eight graduates from the Royal College of Art (RCA) have been lucky enough to break this barrier in London. But, adding to the pressure is the knowledge they are taking over the recently vacated studio of one of the ‘most influential and respected makers working today — Kate Malone. The group moved into the studio at the end of last year, after a lot of searching for premises, They have the ground floor of the building with a photography studio and events space ton, one of the group, explained: “The Haines family were looking for ceramic makers to take over 74 ClayCrait lesue 28 of the arts. With the help of Kate Malone, we were there atthe right time Originally, all we thought we needed to start our studio was a sink, so what we have now is just fantastic. It was not practical for Kate to move the original kiln, as it's the biggest studio kiln in London, so we inherited that too, as part of the building a huge bonus. Kate has a studio nearby, and weleomes us asking for help” ‘The studio is in a quiet mews, just off ain road in East London. Iti weting. area at the front, kitchen area, ng area, kiln area (now supplemented by two smaller kilns), glaze area, clay store and even a small back garden for summer evenings. So, how does this collective of makers ‘work? Well, each of the eight makers Judes Main studio area. runs their own business, making things for commissions, research and for galleries, Each has other commitments that form part of their incon teaching or residencies. An example is the Crafts Council ‘Make Your Future’ programme, which enables makers t0 go into schools and work with secondary school children. The equipment and materials are paid for by the Crafts Council and the Sir Jolin Lyons Charity he school teachers are then invited to attend Central Saint Martin department t0 needed to continue the programme, ‘This culminates with an exhibition later in the year The eight makers pay a share of the rent for the studio, plus extra to allow for emergency items. IS not often that all of the makers are in the studio at the same time, so discussions on how to manage the studio are done via email and text, and are decided by majority The responsibilities of managing and ‘organising the space are shared between all members. rn some of the skills When asked about what they missed about the RCA, Emily Stapleton Jefferis said, "Access to the expertise of the staff, and to the wonderful range of ‘equipment. We can no longer just pop around to another department to have something made. Then there is the intellectual challengy group discussions, even though to continue them here at ‘Method’ So what does the studio stand for and shat are its objectives? Both Alice and ly are very clear that itis a professional ceramic sculpture studio and not a craft one. The surrounding area has alot of artists working locally, and they want to reach out to them become a more inclusive self-help community. Later, when they are more established, they hope to run a series of teaching courses for the local community and hold exhibitions of work Starting any business is not easy, and the art sector is certainly not, but this of lectun ‘The largest kiln in London. group of young makers has shown thi itis still possible. And, should they need an example of success, then Kate Malone's other studio is just a few doors away. We wish them well as they launch themselves onto the international arts market. Contact det Instagram: @eollective_ Email: method.culfordstudio@gmail. com i for the stu ‘The members of Method at Culford Studio are: Clare Flatley I Eugene Cheung i Sun-A Kim ram Su Tana West Irina Razumovskaya Paul Bailey produces Emerging Potters online magazine and writes ‘on modern ceramie makers Paulbailey128/@googlemail.com ‘A Alice at work. Issue 28 ClayCraft 75COURSES Rear) CLAY WORKS STUDIO ‘Courses:A ver fombeginner, tbeoteredae Taser cues general poteryandtowng couses Coen Filet trmore sGuancee mmovescomng soon Dates: See vsbste Loeation: Dries & Galloway ‘layworksstudios.co.tk FORGAN ARTS CENTRE ‘Courses Alves snd age catered ferinfand building toning ak, ‘cpa anc mera Dates: var webs) Location: wer ay Fle Torganartscentre.co.uk HOLYLOCH POTTERY Coursestiang busing thoving ‘ton or aleve Some supe ‘essonsavalble aks & aerate Feng tectiques fered incl Lgourscoursestyaangement Dates:5yarangemat Location: ki ne Dunoon, Coma Pears, gy holylochpottery.coutk -MUDFLAIL CERAMICS Course fsechansuieing Location: lasso Karenjamesceramics.webs.com POWDERHALL BRONZE ART STUDIO. Course: Cay modeling wit Abn Beatie Hemot Figure making Dates: arch 2019 Location: suo Powderhallbronze.co.uk SEA DRIFT POTTERY STUDIO. Courses: Westy cases wheat taser ‘esions 12 whee titan marthiy project workshops inte avalatle Dates: Vance Location: snbonk 1 Dunoon, yl seaduiftpottery. work col werk Classes Dates\2ro0 Location: foreict Yorkehie fredartdesigns.co.uk JILLFORD ‘Course: Vosshop ae Day Courses Dates: Tusciy everings cay couses thoughout the yea Location: ork Tet 01717 235008 PRICE CERAMICS Week potter werkshoos, ‘Bhusnd prise ton malable Dates. Location: eros Yorks ‘thepottery.coatk GREENWOOD CRAFTS (Courses: Horcoulding from begins onarde Dates: 20 yes" Location: ris ‘tryacourse.coatk HULL COLLEGE ‘Courses Speci Ceramics and Glass Ceuresto suit arargedt abies Ful fange of echniques cove, wate, bespoke facity sppertedty secalst lecturer and teerrican Dates: 0 veeks por term terms Sartaeth Spe th ar 28h Apr (Weds) & 2m Sept, ih Jan Deh ape (days Fut hal dys Locations one “eb 148259751 enauesvienfaity OVD S44 francine Ecnplienershulheollege-acak LEAFY LANE POTTERY BY SUZIE ‘Courses: Harcbuitng courses Sites Leary sabes eset homes schon and pate sessions, aredsculsuresoryou home and users Dates Trouchoutthe yearand.area Location: il oe at Yorks ‘Tebcrans A106 Ecleafylanepotteryegmailcom NORTHLIGHT ART STUDIO {Courses vering andy workshops, Sterner schoandtaste ays A lewss Dates: Weety acd troughoutthe year Location: sen bre Yoke Tekorazees19 horthlightstudio.co.uk ‘OLDSTABLES STUDIO ‘Courses: vowing bootamn reckons tasters and equates Datesvarcus Location: Hebden Bdge Yoshie JRMES OUGHTIBRIDGE ‘CourseLarge Scale Sob Bucing Dates: Contactor details, Location: if es Yorke Jamesoughtibrdge blogspot.co.k JIM ROBISON CERAMICS ‘Courses: Week‘org Ceramics and Gheeardsurace courses Dates\cu Location: tft css boothhousegallery.co.ske SCULPTURELOUNGE STUDIOS ‘Courses: Trcughouttheyeor Dates: Contact cect forhather iformation MIDo you run a course that youd like to see here? Email claycraft.ed@kelsey.co.uk for free inclusion in our listing Location: Holmfirth West Yrtshire seulpturelounge.com SHEEPWALKSTUDIOS Courses Handbulcig nd towing, \ases one o one and workshops ielucng Chrtmseransee wonchop, ater ortactia ive Location: Upon West Yorkshire ebor7e9955150 Ellbuleymeraceramicsegmalcom sheepwalkstudios.com ‘TWISTED EARTH CERAMICS (Courses Eriol echriquesfor creating aval scupsures Aleve ‘tered for 1 andgoups prict= wworkshoos ports team bling Datesiious ocation: ble creme tome Donte of vera! aro Yerkoe ‘ewistedoarthcaramics com eyes MERSEY BALTICCLAY Courses Eeningand eek cay (Dates: Tue, Wed, Thurs 30pm. Location: Liexpoot balticlay.com BLUE BUTTERFLY CRAFTS Courses arcbulér Weel 2h sessons ond dy couse DaterViious tee website CacationPcctinseon. anes bluebutterfiycratts.co.ak JOANCHAN ‘Courses: reuciontodayhandbulna rowing sp asinalazevekchop