William C. Hunt........................................ EditorBarbara Tipton...................... Associate EditorRobert L. Creager........................ Art DirectorRuth C. Butler.............................. Copy EditorValentina Rojo...................... Editorial AssistantMary Rushley............... Circulation ManagerConnie Belcher . . . . Advertising ManagerSpencer L. Davis.................................. Publisher

Editorial, Advertising and Circulation Offices

1609 Northwest Boulevard,Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212

(614) 488-8236

Ceramics Monthly (ISSN 0009-0329) is published monthly except July and August by Professional Publications, Inc.—S. L. Davis, Pres.; P. S. Emery, Sec.: 1609 North­west Blvd., Columbus, Ohio 43212. Second class postage paid at Columbus, Ohio. Subscription Rates: One year SI 6, two years $30, three years $40. Add $5 per year for subscriptions outside the U.S.A.Change of Address: Please give us four weeks advance notice. Send both the magazine wrapper label and your new address to Ceramics Monthly, Circulation Office, Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212. Contributors: Manuscripts, photographs, color separations, color transparencies (in­cluding 35mm slides), graphic illustrations, texts and news releases dealing with ceramic art are welcome and will be considered for publication. A booklet describing procedures for the preparation and submission of a man­uscript is available upon request. Send man­uscripts and correspondence about them to The Editor, Ceramics Monthly, Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212.Indexing: Articles in each issue of Ceramics Monthly are indexed in the Art Index. A 20-year subject index (1953-1972) covering Ceramics Monthly feature articles, Sugges­tions and Questions columns is available for $1.50, postpaid from the Ceramics Monthly Book Department, Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212. Additionally, each year’s arti­cles are indexed in the December issue. Copies and Reprints: Microfiche, 16mm and 35mm microfilm copies, and xerographic re­prints are available to subscribers from Uni­versity Microfilms, 300 N. Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106. Copies in micro­fiche are also available from Bell & Howell, Micro Photo Division, Old Mansfield Road, Wooster, Ohio 44691.Back Issues: Back issues, when available, are $3 each, postpaid. Write for a list. Postmaster: Please send address changes to Ceramics Monthly, Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212.

Copyright © 1985Professional Publications, Inc.

All rights reservedMay 1985 3

4 Ceramics Monthly

Ceramics MonthlyVolume 33, Number 5

May 1985

Feature Articles Small Works International 21Earthenware of Java

by Phillip Gearheart............................................ 23Roger Honey

by Timathea Shays.............................................. 29Cone 6 Reduction Glazes

by Gerald Rowan ................................................ 30New Zealand Impressions, Part II

by John Glick....................................................... 32Potters Making Prints

by Robert Sperry................................................. 38A View from Norway

by Arne Ase.......................................................... 41Steven Forbes-deSoule ........................................... 44Sally Bowen Prange ................................................ 46Art in Saskatchewan

by Joan McNeil ................................................... 47Contemporary British Teapots.............................. 49

DepartmentsLetters....................................................................... 7Where to Show 9Suggestions............................................................... 11Questions................................................................... 13Itinerary.................................................................... 15Comment: Barium and Glaze Toxicity

by Monona Rossol............................................... 17News & Retrospect.................................................. 57New Books................................................................ 77Classified Advertising 78Index to Advertisers................................................ 80

The CoverHandbuilt bowl, 8½ inches in height, raku-fired earthenware, with glaze and stain decoration, by Ped- er Rasmussen, Haslev, Denmark.

May 1985 5

6 Ceramics Monthly

LettersAnagama Backwater

Fellow potters, beware the Anagama. Yes, it is fun to make big, loose pots and stay up all night throwing wood into a fire, but the results, even of the “big boys” kilns, are often best described as “functional illiterates.”

Yes, the glorious accidents happen—a cer­tain percentage perhaps from each kiln load— but what of the rest? So easy to disavow when one has put little commitment in beyond large amounts of raw materials and staying power in front of a firebox. And under these cir­cumstances it is so easy to exaggerate the value of the “good” pieces to the gullible.

I think one of the central challenges to artists is to respond to the time and place wherein they live, not to indulge the public with romantic visions of medieval Japan.

Thus a challenge to these growing ash- coated multitudes: invest in a small electric kiln and the latest commercial colors. Rig­orously selecting the pieces to be fired and putting yourself on the line with each pass of the airbrush, you just might be making ceramic history, not lingering in a backwater.

Peter Chartrand Bisbee, Ariz.

Kiln EmissionsIn regard to the (March, page 15) Ques­

tions answer on kiln emissions, I’m guessing the lab evaluation was not necessarily rep­resentative, and no mention was made of the potentially broad variables. How many pounds of clay (ware) were bisqued? How about po­tential kiln emissions from ceramics fired by heavy wax users? A 7-cubic-foot kiln scarce­ly loaded with thin, cast ware is so different from the dense load of stoneware of a pro­duction potter—perhaps one hundred pounds of pots in a 7-cubic-foot kiln. And the study’s conclusions would differ considerably from clay to clay and according to packing density.

Ted Scatchard Charlotte, Vt.

Radioactive DebateA recent letter in the March CM speaks

of the “hazard” of uranium in glazes and stains. This concern is totally unfounded, as shown by the following comparisons.

Potassium is also naturally radioactive and, of course, occurs in a great number of potters’ mixes. The radioactivity of the pertinent iso­tope, K-40, with a half-life of about a billion years, is roughly equal to that of uranium. The abundance of that isotope is less by a factor of about 8000 than that of uranium (235, 238). However, the potter will cer­tainly encounter very much larger quantities of potassium than uranium which, because of its high cost, will always be a minor con­stituent in the studio. For example, a 100- pound sack of pearl ash (potassium carbon­ate) will have roughly the same radioactivity as ½ pound of pure uranium oxide, or ¾

pound of a common yellow porcelain under­glaze containing calcium uranate. A 100- pound sack of potassium feldspar is equiv­alent to about ½ pound of a typical uranium stain. A studio potter’s greatest exposure to radioactivity is undoubtedly the ton or so of porcelain stored in the back room. It typi­cally contains 25% feldspar.

Potassium is, of course, an essential part of our diet, and occurs in large amounts in foodstuffs. It is a necessary component in the cell wall where its radioactive emanation has been bombarding the cell nucleus and its chromosomes since the beginning of time.

I am not making these comments to alert CM readers to the hazard of potassium. Far from it. I am simply pointing out the mis­placed fears that have been generated over the small amounts of environmental “haz­ards” which have been shown by experience to be innocuous.

L. M. Foster Corvallis, Ore.

Conservatism HorrifyingI’m horrified by some of the recent letters

published in CM clamoring for a more con­servative format. Something not decadent is what one letter-writer asked.

From my perspective, Ceramics Monthly is my only outlet or exposure to the rest of what’s happening in the art world. (And I live in metropolitan San Francisco.) CM is like a mini survey course each month in ce­ramics and sculpture. Instead of schlepping to ten galleries, they come to me at my home where I can appreciate at my leisure. Of course this isn’t exactly as good as being there, but it’s close enough.

So don’t change anything except to add even more color and black-and-white pho­tographs.

Bill Pittman San Francisco

Raising One’s EthicIt could be helpful if Ceramics Monthly

would give us good, useful information on how to be better artisans, how to maintain and even raise one’s ethic in this age of dis­integrating morality.

Goldie Spieler Saint Thomas, Barbados

Learning to SeeFor many people, a wide variety of ce­

ramic work is appreciated, if not openly craved. They value CM’s photographs, the dialogue and the discussions of both the potter and the ceramist. However, letters written to the editor have for years been riddled with in­sults and intolerance.

Perhaps it’s a dilemma exaggerated by the regular publication of this journal. Perhaps it’s a dichotomy caused by the publication’s desire to touch as many areas of daywork as

possible, to cover as much of the contem­porary ceramics (especially in America) as can be found. In any case, many must find Ceramics Monthly especially valuable as a record of what is being said and done in the field.

Many of today’s ceramists began studying their medium in college, and were either not exposed to a wide variety of work, or the bias of the teacher was so strong that the students chose to look favorably upon what the in­structor liked. There exists a kind of snob­bish attitude among these narrow-spectrum potters and ceramists. I recently read an ar­ticle about one of today’s giants who said that he, until only recently, went to shows looking for his own work; that is, he was looking for work that communicated that quality that was so intrinsic to his own ceramics.

It’s honorable and good that there are spe­cialists within the ceramics field. But why limit one’s tastes and what one wants to see? Beauty is the operant in this instance. I find there is beauty where impeccable craftsman­ship and good design coexist in a work that is both clean and refined to the point it looks spontaneous and not overworked.

Certainly no one could or should like everything being made. It may be important to more than a few, however, to form their own definition of beauty on as wide a basis as possible. Some may read what a certain ceramist says about her/his work and the medium in general, and can gain some notion about that person’s concept of beauty. In so doing, the reader’s own concept is altered (albeit, ever so slightly); he/she now sees the thing differently, or for the first time.

To look at and to see are not synonymous here. To see takes time and effort, and a lot of questioning. To simply look at something is a kind of resignation that doesn’t allow the seeing of it. I suppose it could be argued that one needs first to look before one can see. And, I suppose that if one does look and isn’t at once intrigued somehow, one won’t pause and see. That fact places a burden on the builder to instill intrigue into the work.

While a portion of the communication gap can be placed upon the viewer, who is re­sponsible for taking time to see, an equal or greater portion can be placed on the ceramist or potter whose responsibility is to com­municate in a language understandable to more than an elite few. So many times one can sit down with an article intending to ex­tract bits and pieces of ideas and feelings, but to no avail. It seems it’s too difficult to sort through the lofty and verbose prose of some self-promoting and arrogant ceramist whose goal appears more to confuse and con­found than to enlighten and inform the mass­es. One wonders who, really, is impressed? One wonders further why the work doesn’t communicate very well on its own and why

Please Turn to Page 75May 1985 1

Where to Showexhibitions, fairs, festivals and sales

Send announcements of juried exhibitions, fairs, festivals and sales at least four months before the entry deadline to: The Editor, Ceramics Monthly, Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212; or call: (614) 488-8236. Add one month for listings in July and two months for those in August.

