The walls are still growing. I've decided that I am making the walls too thick. What made me think they should be super thick? So, I am thinning them out as much as I can. My progress is so slow, the weather is chilly and overcast. It feels like a supreme effort to go outside and work in the cold. Oh, to have a studio. Wait a minute, I do have one it just looks like a greenhouse and the heat isn't turned on....
I am thinking about how I'll finish the outside, this should be fun!
The teapot exhibit at the de Young Museum was outstanding, outstanding, outstanding!!! What talent; I was in awe. One process I am always drawn to is unglazed porcelain decorated with black underglazes; as if it was used as a sheet of paper and the black looks like charcoal....there was a teapot there that had been decorated like that. Mmmm, nice. And I am a real sucker for the workhorse type of teapot, big and sturdy, no nonsense kind of guys. There were a couple of them too.
3 comments:
Hello! I'm glad I found your site. I reeeeaaaally think the walls should be thick, though, since when you fire the minigama it's going to be about 1000-1600F inside and about 50-100F outside. I'm no expert, but I image the extreme temp diff. puts quite a stress on the minigama, and I thought thicker walls made it more crack-resistant and tougher in general once the minigama itself has been fired.
That was my reasoning also but then the minigama book says 30-40 lbs. of clay is used and whoa - mine is going to be 50# or more if I continue at this rate! I won't be able to pick her up!!!! I know I am making it a little bit larger than the directions say. Greedy, huh?
Are you making one too Josh?
I made one and fired it in an electric kiln, but I never fired anything in it. I left it behind when I moved. When it was done it seemed like the main chamber was very small, especially considering that it takes 40 lbs of charcoal to do each firing. I also thought I could have made the chimney much narrower. My hand could almost fit into it, but it probably only needs to be the size of a paper towel tube if you're using a hairdryer to blow air into it. Are you going to fire the kiln outside with wood, under wet newspaper like the book says?
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