Barrel firing in the Rain
Friday afternoon at about 17:00 I attempted a barrel firing. Good advise would be to check the weather forecast before firing anything outdoors. Friday night we were blessed with heavy rain and thunder. Luckily for me the weather didn't influence the outcome, since I put on the lid by the time the rain started pouring. I did stress a bit about the pots cooling down too quick, but in the end the pots turned out beautifully.
Before the firing I bisque fired the pots in a simple wood-fired updraft kiln to make the pots more resistant against thermal swings. I want to refine the bisque kiln design so that I can also glaze some of my pieces. I will write a post on that.
The beautiful black markings was because of sawdust that I placed in the barrel. The other ingredients were sea weed, salt, mielie skin, banana peals, fine brass wire, coffee grounds and coal.
I am planning more regular firings this year. I would like to spend more time on the quality of the pots themselves by refining my wheel work, hand work and the burnishing of my pieces.
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| Barrel fired ceramic pots, Riaan Coetzee, 2018 |
Before the firing I bisque fired the pots in a simple wood-fired updraft kiln to make the pots more resistant against thermal swings. I want to refine the bisque kiln design so that I can also glaze some of my pieces. I will write a post on that.
The beautiful black markings was because of sawdust that I placed in the barrel. The other ingredients were sea weed, salt, mielie skin, banana peals, fine brass wire, coffee grounds and coal.
I am planning more regular firings this year. I would like to spend more time on the quality of the pots themselves by refining my wheel work, hand work and the burnishing of my pieces.
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| The barrel (two red dots in the foreground) standing in the rain. The barrel was still extremely warm the next morning after all the rain. |
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