International ExhibitionsMay 17 entry deadline

Auckland, New Zealand “Fletcher Brown- built Pottery Award” (June 1-16) is juried from works. Purchase award: NZ$5000 (approximately $2500). Contact: Fletcher Brownbuilt, Fletchers Private Bag, Auckland 1.June 3 entry deadline

New York, New York “International Juried Art Competition” (July 20-August 10) is juried from up to 10 slides. Fee: $5 per slide. Awards. Contact: IJAC, Box 584, Bronxville, New York 10708; or call: (914) 835-4484, 939-1177, or 668-2572.

National ExhibitionsMay 11 entry deadline

Hendersonville, North Carolina “Art in Wor­ship” (July 6-September 2) is juried from slides of up to 5 works. Fee: $10. Contact: Touchstone Gallery, 508 N. Main, Hendersonville 28739; or call: (704) 692-2191.May 15 entry deadline

Youngstown, Pennsylvania “Dual Visual Arts Exhibitions,” (June 9-July 6) are juried from 4 slides. Screening fee: $20. Jurors: Diane Burko and Judith Stein. $2000 in awards. Send self-ad- dressed, stamped business envelope to: Olga Gera, Box 21C, R.D.8, Greensburg, Pennsylvania 15601. June 1 entry deadline

Saint Louis, Missouri The “First Annual Con­tainer Show” (September 29-October 27) is juried from slides of up to 3 works; fee: $15. Contact: Walter Moody, Hickory Street Gallery, 1929 Hickory St., Saint Louis 63104.

Buffalo, New York “Crafts National” (October 6-November 15) is juried from 2 slides. Jurors: Mary Jane Jacob and Paul Smith. Cash and pur­chase awards. Fee: $15. Contact: Chairperson, Design Department, State University of New York College at Buffalo, 1300 Elmwood Ave., Buffalo 14222; or call: (716) 878-6032.June 7 entry deadline

Downey, California “American Ceramic Na­tional III” (July 11-August 23) is juried from slides. Awards. Fee: $10 per entry. Contact: Noll Thomp­son, c/o Downey Museum of Art, 10419 S. Rives Ave., Downey 90241; or call: (213) 861-0419. June 15 entry deadline

New York, New York “Designed and Made for Use” (January 1-May 1, 1986) is juried from slides. Work should be functional and be suitable for lim­ited production by hand. Fee: $10. Contact: De­signed and Made for Use, American Craft Mu­seum offices, 45 W. 45 St., New York 10036. July 15 entry deadline

Mesa, Arizona “LandEscapes” (September 19- October 17) is juried from slides. Work should allude to landscapes of the mind. Awards. Contact: Galeria Mesa, Box 1466, Mesa 85201; or call: (602) 834-2242.

New Haven, Connecticut “Seventeenth Cele­bration of American Crafts” (November 11-De­cember 23) is juried from slides and works. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope and resume to: Roz Schwartz, Creative Arts Workshop, 80 Au­dubon Street, New Haven 06511; or call: (203) 562-4927.July 17 entry deadline

Buffalo, New York “Created by Hand” second crafts national (September 7-October 2) is juried

from slides. Jurors: Leta Stathacos and Carol Townsend. Awards. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Joan Dobrin, AAO Galleries, 698 Main St., Buffalo 14202; or call: (716) 856-6530. August 1 entry deadline

Baltimore, Maryland “20th Anniversary Ex­hibition” (January 12-February 28, 1986) is ju­ried from slides. Jurors: Sybil Robins, Rick Sny- derman and Susan McLeod. Fee: $15 for up to 5 slides. Awards. Send self-addressed, stamped en­velope to: Nancy Press, Maryland Crafts Council Biennial, 6206 Lincoln Ave., Baltimore 21209; or call: (301) 358-7743.August 13 entry deadline

Guilford, Connecticut “Black & White” (Octo­ber 6-26) is juried from 3 to 5 slides. Fee: $10. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Black & White, Guilford Handcrafts, Box 221, 411 Church Street, Guilford 06437; or call: (203) 453- 5947.August 14 entry deadline

Taft, California “Vessels Aesthetic ’85” (Oc­tober 26-November 27) is juried from slides. Ju­rors: Kathy Gruzdas, Bob Kizziar and Ron Mitch­ell. Fee: $9.50 per entry. Contact: Jack Mettier, Taft College, 29 Emmons Park Dr., Taft 93268; or call: (805) 763-4282, ext. 284.August 19 entry deadline

Mesa, Arizona “Masks” (October 25-Novem- ber 20) is juried from slides. Awards. Contact: Galeria Mesa, Box 1466, Mesa 85201; or call: (602) 834-2242.

Regional ExhibitionsMay 11 entry deadline

Kingston, Rhode Island “Earthworks ’85” (May 17-31) is open to current and former residents of Rhode Island. Juried from works. Juror: Angela Fina. Awards. Fee: $5 per entry. Contact: Earth­works, Helme House, Rte. 138, Kingston 02881; or call: (401) 783-2195.June 15 entry deadline

Ithaca, New York “Multi-Media/Animal Im­agery” (July 19-August 24) is open to residents of Connecticut, Washington, D.C., Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hamp­shire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont. Juried from up to 3 slides. Awards. Fee: $10. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: The Gallery at 15 Steps, 407 W. Sen­eca, Ithaca 14850; or call: (607) 272-4902. August 3 entry deadline

Ithaca, New York “Multi Media/Lidded Con­tainers” (September 6-October 12) is open to res­idents of Connecticut, Washington, D.C., Dela­ware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylva­nia, Rhode Island and Vermont. Juried from up to 3 slides. Awards. Fee: $10. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: The Gallery at 15 Steps, 407 W. Seneca, Ithaca 14850; or call: (607) 272-4902.

Fairs, Festivals and SalesMay 15 entry deadline

Canon City, Colorado “Art on the Arkansas” (June 29-30) is juried from 5 slides. Fee: $40 for a 1 Ox 20-foot space. Contact: Canon City Fine Arts Association, Box 1006, Canon City 81212; or call: (303) 275-2790.

West Lafayette, Indiana “Lafayesta 1985” (August 31-September 1) is juried from 4 slides. Awards. Fee: $35 for a 12x12-foot space. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Sue Paschke, Greater Lafayette Museum of Art, 101 S. Ninth St., Lafayette 47901.

West Orange, New Jersey “June Days Folk Festival of Crafts and Music” (June 22-23) is

juried from 5 slides. Fee: $65 for a 7x 12-foot space. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Rose Squared Productions, 12 Galaxy Ct., Belle Mead, New Jersey 08502; or call: (201) 874-5247.

Marietta, Ohio The 26th annual “Indian Summer Arts and Crafts Festival” (September 20-22) is juried from 5 slides. Contact: Indian Summer Festival, Box 266, Marietta 45750; or call: (614) 373-8027.

Greensburg, Pennsylvania “Westmoreland Arts and Heritage Festival” (July 4-7) is juried from4 slides. Booth fee: $65. No commission. Send self- addressed, stamped business envelope to: Olga Gera, Box 21C, R.D. 8, Greensburg 15601.May 24 entry deadline

Clinton, New Jersey “Hunterdon Art Center 5th Annual Craft Fair” (September 27-29) is ju­ried from 5 slides. Jurors: Patricia Malarcher and Peg McAulay Byrd. Contact: Hunterdon Art Cen­ter, Old Stone Mill, 7 Center St., Clinton 08809; or call: (201) 735-8415.May 29 entry deadline

La Crosse, Wisconsin “ 10th Annual Great River Traditional Music and Crafts Festival” (August 31-September 1) is juried from 4 slides. Awards. Entry fee: $5. Booth fee: $30. For further infor­mation contact: Crafts Committee, Pump House, 119 King St., La Crosse 54601.June 1 entry deadline

Sapphire, North Carolina “High Country Art & Craft Show” (June 28-30) is juried from slides or photos. Fee: $70. Send self-addressed, stamped business envelope to: Virginia Smith, High Coun­try Crafters, 29 Haywood St., Asheville, North Carolina 28801; or call: (704) 254-0070.

Lynchburg, Virginia “Handcrafts 1985” (Oc­tober 25-27) is juried from 3 slides. Entry fee: $5. Booth fees: $75-$ 190. Contact: Lynchburg Fine Arts Center, 1815 Thomson Dr., Lynchburg 24501; or call: (804) 846-8451.

Richmond, Virginia Tenth annual “Rich­mond Craft Fair” (November 8-10) is juried from5 slides. $6000 in awards. Fee: $10. Contact: Ann Vazquez, Hand Workshop, 1001 E. Clay St., Richmond 23219; or call: (804) 649-0674.June 7 entry deadline

Bloomington, Indiana Ninth annual “4th Street Festival of the Arts and Crafts” (August 31- Sep­tember 1) is juried from 4 slides. Awards. Fee: $55. For further information contact: 4th Street Festival Committee, Box 1257, Bloomington 47402; or call: (812) 332-9004.

Fort Wayne, Indiana “Three Rivers Festival Arts & Crafts Show” (July 13-14) is juried from 5 slides. Fee: $25. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Abby Brooks, 3525 W. Wayne, Fort Wayne 46807.June 10 entry deadline

Scaly Moutain, North Carolina “A High Coun­try Art & Craft Show” (July 4-7) is juried from slides or photos. Fee: $70. For further information contact: Virginia Smith, High Country Crafters, 29 Haywood St., Asheville, North Carolina 28801; or call: (704) 254-0070.June 14 entry deadline

Manteo, North Carolina Fourth annual “New World Festival of the Arts” (August 14-15) is ju­ried from 4 slides. Awards. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: New World Festival of the Arts, Box 265, Manteo 27954.June 15 entry deadline

Sapphire, North Carolina “A High Country Art & Craft Show” (July 19-21) is juried from slides or photos. Fee: $70. For further information contact: Virginia Smith, High Country Crafters, 29 Haywood St., Asheville, North Carolina 28801; or call: (704) 254-0070.