Dates: temoonsardevsninge Location: testy Wir Tekoreo3eaea12, Expsnecrangaalcom FB jcemates ‘THE CLAY HOUSE Courses To 3 vxishopsevery moth Dates: Various see website Locations Farm sey nromei fe 1704807320 haclayhouseatcedarfarm.co.uk ‘CLAYWORKS Courses Eering&iarime clases fox Slits (nitmocsiond vessend ‘events such a Roa ete Dates: ec thoughout the year {Location Soutnoort Lareashie Fe othousercs sea-network cok ‘CRAFFITY POTTERYSTUDIO Courses Crete vit Cay chops sessions wih or thout np Regular ane seasonal wotchops Dates ious Location: 2.1, Cester Manchester crafftyereations.co.k ‘THE CRAFTY POTTER Courses Trowirg hanc-buing & Dates:Vsious Location cnr. Lancasre thecraftypotterco.ukc a TM Vol M Ula Mon ta\—me-t- le Raele ee fel m E-TOC LiReOle eS —Raolaa) ‘THE DOWNTO EARTH POTTERY Courses Hond-buldinaforbeginess ‘oadvanced Weare aways tyingout new techniquessuchasuse of decals Sndcotoued cy Dates: Year ound Tuesday pr Sd Wecineay ee. Some Sturcys Location cites Lanes Erlesleywoods19ehotmail.com Fannecounempent PAUL GOULD/MON CERAMICS Courses Daginres tems Dater ued 8 Wecrexsays pm and 79pm Stursysand indo woop ‘erourcitestroushout year Uocation: the Wirt smonceramice.o.uk ‘GREEN MAN CERAMICS (Courses Pottery Dscavery weckenc Dates: Vasicus Location cane Lancs TeOrmDENIS LEMON STUDIO (Courses Honcbulsing fora eels taser sasiors wotshope and partes Dates: vious Location owrroion lemonstudio.co.uke PILLING POTTERY NORTHERN KILNS (Courses Fem nove presser throwing rand bulang glzang making {Gaze inloadng progam in Bruce, ring ements Dates tou ocation Pig, Lancs pilingpotterycom ‘THE POTTERS BARN Courses huithoF ful ey beginners throaing Bhandouldingitetmedine vanced throwing Ral & pt eing Dates: vious Uocation:Savbsch, Cheshire borer ‘thepottersbarn.covuke ‘CARLAPOWNALL Courses Thevina. eck couse begner to advanced wing stoneware andra ay One off cousescn st Soeur ofthe month (Dates: eds arn pn pus st treekendotheronth Location: Wns Erearapownalleyahoo com PBs cartponraleerarice Relapse PSO ‘SANDY BYWATER @ CURIOUS stuoios (Courses: Al potry sil, suitable fattebegrnerorfemoe xpererced ater: vesdy afternoons rdevenngs. Moth, Stray themed wretshops Location snerton Weriethoingham sandyoywaterceramics. ‘wordpress.com CAN-DOPOTTERY (Courses: Hand buldng fr beginners Dates: Trays 10303-1239, Uocation Vel Stockport ‘andopottery.wicsite.comigroup ‘THE CLAYROOM LEICESTER Courses Range of cases oral i plsmembesp heme formore experienced makers Dates: Thioughout the year Location:L cast thedayroom co.uk THE CLAYROOMS Courses: Handbuleing throwing, experienced makers Dates: Vaicus se vibstefor des Location: Ashboure,Cesbysire slayrooms.co.ti CLAY STUDIO MANCHESTER Courses One-f taste sessions to ‘eoUar week courses and 1-0 {utton. Anyone fom besinner upwards 'sweleeme monthly membership Scheme for more advanced makers Dates: sicus Locations |iuime, Manchester laystudio.coak MIDLANDS ART CENTRE Courses: Ceramics OpenStudo Dates: Vaicus Locationetinningharn macbirmingham.co.uk PARKWOOD THROWING COURSES. Courses: Basic andintermedate thronng Dates: 5-week Thurs evenings weekend courses, ase sessions Location: Aeron Debye ‘parkwoodthrowingcourses.co.tk PLAY WITH CLAY. Courses: Tivowing. toddler cay Dates: Saturday mornings, ToesSay afemoons throwing weey by appainiment Location:Lo.ghboroush creationspottery.co.uk SEVEN LIMES POTTERY Courses: Viried couses/lasses Dates: Location: MossSice, Manchester ‘Tlimes.co.uk ‘SEYMOUR ROAD STUDIOS. Courses: Weely/-doy weekend cases Dates: Vous Locations Bridgeford Notts seymourroadstudios.co.uke PATSHORT CERAMICS Courses: Begins harcbuiling Dates: Vsicus Location:Edgbaston Bininghsm patshortceramics.com POTSINNOTTS. Courses: Westy ctassesand veel (Dates: throughout the year contact for more deals, Location: Worksop, Noes Erlmestanland@idoudcom ova 1738 FBEIG:apotsnnor LINDA SOUTHWELL Courses: Evening classes and ones: Dates: Wednesday eveningsand by Locations the acy Ce Welbeck Worksop indasouthwellco.uke DAVID STOCKS Courses: Segre Bass athouoh ‘pent al ncuding dsabied (carers ffee when accompanying) Pinch pots and gazing Dates: Thursdy Bering: 18152100 {is persesson Dorrage) us Tuesday £2 Mecresdy evenings atthe Sence Pears Cerere See webfor deta of 10 nd 8 weak coures Location: erage Methacits Church RamOnTheRloundabout Potteryegmallcom or Dorie 1 forsely Osccentact Se Pea Cente: Sunneysharmae sense org.uk WOODSETTON ART POTTERY Courses Alesse ta.ghty postraduns prodyctonthrower and Sesgrermake wath yeas xperence insolecn tent Dates:varcus Location: Voocseton Oucey Wits ‘woodsettonartpottery.com Cwoodsettonpots JACKIE BARBER CERAMICS (Courses:Creto-one towing scons Datessvircxs Location: cc, Cnecoin Jacklebarberceramles.co.uk ‘BASEART STUDIO, GALLERY & POTTERY WORKSHOPS Courses Hincouidng: frowns 2 one-off sessons pas als Dates: Gngang, daysandevenings Location: ss vel ces baseartorg ‘CARDIFF POTTERY WORKSHOPS Courses Handbuidng towing; one Studaysesions 121 rowing mastecsses wth ane Ges partes chien, ast, mbuldng: perey membership {utbred & uirtuiored Dates 6akay eve sessons various Location: cai ‘araiffpotteryworkshops.com ‘GLOSTERS Course ironing Dates: Ao Location: Poyatog ‘losters.coak JANE MALVISI ‘Courses: Pottery asses inciting aura abies elcome Dates: Mor Toes/Wed cys and Location: rigend,S Wales Janemalvisico.uk ‘MID WALES ARTS Courses Two-cy couse on wood feng lls Nake yournerithon et Dates:varoxs Location: \isesman owys ‘midwalesarts.org.uke ‘ORIELBODFARIGALLERY AND POTTERY ‘Courses: Towing handbulding Rowe Dates:\aroxs Location: oct North Vile: ‘orielbodtarigallery.co.uk ‘TREEHOUSE POTTERY Courses Portery nares Heehouse, t Qa Ox) We offercourses taster sesons for beginners, day buildeg 8 porters wheel Dates\arou Location: Cer etage Cente, gowerstoneart.coukitree-house- pottery tren PAULA ARMSTRONG Courses: Handi, workshops Dates Monday end Tes momrgs Tuesday Thc eveninga monty Sauda woshops Location: iinghar Cambs parmstrongceramics.co.uk [ART BARN GAMLINGAY Courses anctuldng a and peng Dates: Vecnescay and Tusa ever lay cases a ral aking nding wokshops Satuday 27th ‘pl and Satur eth May Cay 2 Day das Sry 2h Seoterber Location: Goring, Camosbecs border Ezartbomehotmallcouk ‘norris 06700 FB: Art Bam Gamlingsy MATTHEW BLAKELY Courses: Wesker Courses Throwing, Porean toning Dates: orstiy Uocation: 2d Cams smatthewblakely.co.uk DEEPDALE POTTERY Courses Hancbulérg and thoving forbagnnersandexpenenced Dates: Waelendand weehiy courses Incacig yr accommodation requred throughout he year Location: Barton upon Humber North yurtatthechapel Exhibition The Southern Ceramic Group's exhibition in the Bishop's Kitchen, Chichester Cathedral, is always well worth a visit This year it showcases over 600 exhibits from 60 potters, including some new ones y Making it big A coiled sculpture for the garden. The only limit is the size of your kiln! > Peas ina pod A quirky little slab build, this serving dish can be made ina range of sizes w € 4 Loop tools Continuing with our look at the different ways to make handles, we turn our attention to loop tools. How they work, and making = your own as « Trouble-shooting glazing problems * Doug’s Diary a* Studio spotlight and more Issue 28 ClayCraft 81ME AND MY POTYou are invited to Emma Rodgers: Edge of Nature exhibition pes) eta BINT er PaaS TOC) eased ou aCPE LE ete) TH ANNIVERSARY 01782 280 008 Valentine Clays Ltd ‘inlet G90 7 EST. 1979