Chatham, Pennsylvania Second annual “South- Please Turn to Page 55

May 1985 9

10 Ceramics Monthly

Suggestionsfrom our readers

Print Shop PotpourriAs computer technology revolutionizes the printing industry, var­

ious machines and tools adaptable to clay work are becoming avail­able at reasonable or scrap costs. Old print shops sometimes have studio scales (once used for weighing lead), an assortment of hand

rollers and calipers, as well as type and borders suitable for stamping tools. Tables with granite slab tops, originally used for mixing ink, are excellent for clay or plaster work. Hand-operated proof presses can be adapted for use as slab rollers. Rubber blankets from offset presses make good wedging surfaces. A wooden cabinet used to store trays of type is a ready-made drying rack; a sheet of plastic stapled over the front converts it to a damp box.

—Robert Hudovernik, Cascade, Wis.Easy Salting

If you don’t have salt ports in your kiln and have to salt through the burner ports, use a bent piece of 1-inch electrical conduit as a blow tube. You can load the tube with a funnel, then blow salt into the kiln. We use granulated rock salt or table salt.

— Tony Kukich, Duluth, Minn.Quick Mold

For an easy, inexpensive drape mold that is compatible for wheel use, fill a large balloon with potter’s plaster. Leaving the nipple on

Cheap HeatWhen we set up our studio/shop in November 1983, we rented

a section of an old barn which suited our purposes then and now. Because we heat the studio with wood, this presented the question of what to do with clay, unfinished work, glazes, etc., during our cold New England nights. We solved the problem by getting a couple of refrigerators from the local dump and connecting a 40-watt light- bulb inside each on a timer. The timer turns on the bulbs about 8 P.M. every night, keeping the temperature inside the refrigerators a constant 45°F. —Mary K. Spencer, North Windham, Conn.The Studio Playground

Create a “play space” at your studio for visiting customers’ chil­dren. A few miniature cars and trucks, some dolls and blocks, and an outdoor swing can go a long way toward protecting your work and doing away with frantic parents. In a collective studio, this could save a partnership and it is good public relations with patrons.

—Ron Deaver, Berea, Ky.Perfect Element Winding

For those of us who save over 50% of the cost of electric elements by “rolling our own” 16-gauge Kanthal A-l wire, try winding it

the bottom, place the filled balloon on a bat surfaced with a raised or recessed pattern. When the plaster is half set up, remove the balloon and use a trimming tool to round the form more precisely.

—James W Jahoda, Bemidji, Minn.Die Tip

When making extruder dies from plastic material, lubricate the saw blade with paraffin. The blades won’t stick and will give a cleaner cut. —Jack Fleenor, Franklin, N.C.

Glaze SaverA large container (such as a 30-gallon plastic garbage can) filled

with water can be left near the glazing area for washing brushes, hands, containers, sieves—anything that comes in contact with glaze materials and needs washing. The materials will settle out and can be used as scrap glaze or flux in clay bodies. In a school studio where I have used this idea, two full garbage cans—60 gallons— of glaze materials annually were saved from clogging the drain and were utilized instead. That saved a minimum of $100 in glaze ma­terials each year. —Butch Holden, Bemidji, Minn.

Padded BatCover a bat with ½-inch-thick foam rubber to prevent hairline

cracks from forming on the rims of pots when trimming. This is especially good for bowls with thin, flared rims which get dry too quickly. The foam may be tacked underneath the bat or attached

to the entire surface with white glue. The bonus is that bowls and low pots can be trimmed without the use of clay wads when placed on this padded bat. Draw concentric circles on the foam with water­proof markers to facilitate centering for trimming.

—Roi M. Penton, Wilmington, N.C.Dollars for Your IdeasCeramics Monthly pays $10 for each suggestion published; submis­sions are welcome individually or in quantity. Include an illustration or photo to accompany your suggestion and we will pay $10 more if we use it. Send your ideas to CM, Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212. Sorry, but we can't acknowledge or return unused items.

over a 40-inch-long threaded lamp rod. The winds are neatly held by the threads and no gaps occur.

—James W. Ardis, Hemlock, Mich.

May 1985 11

12 Ceramics Monthly

QuestionsAnswered by the CM Technical Staff

Q I have been experimenting with two white glazes which look exactly the same in the studio. I use one of these in places where glaze running might be a problem on the exterior of forms, and the other more durable glaze in places where the object will be exposed to abrasion from knives, forks or mixing spoons. The other evening while visiting someone who had bought my dinnerware, I noticed the colors appeared relatively different under the incandescent il­lumination in their dining room. I would like these glazes to look alike in any kind of light, and it is a mystery why they look so dissimilar when the lighting source varies. Can you explain this? Any solutions?—W.O.

Metameric ceramic colors are those which vary depending on the type of illumination due to differences in their spectral reflectivity. Studio light having a color temperature of 5000°K (degrees Kelvin) is most likely to show these differences as opposed to ordinary incandescent or fluorescent lighting sources. 5000°K tubes which fit standard fluorescent lighting fixtures can be purchased from many graphic supply or printing supply houses, because such lights are a standard in these industries.

Depending on the severity of the problem, small amounts of commercial stains may alter the offending glaze sufficiently to cover the problem. However, often a color change cannot be successfully enacted in one lighting source without destroying the color match in another source. Consequently, limit pieces which must match to one glaze, working out problems of glaze flow and durability within the same formula. Adding alumina to your glaze will both make it more resistant to abrasion and will reduce glaze flowing at the same time. And all potters would be well advised to see their glaze colors in a variety of lighting sources, as there are often perceptual sur­prises between fluorescent, incandescent and daylight.Q I have been having trouble with crystals forming in my glaze during cold weather. They only happen when Tm less active in the studio and the glaze often sits for days without being used or stirred. Could you tell me what ingredient (s) is/are causing this and suggest a substitution? Or if no reformulation is possible, perhaps you know some other way to keep this from happening.

My glaze contains Gerstley borate, lithium carbonate, whiting, Custer feldspar, nepheline syenite, Edgar Plastic Kaolin, silica and Zircopax. Strangely enough, screening out these crystals hasn’t made any difference in the fired look of the glaze. How come?—G.G.

You’ve been finding the characteristic six-sided sodium silicate crystals in your glaze. Leaving the batch unstirred, particularly in cold weather, causes the crystals to come out of solution because the batch is supersaturated with both silica and sodium in their soluble forms. The reason the glaze seems unaffected is because sodium silicate steals from both the glass former and the flux section of the glaze, thus tending not to influence melt on many recipes. Heating the batch and restirring will cause the sodium silicate crys­tals to return to solution (you can heat just the strained crystals and water on a hot plate then pour this liquid back into the glaze batch). Substitution of a frit for the Gerstley borate and some of the silica should help lower soluble sodium content enough to reduce or pre­vent crystal formation. Try experimenting with substituting frits that resemble Gerstley borate: Ferro frit 3227, Pemco frit P878 (which contains zirconium—thus reduce the Zircopax somewhat) and Pemco frit P-1N72. Formulas for these were published in the article “Frit Formulas” which appeared in the May 1978 CM.Subscribers’ inquiries are welcome and those of general interest will be answered in this column. Due to volume, letters may not be answered personally. Send questions to: Technical Staff, Ceramics Monthly, Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212.

May 1985 13

Itineraryconferences, exhibitions, workshops, /tfzVi and other events to attend

Send announcements of conferences, exhibitions, workshops, juried fairs and other events at least two months before the month of opening to: The Editor, Ceramics Monthly, Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212; or call: (614) 488-8236. Add one month for listings in July and two months for those in August.

International ConferencesAustralia, Victoria, Melbourne May 13-18 “Tradition and Diversity,” fourth national ceramic conference, at Melbourne University, will offer panel discussions, workshops, exhibitions and so­cial activities. Topics will include: “Clay as Per­sonal Expression,” “Technology and Technique,” “Studio Management,” “Marketing,” “Design,” “Education,” “Where Have We Come From?” and “Where Are We Going?” For further information contact: Fourth National Ceramic Conference, Box 4829, Melbourne 3001, Victoria; or call: (03) 560- 1520.Canada, Ontario, Toronto October 17-20 The “Fourth International Ceramics Symposium” of the Institute for Ceramic History will include ex­hibitions, collectors’ preview, “Clay in the Win­dows,” an Ontario Potters Association auction, films and social gatherings. Guest speakers include: Madame Lucy Amyot, Garth Clark, Leopold Fou- lem, Ed Lebow, Daniel Mato and Susan Weschler. Featured artists include: Rudy Autio, Satoshi Sai- to, Louise Doucet Saito, Joe Fafard, Ken Price, George Jeanclos and Judith Moonelis. Plus a ju­ried competition of clay-related videos available internationally. Those interested in submitting en­tries should contact: Aleksandr Sorotschynski, Ce­ramic Department, Georgian College, 1 Georgian Dr., Barrie, Ontario L4M 3X9. Indicate format (VHS, Beta, ¾-inch, etc.), rental fee, availability (time required for shipping and return) and ship­ping costs. For further information about the sym­posium contact: Ann Mortimer or Margaret Mel- chiori-Malouf, The Fourth International Ceramics Symposium, 878 Yonge St., Third Floor, Toronto M4W 2J1; or call: (416) 968-0455.Indonesia, Jakarta August 20-24 “The Inter­national Crafts Conference and Exhibition,” in conjunction with the ninth “Asian Assembly for the World Crafts Council,” will focus on the de­velopment and strength of international coopera­tion; exchange of information on new technology; supervision and development of craftsmanship to­ward productivity, quality and marketing skills. Meetings will be conducted in English with Span­ish, French and Indonesian translation. Fees: $225 for members/nonmembers (until May 20; $275 after that date), and SI 50 for accompanying per­sons. For further information contact: The Inter­national Crafts Conference, c/o Dewan Kerajinan Nasional (DEKRANAS), The Indonesia Nation­al Craft Council, Jalan Gatot Subroto Kav. 52- 53, Jakarta, Selatan, Indonesia; or call: 515509, ext. 4063.Spain, Barcelona June 24-26 “Inter-Raku 85,” a session for the public, will include an auction of the works produced, exhibitions, videos and a catalog. For further information contact: Museu de Ceramica, Palau National de MonjuTc, 08004, Barcelona; or call: 325-32-44. Or: Cooperativa Coure, Carrer dels Sastres 11, Olot, (Girona); or call: 972-26-49-08.

ConferencesVirginia, Farmville June 27-29 The Ameri­can Craft Council “Southeast Region Summer Conference,” at Longwood College, will include workshops with Tom Turner and Harvey Sadow, plus panel discussions on business, publicity and promotion. For further information contact: Mark

Baldridge, Art Department, Longwood College, Farmville 23901.

Solo ExhibitionsCalifornia, Beverly Hills through May 10 Gene Kleinsmith, large wall platters and sculpture; at Gallery III West, 3000 Wilshire Blvd.Florida, Sarasota through May 17 Harvey Sa- dow, multiple-fired raku work; at Susan McLeod Gallery, 59 S. Boulevard of the Presidents, Saint Armands Circle.Idaho, Boise May 18-June 23 Suzanne Klotz- Reilly, sculpture; at Boise Gallery of Art, 670 Ju­lia Davis Dr.Illinois, Evanston May 24-July 7 Alexandra Kochman, sculpture; at Octagon Gallery, Evans­ton Art Center, 2603 Sheridan Rd.Illinois, Highland Park May 4-June 15 Ted Randall; at Martha Schneider Gallery, 2055 Green Bay Rd.Maine, Portland May 15-June 15 Kenneth Sedberry, slip-painted functional stoneware; at Maple Hill Gallery, 367 Fore St.May 20-June 30 Lynn Duryea, ceramics and collages; at Abacus/Handcrafters Gallery, 44 Ex­change St.Michigan, Detroit May 3-28 William Daley; at Pewabic Pottery, 10125 E. Jefferson. Michigan, Lansing May 1-31 Pam Timmons, pottery; at Lansing Art Gallery, 425 S. Grand Ave. Minnesota, Minneapolis May 13-24 Victoria D. Christen, sculpture; at Katherine E. Nash Gal­lery, West Bank Union, Willey Hall, University of Minnesota.New Jersey, Trenton through May 19 Barbara Schaff, “Reflections/Abstractions: Clay Work”; at the New Jersey State Museum, 205 W. State St. New Mexico, Albuquerque through May 31 Fred Wilson, large sculpture; at the Muddy Wheel Gallery, 4505-07 Fourth St., NW.New York, New York through May 9 Emily Gassenheimer, low-fire glazed figures. May 14- June 1 Andra Ellis, low-fire plates and sculp­ture; at Greenwich House Pottery, 16 Jones St. through May 25 An exhibition of objects de­signed by Finnish artist Tapio Wirkkala; at IBM Gallery, Madison Ave. and 56 St.May 2-June 2 Sabine Reuter, “Painting on Por­celain”; at Contemporary Porcelain, 105 Sullivan St., Soho.May 14-June 9 Philip Jameson, ceramic wall forms; at Convergence, 484 Broome St.May 16-June 8 Kazuko Matthews, raku mu­rals; at Elements Gallery, 90 Hudson St.New York, Utica through May 19 Vincent Clemente, wheel-thrown stoneware; at the Mun- son-Williams-Proctor Institute, 310 Genesee St. Ohio, Akron through June 16 Tim Mather, porcelain; at the Akron Art Museum, 70 E. Mar­ket St.Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh May 18-July 14 Sus- anne Stephenson, sculptural vessels; at Carnegie Institute, 4400 Forbes Ave.South Carolina, Columbia May 12-July 14 Maggie McMahon, wall forms; at the Columbia Museum, 1112 Bull St.Texas, Houston May 3-31 Martha Wilcox, “Please . . . Touch,” sculpture; at Archway Gal­lery, 2717 University.Utah, Saint George through June 12 Gene Kleinsmith, ceramic installation; at Gallery II West, 610 Industrial Rd.Group ExhibitionsArizona, Mesa May 2-25 Margaret Chipman and R. David Manje, “Elements and Images”; at Galeria Mesa, 155 N. Center.California, Fullerton May 11-31 “New Art—

Glass and Clay”; at Designs Recycled Art Gallery, 619 N. Harbor Blvd.California, Los Angeles through May 30 “Per­fumes & Paperweights 85” includes work by Wil­liam Crutchfield; at del Mano Gallery, 11981 San Vicente.through May 31 “Ban Chiang: Discovery of a Lost Bronze Age,” artifacts from 4000 to 200 B.C. found in Thailand, including pottery, ceramic fig­ures and rollers; at the Los Angeles County Mu­seum of Natural History, 900 Exposition Blvd. California, Sacramento May 7-June 8 A three- person exhibition including Robert Brubaker, an­imal/human figures; at Himovitz/Salomon Gal­lery, 1020 Tenth St.California, San Diego through May 5 “Tea Sets, Animal or Dinosaur”; at the Natural History Museum, El Prado and Village PL, Balboa Park. through October 3 “Jivaro: Expressions of Cul­tural Survival,” includes pottery from Peru and Ecuador; at the San Diego Museum of Man, 1350 El Prado, Balboa Park.California, San Francisco through May 25 Agroup exhibition including Michael Lambert; at Elaine Potter Gallery, 336 Hayes St. through June 25 “The Hundred Flowers: Bo­tanical Motifs in Chinese Art”; at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, Golden Gate Park. through November 30 “Meissen Porcelain and Its Influence on Continental Manufacture,” 18th- century works; at the California Palace of the Le­gion of Honor, Lincoln Park.California, Santa Cruz through May 5 “Wo- vens,” multimedia exhibition includes works by Marsha Blaker and Tom West; at Downey/Wheat Gallery, 107 Walnut Ave.California, Santa Monica through May 18 “San­ta Monica Clay Invitational,” works by 12 South­ern California ceramics professors; at Santa Mon­ica College Gallery, 1900 Pico Blvd.California, Walnut Creek through May 19 “Go­ing Public—Sculpture from Studio to Site,” works by 31 artists documenting the process of creating commissions for public sites, includes sculpture by Stephen de Staebler and John Toki; at Walnut Creek Civic Arts Gallery, 1641 Locust St. Colorado, Denver through May 5 “Mimbres Pottery: Ancient Art of the American Southwest”; at the Colorado Historical Society, 1300 Broadway Street.through May 11 A group exhibition including Dennis Smith, raku platters and porcelain covered jars. May 24-June 22 William Hayes, function­al work and mechanical clay sculpture; and Nick Latka, installation; at Cohen Gallery, 665 South Pearl Street.Connecticut, Bridgeport through May 19 “The Society of Connecticut Craftsmen 50th Annual Ju­ried Exhibition”; at the Museum of Art, Science and Industry, 4450 Park Ave.Connecticut, Greenwich May 8-June 15 “Art for Eating III”; at the Elements, 14 Liberty Way. Connecticut, Guilford May 5-25 “Patterns,” a juried multimedia show; at Guilford Handcraft Center, 411 Church St.Connecticut, Hartford through May 8 “Hart­ford/Handcraft Group Invitational Show”; at M.S. Gallery, 205-A Sisson Ave.D.C., Washington through August 4 “Ancient Art of the American Woodland Indians”; at the National Gallery of Art, Fourth Street at Consti­tution Avenue.May 2-August 18 “Architects’ Designs for the Tabletop”; at the Renwick Gallery, Pennsylvania Ave. and 17 St., NW.Florida, Coconut Grove through May 5 An­drea Gill, David Keator and Bruce Lenore, “Clay: Surface Decoration”; at Netsky Gallery, 3107 Grand Avenue.

Please Turn to Page 52May 1985 15

16 Ceramics Monthly

CommentBarium and Glaze Toxicity by Monona Rossol

POISONING from food eaten or drunk from lead- or cadmium-containing glaz­es has been known for over a hundred years. Potters and ceramists usually are aware of the dangers of these toxic met­als. However, there are other toxic met­als used as glaze ingredients which also may contaminate food.Barium-Containing Ceramic Glazes

For some time, COH (the Center for Occupational Hazards) has been inter­ested in possibly hazardous food con­tamination from pottery coated with barium-containing glazes. COH was concerned because barium is such a popular glaze ingredient, because so lit­tle was known about the acid and alkali resistance of barium glazes, and because so many convenient and unproved as­sumptions about barium glazes were ac­cepted by potters. For example, many potters commonly assume that only low- fire glazes (Cone 022 to 04) are capable of leaching. Middle range glazes (Cone 03 to 6) and high-fire glazes (Cone 7 and above) were assumed to be safe.

Our concern about barium glazes was increased when several individuals re­ported changes in the appearance of some barium glazes after contact with food (and one reported symptoms after eating from the ware). Two of these individ­uals were sufficiently interested to pay for laboratory leaching tests of their glazed wares (about $30 per sample). These tests indicated that barium was released from the glazes in amounts varying from0.1 to 4300 parts per million (ppm or micrograms per milliliter). However, it was difficult to say how hazardous these glazes might be because there is no fed­eral leaching standard for barium like there is for lead and cadmium.

Recently, some letters and announce­ments in Ceramics Monthly have added to the controversy. A news item in the May 1984 issue contained a warning about a possibly unsafe Alfred Univer­sity glaze recipe. It became clear that some expert opinions should be sought regarding the toxicity of soluble barium.

Estimates of Barium ToxicityDr. Woodhull Stopford, toxicologist

at Duke University and the consultant to the Arts and Crafts Materials Insti­

tute, was asked to consider the problem. He made estimates of the amounts of barium which could be lethal to a 20- kilogram (about 44-pound) child. In or­der to do this he made the assumption that barium leached from glazes would have a toxicity similar to that of barium chloride (a good assumption, since bar­ium leaching from a glaze would be in a soluble form which would be con­verted to barium chloride by hydrochlo­ric acid in the stomach). He also as­sumed that people and animals respond similarly to barium (also a very likely assumption).

With this in mind, Dr. Stopford es­timated that 800 ppm in food or drink from a barium-glazed item would be po­tentially lethal to a 44-pound child. In addition, daily doses of 160 ppm in­gested repeatedly over a month could be lethal and even daily doses of 80 ppm over five months or more could kill a child.

These predictions also indicate that although barium does not accumulate in the body like lead, the damage it does to the body will be cumulative. In ad­dition, this physical damage (that is, to the central nervous system) may be at­tributed to other causes since the barium cannot be found in tests. This point should be stressed because Ceramics Monthly printed advice from Alfred’s Dean Rich­ard Ott that “there appears to be little danger from long-time consumption of small quantities of barium because, un­like lead, it does not accumulate in one’s body.”

Other advice which should be ignored by potters includes a letter (September 1984 CM) from Maynard Bauleke, se­nior scientist, Kansas Geological Survey, describing a barium “test” done by soak­ing the glaze in acetic acid overnight, adding Epsom salts, and then looking for a white barium sulfate precipitate. This test is grossly insensitive and the amount of barium which would have to be present to be clearly seen would be well above that which would be safe to ingest.

Barium Leaching TestsThere are standard United States Food

and Drug Administration (FDA) testsContinued

May 1985 17

Commentfor lead and cadmium leaching. This same test could be used for other metals. Such tests were done on a few glazes for in­dividuals and on some Alfred University glazes. Although these data are very limited, some general observations can be made.

1. One Cone 8 glaze tested at 4300 ppm of barium. This level is clearly haz­ardous and the glaze’s firing tempera­ture indicates that we should not assume that medium- and high-fired wares are always safe.

2. The tested glazes whose formulas are known (the 4300 ppm testing glaze’s recipe is not known because it was for­mulated by a small local distributor of pottery supplies who would not release the recipe) are very similar to many commonly used barium glazes. One glaze which leached about 200 ppm of barium was made with about 20% barium car­bonate, indicating that excessive quan­tities of barium are not the cause of bar­ium leaching.

3. Some identical glazes fired at slightly different temperatures showed

very different results. Since kilns are no­torious for uneven firing temperatures, it is possible that many barium glazes are too temperature sensitive to use on food containers.

4. The leaching tests are done with dilute acetic acid, but it is very possible that barium glazes may be even more soluble in slightly alkaline conditions such as would result from contact with foods such as molasses, beans, most green veg­etables, potatoes and possibly milk.

5. The influence of temperature on glaze leaching should also be considered since many of these glazes are used for vegetable steamers, casseroles, flame- ware and the like.

Other Toxic Glaze IngredientsLeaching glazes slowly release all their

soluble ingredients into food (albeit sometimes at varying rates). Since glaz­es commonly contain many metals, we should be similarly concerned about other toxic glaze chemicals.

We should be especially concerned about toxic metal-containing glaze in­gredients used in significant amounts (15% and more) such as fluxes, includ­

ing compounds of barium, lithium and possibly boron. In addition, other metals could be hazardous in much smaller amounts including those which are highly toxic, sensitizing or cancer-causing such as antimony, chrome, nickel, uranium and vanadium.

Solutions to the Problem1. Standard-setting agencies should

begin investigating the problem of metal leaching from glazes. The American So­ciety for Testing and Materials, which has set standards for art and ceramics materials, has put this subject on their agenda for a May 2 meeting. Hopefully they will plan an organized approach to this problem. Research and standard de­velopment for leaching of metals other than lead and cadmium also should be undertaken by the United States FDA and by the Product Safety Branch of Consumer and Corporate Affairs Can­ada.

2. Until standards are set, schools and universities should develop their own testing programs. Such programs are necessary to protect students from pos­sibly hazardous products, to provide stu-

18 Ceramics Monthly

dents access to current technology, and to increase the amount of data to be con­sidered by standard-setting agencies. Many schools, like Alfred University, have chemistry departments equipped to do such testing. Other benefits might in­clude providing a thesis topic or project for some enterprising student or finding a less expensive test.

3. Until research and standard-set- ting are done, only glazes containing safe ingredients should be used on food con­tact surfaces. Ingredients considered safe might include dolomite, the feldspars, soda ash, whiting, clays, silica, alumina and magnesium carbonate. There are already many medium- and high-fire glaze recipes utilizing these ingredients exclusively and more could be devel­oped. If small amounts of boron-con- taining ingredients such as colemanite or Gerstley borate were added to the list, the firing range might be extended to include low-fire glazes.

Safe colorants and opacifiers for these glazes might include most iron com­pounds (not chromates), tin oxide, zir­con-containing compounds, zinc oxide, titanium dioxide and small amounts of cobalt and copper.

ConclusionAs a potter myself for many years, I

cannot believe that we would knowingly continue to put our customers at even the slightest risk for the sake of aes­thetics, convenience, old habits, delib­erate ignorance, apathy or money. If any of these rationales are reasons to con­tinue using suspect glazes, we join the ranks of the polluters and despoilers in our society.

It may be years before all the research is done and the problem is completely understood. Opting to use these glazes during this time is exercising the same option used by many unscrupulous big businesses. Instead, we have it in our power to err on the side of caution and stop the suspect practice now. Then, no matter what the research ultimately shows, there can be no criticism of our ethics.

In the long run, this is probably a sound business decision as well, since the trust of our public is our most im­portant asset.The author Monona Rossol is presi­dent of the Center for Occupational Haz­ards and a contributing editor for Art Hazards News, New York City.

May 1985 19

20 Ceramics Monthly

Small Works InternationalThe FIRST “World Triennial Exhibi­tion of Small Ceramics” at the Zagreb (Yugoslavia) Museum and School of Arts and Crafts featured decorative vessels, abstract and figurative sculpture by 529 artists from 41 countries. Juried by Hedwig Dvorszky, Budapest art critic; Svetlana Isakovic, Belgrade Museum of Applied Arts curator; Zelimir Janes, Zagreb Academy of Fine Arts professor;

Paul J. Smith, director of the American Craft Museum in New York; and Carlo Zauli, Faenza ceramic artist, the com­petition was open to all types of clay- works, except those with unfired deco­ration, within a 6-inch size limitation. Each entrant submitted one work, made within the past three years.

The restriction limiting the size of submissions was to reduce production

and shipping costs, thus permitting art­ists “from even the farthest parts of the world to participate.” Added to that was the artistic challenge of the small scale itself.

Paul Donhauser was the only prize­winner for the United States (he re­ceived an honorable mention); 20 other United States ceramists were accepted into the exhibition.

“Vase with Base” handbuilt from colored porcelain clays, by Sasha Kay Wardell, Worton, Devizes,

Wiltshire, England; grand prize winner.May 1985 21

“Fragment of a Pot,” pierced and incised porcelain, unglazed, by Horst Gobbels, East Germany; purchase award.

“Porcelain Cube/3 handbuilt, impressed, pierced with a bullet, by Imre Schrammel, Hungary; medal winner.

“Codex,” slab formed, with slips, metallic luster, by Pompeo Pianezzola, Italy; medal winner.22 CERAMICS MONTHLY

“Garbage Can No. 3 t h r o w n and handbuilt, by Jose Ramon Gonzalez Delgado, Cuba; medal winner.

Earthenware of Java by Phillip Gearheart

The potters of central Java, an area roughly the size of New Hampshire and Vermont combined, produce functional earthenware, fired under primitive con­ditions. While the number of forms made is not large, details such as simple in­cising or burnishing vary in style from village to village.

Within 20 miles of Yogyakarta—the city associated with the great temple complexes of Borobudur and Pramban- an, as well as the center for dance, music and the batik and silver crafts—are three of these small pottery villages: Kason- gen, Pedes and Tembayat. To visit them, it is best to leave Yogyakarta at 4:30 A.M., thus avoiding the stifling heat of the equatorial day. The country roads through endless sugar cane, coconut palm and rice fields steadily diminish in width and quality, while water buffalo, pe­destrian, horse cart, pedicab and bicycle traffic increases. Always largely in view, the volcano Merapi (30 miles away) smokes and rumbles.

The potters of all three villages lead similar lives; as devout citizens of a

Muslim country, they start the day with prayers at approximately 5 A.M. After a scant rice breakfast, they begin work, trying to compensate for the long and unavoidable midday break.

Each village has a mosque, which is its spiritual center, but there is no phys­ical center and no discernible organi­zation. Workshops, areas for drying and firing pots, gardens and houses, all flow into one another at rare angles. There are no fences, walls or visible boundary lines. Countless chickens and children, moving at dizzying speeds, further com­plicate the sense of territory.

Houses and workshops are built in the same fashion, of the same basic ma­terials: wall and roof supports are bam­boo poles; roofs are palm thatch (locally made clay tile or corrugated iron on ex­pensive houses); walls are thin mats, up to 2 yards square, woven from split bam­boo or palm fronds, that let in air, let out moisture and deter some of the in­sects. Because these are also products of village artisans, they can sometimes be paid for in kind.

Prices are minimal for the usual earthenware items, including kendi (jars) for storing/pouring water and a variety of round-bottomed pots for cooking, pickling and rat-proof storage. The ma­jority of the production work is done by women and girls, using a paddle-and- anvil technique in combination with a hand-turned stone wheel. The men of Kasongen will model figures, but will not work with coiling techniques.

The sculptural production at Kason­gen presents a remarkable design story. The peasants began producing ceramics in the 19th century in reaction to Dutch colonial demands that they be occupied with agriculture. A defiant (and brave) headman imported a few potters from a nearby village, and turned Kasongen into a pottery center more or less overnight. After approximately a century of utili­tarian production, the first clay sculp­ture was made under the guidance of Saptohardoyo, a prominent artist with a desire to upgrade the incomes of In­donesia’s craftspeople. Prototypes for the Kasongen animal figures—bulls, cocks,

An earthenware vessel begins with fist- Unaged clay is applied from a foot-wedged Coils, added to the base, are smoothed aspounded clay on a stone wheel. mound near the potter’s wheel. the wheel is turned by hand.

May 1985 23

The majority of the production work is thrown by women and girls.

Paddle and anvil compress the slowly revolving coiled walls, reducing the need for water lubrication.

horses, birds, dogs and water dragons— are found in historical Javanese sculp­ture, but made in wood, metal or leather. Their existence in clay is a modern in­vention, only some 20 years old, though by their naturalness, they seem to have always existed in clay.

Foot-wedged into large mounds en­compassing nearly a cubic yard, the clay body is used immediately without aging; plasticity and sandiness vary a great deal. Work is generally done indoors, then carried outdoors to dry in neat rows on the ground. In the rainy season, it must often be hauled inside hurriedly. Raw pots and figures would be demolished if left out for more than 30 seconds in a tropical rain, but the potters seem to have a sixth sense about just when to bring ware indoors.

In Tembayat, the potter’s wheel slants away from the thrower (some in India, Africa and Egypt slant toward the thrower), and is powered by a rope-con­nected foot treadle. The bearing for both this wheel and the ubiquitous stone wheel

turned by hand is an iron or hardwood pin fitted into a stone block embedded in the ground. I have thrown with these latter wheels in villages in east Java, and they are remarkably stable; something of a gyroscopic effect takes hold, if you can build up enough speed by turning vigorously with the left hand.

There are three oil-fired kilns in Ka- songen, built in 1978 as part of a self- help program launched by Abdul Kadir, director of the Art Institute of Indonesia. These are slowly beginning to have an impact on firing quality, but most of the potters are so closely tied to tradition that they view this progress with skep­ticism, preferring to fire with palm fronds, coconut husks or casually acquired thin sticks of wood. These fuels are used to cover ware stacked on the ground, with losses of up to 20%.

Indonesia has never developed a tra­dition of high-fired ceramics. From early times, the Chinese bottled up the export trade so thoroughly that there was never a chance for an Indonesian potter to

compete with the fully developed, in­expensive Chinese alternative. And the local earthenware production essentially serves domestic markets; only Kasongen decorative forms are sold regularly in distant Jakarta, 300 miles away.

The difficulty of shipping the earth­enware forms is part of the reason for their minimal diffusion, but a simpler explanation is that there are other vil­lage potters 20 miles down the pike who have to eat and have for generations dominated their local markets. Thus, the indigenous forms stay primarily in the villages where they are made, with that stability and lack of change which can only exist in a land without a telephone and television in every potter’s home.The author Phillip Gearheart has maintained a studio in Polly-sur-Serein, France, was a guest lecturer at the Art Institute of Indonesia in Yogyakarta, fava, and recently was visiting professor of ce­ramics at The Ohio State University. Currently he is consulting in fava.

24 CERAMICS MONTHLY

In Tembayat, a wheel angled away from the potter and powered by a rope-connected treadle is used to throw water jars.

Left A slat of staked wood on the right side of the wheel acts as a spring to return the bamboo treadle (left of the wheel)

for each kick.Far left Taken apart, this wheel shows the “bearing” block, pin, wooden head and shaft construction.

May 1985 25

Above A lifetime of potting can be seen in the arms of this woman who wields a brick-sized wooden paddle with amazing control. Most of Java’s clay work is formed indoors, then carried outside and placed in neat rows on the ground to dry.Left A potter in Pedes deftly adds a rim coil to a medium-large cooking vessel.

26 Ceramics Monthly

Right Strongly tied to tradition, the men in Kasongen will model figures, but will not coil functional ware.Below Prototypes for Kasongen clay sculptures may be found far back in history, but only in other media. The first Javanese clay figures were produced in 1963, under the guidance of Saptohardoyo, a prominent Indonesian artist who wanted to upgrade the production and income of his country’s craftspeople.

May 1985 21

Photo

s: Subr

oto

Far left Potters in Kasongen prefer to fire ware stacked in the open.Left Palm fronds, coconut husks or casually acquired sticks are used for fuel.Below Higher earthenware temperatures may be reached in this Tembayat updraft kiln, which will be closed with shards and tiles placed on top of the tightly packed water jars.

28 CERAMICS MONTHLY

Roger Honey by Timathea Shays

Flecks of gold, rust and green spar­kle in the crevices of Roger Honey’s cur­rent works inspired by the limestone bluffs that rim the Mississippi River in southern Illinois where he has lived the past four years. Sometimes brilliant, sometimes subdued, these colors appear as natural on his earthenware and stone­ware forms as do the grasses, wildflow- ers and mica chips on the bluffs. “I’ve been striving to absorb the Mississippi environment, the colors, shapes, textures and majesty of the bluffs and flood plain,” Roger explains.

Previously immersed in the urban areas surrounding London, Roger came to this rural locale to direct the newly formed ceramics department at Principia Col­lege in Elsah, Illinois. He had studied sculpture for his B.A. and in 1974 had received an M.A. in ceramics and glass from the Royal College of Art in Lon­don. During this time he became inter­ested in industrial techniques, and now

slip casting and press molding are the major methods he uses in the construc­tion of his semifunctional forms.

Each vessel is a conglomerate, com­bining aspects of nature with unexpect­ed twists of synthetic industrialism. For example, some are tall and slender, re­flecting the height of the limestone bluffs; while the handles and spouts are defi­nitely “artificial,” leaving no doubt as to their fabrication. Smooth and precisely balanced (exactly what would be ex­pected on mass-produced china), these cast appendages are contrasted by rough- textured surfaces resembling wood, slate and rock.

When Roger began building with cast earthenware and stoneware slabs, he found that they allowed a certain degree of free experimentation. “I enjoy deci­sion making when it becomes sponta­neous,” he observes.

As a prelude to these works, Roger sketches an idea, then constructs a small

version. Next he draws a larger form to scale. This is the point, he says, when “the slabs mold themselves; they have a very immediate way of working.” Throughout construction, textures in­cluding incised lines and press-molded shapes are chosen to meet specific visual needs.

Roger’s decision making extends even to the type of clay used, which helps create the mood of the work. Earthen­ware allows a brash feeling with bright colors and lusters; stoneware evokes a quieter mood with subdued and soft colors. Mostly, however, Roger prefers to work with abstract designs in the low- fire range—with splashing bright colors, oxide and underglaze shadows, as well as glints of enamels and lusters. He feels that the greatest challenges have been in finding the right balance between idea and technique so that the finished form portrays as closely as possible the expression desired.

Mississippi-bluffs-inspired pitcher forms,14 to 16 inches in height, constructed from cast slabs, brushed with oxides, underglazes, enamels and lusters.

May 1985 29

Cone 6 Reduction Glazes by Gerald Rowan

In years of studio production and class­room usage, the Cone 6 reduction glazes listed in this article have proved reliable and consistent. Typically they are ap­plied to ware made from the following clay body:

Jordan Clay Body(Cone 6-9, reduction)

Kona F-4 Feldspar........................... 10%A.P. Green Fireclay......................... 10Jordan Clay...................................... 50Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4). . . 20Flint.................................................. 10

100%Add: Barnard Slip Clay .................. 2%

Fine Grog............................... 5-10%Since the firing itself strongly influ­

ences reduction glaze color and surface texture, it may prove helpful to know the firing procedure as well. A 40-cubic- foot updraft kiln is loaded one day and fired the next. Stacked with the ware are two sets of pyrometric cones. One set (Cones 014, 07 and 06) assist in deter­mining when to begin clay body reduc­tion. The other (Cones 5, 6 and 7) is for glaze maturation and reduction. Both sets of cones are positioned about mid­point in the load and are visible through the same peephole. Because the cones cannot indicate the rate of temperature rise, the kiln is also equipped with a pyrometer.

Overnight, the kiln is left with pilot burners lit and damper wide open to dry the ware. The next morning, the firing proceeds in the following manner: An oxidation fire until Cone 014 is reached. A neutral flame from Cone 014 to Cone 07. When Cone 06 is down, the kiln is strongly reduced 35-40 minutes for clay body color and iron spots. At the end of body reduction, the kiln is returned to a neutral atmosphere and held there until Cone 5 slumps. At Cone 6, the kiln is strongly reduced 45-50 minutes for glaze color and texture. Then the kiln is again returned to a neutral atmosphere and “soaked” about an hour to allow tem­peratures to even up throughout the chamber. Firing ends with a short period of strong oxidation (about ten minutes) to “clean” the kiln. This brightens many glaze colors, especially iron reds, which

need a period of reoxidation to produce brilliant colors. Unfortunately, this reoxidation also tends to wash out cop­per reds. This updraft kiln never strikes a happy medium between good iron reds and copper reds in the same load.

After the gas is shut off, the damper is closed and burner ports are plugged with scraps of ceramic wool refractory blanket. The kiln is then allowed to cool at least 36 hours before it is opened and unloaded.

This eight-to-nine-hour firing sched­ule produces good results with the fol­lowing recipes:

Studio Turquoise Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Dolomite........................................ 19.4%Whiting.......................................... 3.0Nepheline Syenite.......................... 35.0Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4) . . 23.6Flint ............................................... 19.0

100.0%Add: Chrome Oxide....................... 2.0%

Cobalt Carbonate.................. 1.0%Matt Glaze 1

(Cone 6, reduction)Dolomite........................................ 23.8%Whiting.......................................... 4.8Custer Feldspar ............................. 23.8Nepheline Syenite.......................... 23.8Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4) . . 23.8

100.0%

For a light lavender variation, add 1% cobalt carbonate; for light olive green, add 1.5% cobalt carbonate.

Matt Glaze 2(Cone 6, reduction)

Dolomite...................................... 21.00%Gerstley Borate............................ 5.25Custer Feldspar ........................... 15.75Nepheline Syenite........................ 26.50Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4). . 21.00 Flint ............................................. 10.50

100.00%

Color variations are possible with the following additions:5% Zircopax.................................... White1% Cobalt Oxide..............Medium Blue3% Red Iron Oxide...............................Tan2% Yellow Ocher....................Light Tan

Shino Translucent Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Gerstley Borate.................................. 5%Soda Ash............................................ 4

Spodumene (chemical grade).... 22Nepheline Syenite.............................. 54

Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4 ) . . . . 15100%

This recipe yields particularly pleasing results when applied over iron oxide washes.

Spodumene Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Dolomite ........................................... 24%Gerstley Borate.................................. 4

Spodumene (chemical grade).... 30Custer Feldspar.................................. 21Georgia Kaolin.................................. 9Flint.................................................... 12

100%

For a white variation, add 5% tin oxide; for yellow, add 10% yellow stain.

Blue-Green Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Magnesium Carbonate....................... 3%Spodumene (chemical grade).... 53 Talc.................................................... 44

100%Add: Tin Oxide.................................. 2%

Chrome Oxide.......................... 1%Cobalt Carbonate..................... 1%Bentonite.................................. 3%

A light blue-green is achieved with the addition of 4% tin oxide, 1 % chrome ox­ide and 0.75% cobalt carbonate.

Copper Red Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Dolomite......................................... 9.7%Custer Feldspar ............................. 58.5Frit 90 (Hommel)........................... 12.0Flint ............................................... 19.8

100.0%Add: Tin Oxide.............................. 1.0%

Zinc Oxide............................ 4.0%Copper Carbonate................. 0.5%Manganese Dioxide.............. 0.1%Bentonite .............................. 3.0%

Ferro frit 3124 may be substituted di­rectly for Hommel frit 90.

30 Ceramics Monthly

Matt Blue-Green Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Dolomite ........................................... 25%Custer Feldspar................................. 25Nepheline Syenite............................. 25

Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4). . . . 25100%

Add: Chrome Oxide.......................... 2%Cobalt Carbonate..................... 1%

Iron oxide as a colorant produces tans, browns and reds when fired in oxidation or when oxidized at the end of a reduc­tion firing; when used in small per­centages in the right base glaze, iron oxide can yield grays, blues and greens in reduction. Iron reds, greens and me­tallic lusters result from larger amounts added to glazes.

Albany Slip Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Whiting.......................................... 11.0%Custer Feldspar ............................. 29.7Albany Slip Clay........................ 49.4Flint ............................................... 9.9

100.0%Add: Zinc Oxide............................ 9.9%

Red Iron Oxide..................... 1.1%Albany Temmoku Glaze

(Cone 6, reduction)Wood Ash (unwashed)....................... 16%Albany Slip Clay............................ 84

100%Add: Red Iron Oxide ................................... 3%

Red-Brown Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Whiting.......................................... 20.3%Custer Feldspar ............................. 52.7Georgia Kaolin............................... 11.4Flint ............................................... 15.6

100.0%Add: Zinc Oxide............................ 4.2%

Red Iron Oxide..................... 11.1%Gray Celadon Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Kona F-4 Feldspar......................... 37.5%Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4) . . 28.4 Wollastonite................................... 34.1

100.0%Add: Zinc Oxide............................ 13.6%

Red Iron Oxide..................... 1.1%

Albany Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Spodumene (chemical grade) . . 21.0%Whiting.......................................... 6.0Albany Slip Clay............................ 73.0

100.0%Add: Red Iron Oxide...................... 4.4%

Albany Red Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Gerstley Borate............................... 27.0%Albany Slip Clay............................ 73.0

100.0%Add: Red Iron Oxide.................................... 4.8%

Kaki Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Barium Carbonate........................................ 6.4%Gerstley Borate.............................. 16.1Nepheline Syenite.......................... 32.3Georgia Kaolin............................... 19.4Flint ............................................... 25.8

100.0%Add: Zinc Oxide........................................... 7.5%

Red Iron Oxide................................... 6.4%Foggy Celadon Glaze

(Cone 6, reduction)Whiting......................................................... 9.8%Volcanic Ash................................... 90.2%

100.0%Add: Zinc Oxide........................................... 9.3%(Small amounts of iron oxide are pres­ent in volcanic ash.)

Green Matt Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Dolomite........................................ 4.3%Whiting.......................................... 11.0Cornwall Stone.............................. 46.0Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4) . . 12.0 Flint ............................................... 26.7

100.0%Add: Red Iron Oxide............... 9.0%

Iron Red Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Bone Ash....................................... 10.0%Talc................................................ 5.0Whiting.......................................... 15.1Nepheline Syenite.......................... 49.9Georgia Kaolin............................... 20.0

100.0%Add: Red Iron Oxide.............. 3.9%

Metallic Iron Red Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Gerstley Borate.............................. 5.3%Soda Ash........................................ 3.2

Spodumene (chemical grade) . . 22.8Nepheline Syenite.......................... 54.0

Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4) . . 14.7100.0%

Add: Red Iron Oxide..................... 3.4%Iron Red-to-Green Glaze

(Cone 6, reduction)Bone Ash....................................... 4.0%Talc................................................ 3.2Whiting.......................................... 19.0Custer Feldspar ............................... 47.3Frit 25 (Pemco) ........................................ 4.5Georgia Kaolin................................ 22.0

100.0%Add: Red Iron Oxide................................ 3.9%

Temmoku Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Dolomite......................................... 11.7%Wood Ash (unwashed).................... 17.0Custer Feldspar ............................... 23.0Kentucky Ball Clay (OM 4) . . 5.6Flint ................................................ 42.7

100.0%Add: Red Iron Oxide................... 11.0%

Silk and Satin Celadon Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Whiting............................................ 16.1%Custer Feldspar ............................... 48.3Georgia Kaolin.......................................... 4.6Flint ................................................ 31.0

100.0%Add: Zinc Oxide........................... 14.9%

Red Iron Oxide................... 1.1%Saturated Iron Glaze(Cone 6, reduction)

Gerstley Borate............................ 43.50%Edgar Plastic Kaolin ................... 13.05Frit 3134 (Ferro).......................... 13.05Flint ............................................. 30.40

100.00%Add: Tin Oxide........................ 3.79%

Red Iron Oxide................. 9.10%The author A frequent contributor to Ceramics Monthly, Gerald Rowan re­sides in Harleysville, Pennsylvania.

May 1985 31

New Zealand Impressions

Part II

Part I of this two-part article appeared in last month’s issue.—Ed.L e a v i n g the Nelson area, I traveled to the lower tip of the North Island off the Marlborough Sound. Just inland in an area called Otaki I visited Mirek and Pamela Smisek. Mirek is considered one of the senior potters of the New Zealand group, having been involved in the field for over 30 years.

Not too far off a primary road in Otaki, their main studio building is a large shedlike structure with equipment and glazes and workspace spread out in an amazing, but obviously functional puz­zle of the users’ design. Mirek mixes the clay in an industrial-size ball mill, then pours the slurry into large canvas bags and hangs them from the studio eaves. Pressure from their suspended weight helps squeeze out water until the clay is ready to be wedged.

His kiln complex is something out of a potter’s happy dream—including two beehive kilns about 6 to 7 feet in di­ameter and height. Two large kilns feeding to a common chimney are at the center of the complex, and there is a box kiln for small-scale firing needs.

A spacious showroom is housed in a separate building, plus a huge, well- manicured garden is kept as a show- space; many of Mirek’s and Pamela’s salt-glazed works are displayed on rus­tic wood platforms throughout the gar­den. It was evident that they have a good deal of drop-in trade, though they do rely on sales in galleries in other areas of the country as well.

Mirek had spent some time in Japan and is a friend of the Kawai family as well as the Hamada family; he also has considerable background in discussions and work with Bernard Leach. To some extent, I felt a little closer to the roots I had as a young potter in the ’60s ad­

by John Glick

miring the works of Leach, Hamada and Kawai. In particular, concerning Ber­nard Leach, I had formed the not-too- surprising conclusion that many of his simple jug forms were derived from the medieval English jug. Mirek clearly agreed that Leach had very much ad­mired and used those models in his own work and as a guide for the form de­velopment by the people working in his pottery.

The Smiseks’ collection is a treasure trove of pots gathered over the years, including examples of work by Ha­mada, Leach and Takeichi Kawai, the son of Kanjiro. I certainly enjoyed the chance to commune with potters who had such an extensive background.

My home base for most of the wan­dering I did while on the North Island

“I spent the night in a railway Pullman car pulled off to one side of the studio

grounds, as had many visitors and apprentices

before mewas with Sally Vinson and her husband John Taylor. The Vinson Pottery is a good example of what I would call a suburban studio, as it is situated in Dev­on, a suburb of Auckland (the largest city on either island). Sally trained in England and emigrated to New Zea­land in the ’70s; her meticulous pottery is electric-fired domestic earthenware, with highly organized brushwork and attention to detail. John was formerly involved in computer work, but is now a full-time potter too. They work to­gether in an efficiently laid out studio of perhaps 300 square feet. They see

almost no visitors, preferring to rely on gallery and shop contacts to market their ware.

“You’ll have to visit Barry Brickell and Coromandel,” Sally said. “It’s a must. Besides being a genius and a marvelous potter and a conservationist, he’s a steam freak.” I thought, “That’s going to be great. I love saunas. What could be bet­ter than combining that with a visit to an interesting potter?” Well, that’s not quite how things turned out.

To reach Coromandel peninsula, one hops across the Firth of Thames in a Piper Cub. I get sweaty palms going up in a Ferris wheel and had to think about that for a while. But having been brave enough to fly 19 hours across the ocean, I thought, “Why not?” So through the Perspex screen of a small airplane I saw the choppy bay below, actually enjoying the 20-minute trip across to our landing in a pasture. As I stood next to a fence wondering where Barry Brickell might be, a dusty car whizzed down the road and pulled over. “Hello! Are you John Glick?”

In the gathering dusk we whizzed back down the rural roads until we turned up a steep incline to Driving Creek Pot­tery. In a way I was almost grateful that it was dusk because what I was about to see was so overwhelming that in the bright daylight I might not have been able to believe it. I spent the night in a railway Pullman car pulled off to one side of the studio grounds, as had many visitors and apprentices before me.

Situated on some 70 acres of forested, hilly land, Barry BrickelPs empire is anything but an exploitation concept. His devotion to the longterm conser­vation effort is the story of Driving Creek Pottery. Asked what the name derived from, Barry explained that in the 1800s this area was explored and exploited. Men from admiralty ships in the En-

32 Ceramics Monthly

Equipment, glazes and workspace spread in a functional puzzle at the Mirek and Pamela Smisek studio, Te Horo, Otaki, North Island, New Zealand.

Two downdraft, beehive kilns, approximately 7 feet in diameter, vent into a common chimney at the center of the Smisek Pottery kiln shed.

May 1985 33

Photo

s: Elain

e Com

er for

North

ern Ar

izona

Unive

rsity, J

ohn Gl

ick

Pots line display shelves and bases at the Ponsonby Potters’ Co-op, Auckland.

glish navy scoured the hillsides for trees to use as masts. More damage was done as people literally cleared the land to take timber for building materials to (of all places) San Francisco. Worse than that was the gold rush in the 1840s when the land was stripped to mine gold.

If there was a creek in the vicinity to be cleared, it was dammed until all the wood had been piled into the ravine leading down to the flatlands. Then the dam would be blown up and the force of the stored water rushing through the gap would carry (drive) all the wood down to the bay where it could be loaded onto ships.

That is the background of the scarred land that Barry inherited some ten years prior to my visit. What you must un­derstand as well is that Barry grew up with an absolute devotion to and love for the concept of wood burning, steam boilers, bricks and all the mechanical paraphernalia of railways, brickworks and kilns. Living in his youth near a brickworks and gasworks, he spent a lot of time probing their complexities. Now he has gathered an amazing array of equipment—for example, jaw crushers from the old mine sites nearby, a pug mill and the steam boiler which powers most of his machines—all so that he can process clay materials from the sur­rounding land.

The complex of sheds housing these machines also includes a machine shop in which he and several invited volun­teers come to rebuild and manufacture narrow-gauge railway equipment. Throughout his land he has built a net­work of narrow-gauge tracks, which is continually being expanded so that he can reach the remote areas for refores-

e(Raku Form 725,” approximately 12 inches in diameter; by Rick Rudd.

tation. He has learned to survey and clear the railhead himself, bringing back the wood for use in construction projects or firing his kilns.

The eventual goal of his conservation effort is that when the land is restored he will deed it to the native Maori tribes of New Zealand. This will be his mon­ument to the regeneration of a land that was taken by the white visitor who came to stay.

My thought during this visit was that there must be no time for anything but the projects that were so evident. But that’s not true. Barry is a keen organizer of his time. Over a seven-year period he has had a series of apprentices and assistants help build the many sheds,

extend the rail line and further his goals for the land. He does have time to make pottery as well.

Most of Barry’s works are large, coil- built vessels in which he integrates a machinelike aura, though they don’t ac­tually copy or mimic the various boilers, valves and pipes of his favored steam technology. All are executed in his own home-brewed, terra-cotta clays.

One of the more interesting features of his clay processing involves a huge drying platform made out of hardbrick

under which he builds a wood fire. As the heat is drawn to a chimney at the rear, the hardbrick platform warms up. He then pours in clay slurry, delivered in a large barrel on a rail car. In the course of a day or so that warm brick structure can dry a huge amount of clay, which is then pugged and ready for use.

The large, perhaps 100-cubic-foot, wood-burning kiln is shared by several other potters in the area who come and help Barry with various projects. I also saw another huge wood-burning kiln in progress. It has a complicated recircu­lation system to heat the air entering the kiln for combustion. Perhaps a third of the way completed then, it seemed to be a favored project, but still gets only a share of Barry’s time. Not far away sits a 30-cubic-foot kiln, his favorite in which to fire small-scale objects.

Lasting ImpressionsI’ve described an all-too-brief visit to

a country that I have called a land of potters. Although I did not travel ex­tensively, and two weeks is hardly time to do more than a superficial analysis of what is going on, I got a strong impression of how warmly the public regards the potters of New Zealand. Wherever I went (small villages, larger communities or the large cities such as Auckland) there were numerous galler­ies and shops prominently displaying pots.

I also visited perhaps six sales co­operatives (something that is not com­mon around my area in Michigan) run by the potters themselves, each sharing in the duties of selling and maintaining the facility. Membership ranged from half a dozen to as many as 20 potters.

34 CERAMICS MONTHLY

“The large, perhaps 100- cubic-foot, wood-burning kiln is shared by several

other potters in the area who come and help Barry with

various projects.33

Stoneware teapot, V/2 inches in height, thrown, faceted, salt glazed, by Renton Murray.

May 1985 35

Porcelain bottle, 8 inches in height, wheel thrown, by John Parker.

Platter; approximately 14 inches in width, handbuilt, by Lex Dawson.

An outstanding one in the vicinity of Auckland is called the Albany Village Co-op, a store of 500-600 square feet with an adjacent garden built by the members to display their planters. The interior is divided into an exhibition area with equal space given to a good selec­tion of the members’ works, and a slightly more populated area to show domestic wares—clusters of functional dinner- ware, mugs and so on. The whole aura of the place was cheerful; extremely well maintained and bright, it made you want to be there. And I’m sure that feeling is responsible for the success they’ve had in their public contact.

Too soon it was time to repack those huge traveling cases, now with New Zealand pots. On the plane back, just before landing in Hawaii for the cus­toms check, as I scrupulously filled out all the forms, I thought, “Maybe this is where I’m going to have that confes­sional I so feared on arrival in New Zealand.” Pushing a large cart with my ridiculous load of baggage, I was the last person to go through the customs inspection line. When asked what was in all those boxes, I said they contained my tools and pots I had brought back from New Zealand. The chief of the three dour-looking inspectors standing there said, “Well open ’em up.” So I undid the lid of a plywood carrying case with metal reinforcements all around it, opened some bubble packing and pulled out a complicated extrusion die. “What’s that?” he asked in a really kind of amazed and irritated tone. I said, “That’s an extrusion die.” He said, “What does it do?” By then his two fellow inspectors were also looking into this madness of

tools and bubble packing. I answered, “Well, it sits on the end of a big barrel and it’s held in place by a threaded cap and a big plunger pushes clay through it and it comes out the other end and you make pots out of it.” He looked at his friends and said, “Why would you want to do that?” To me he said, “Put it away. Close the case up. Have a good trip.”

Finally I want to put to rest the no­tion that potters in New Zealand are “15 years behind the potters in the United States.” The evolution of pottery expression there is certainly different than ours, but it’s due to a different cul­tural base. Much of what the pottery in New Zealand has become is due to its strong roots in the apprenticeship system of transmitting knowledge. It seems evident that there has been ample input from England and Japan as well.

As I reflect on the differences in how I perceive New Zealand potters and American potters, it’s possible to re­member the major points that contrast the two worlds. In New Zealand, with its much smaller population of some 3 million people, one is looking at a mi­crocosm of what goes on in a larger cul­tural base such as the United States. But it is important that such direct com­parisons not be made, since that would not be a fair or correct way to perceive their potting activities. What I did feel strongly there was a tremendous energy and enthusiasm for outreach, for shar­ing knowledge and for supporting the growth of the field as a whole through strong public contact, individual stu­dios, co-op galleries and exhibitions. It was a relief to experience a sense of

lightheartedness among the New Zea­land potters I met. Certainly the con­cerns we shared about integrity in our work, the nurturing of our families, the business of survival were almost taken for granted. But there was another feel­ing in the structural fabric of the pottery world there that I quite liked. It was a feeling of less pressure, of more whole­some basic ingredients, somehow a san­er priority.

In our American pottery scene we feel such extreme pressure to succeed, to be part of the bigger flow. It seems to be focused on potters through our abun­dant media with full-page color ads for exhibits, coast-to-coast marketing activ­ities, multimillion-dollar selling events and much more. Perhaps I stood for a while in New Zealand feeling as if I were looking back through the small end of a funnel tempered by time and dis­tance, and for a long moment wished that the kind of simplicity and yes, if I may say so, honesty of purpose I found in New Zealand was just a bit more evident here.

As members of an international pot­ting community, New Zealand potters owe apologies to no one. Their path is unique to their country, its heritage and values. No one who looks at the breadth of expression found in a cross section of New Zealand pots could come away thinking that inquisitiveness, vigor or enthusiasm are lacking. New Zealand potters have a great deal to share with other potters; they have a willingness to give of themselves; and I feel encour­aged in my own path from my exposure to their pots, to their values, their life­styles and their belief in themselves.

36 Ceramics Monthly

Notes from a New Zealand Potter

Compiled from comments by studio potter Brian Gartside, who resides in Ramarama, New Zealand.—Ed.H a n d m a d e p o t t e r y for eating, drinking, storing and cooking has been an integral part of New Zealand life for over 25 years. Visits by Leach, Ha- mada, Cardew and others gave encour­agement in the earlier years and much pioneer work was carried out in the areas of kilnbuilding, burner design, fuels and rock crushing for glazes.

The New Zealand coffee mug and casserole became a national institution. People liked to buy handmade pottery and in most homes there would be a pot of some kind. Craft shops and small gal­leries bought from potters and the whole scene continued to expand as the buying public demanded more.

In this encouraging manner a strong tradition of domestic craft ware was thoroughly established during the 1960s and 1970s. Innovative art work and clay ideas were rarely seen. People training themselves to be potters learned from friends and other potters. No university courses existed—only in later years have community colleges made some attempt to run full-time courses in pottery and crafts. What emerged was a distinct craft emphasis based on selling.

It’s hard to explain the different per­spective and sense of scale of being in New Zealand. In a country with only 3,000,000 inhabitants, there seems to be endless space. Most of the people con­gregate in Auckland (that takes care of

nearly a million) and it has its own ur­ban pottery scene. Ceramic suppliers import materials from all over the world. Kiln manufacturers supply electric and LPG kilns to the urban potter. Galler­ies, gift shops, novelties, knicknacks and weekend markets abound.

Elsewhere, with 20,000 people qual­ifying a town to become a city, every­body knows everybody. There are big green spaces between communities and the sea is everywhere. The two long, thin islands have big mountains, large rivers, forests, clay and natural mate­rials. Most potters are interested in growing things, feel strongly about the environment and support antinuclear thoughts.

The life-style is essentially rural. The kind climate (no harsh winters) means that outdoor and indoor space become the same.

A tradition of inventing, making gad­gets and doing the thing yourself means that many rural potters really do make from the ground up. It always costs too much to get someone else to do it and they are always too far away, so most potters develop ingenuity and inven­tiveness as a first technical requirement.

Outward looking, New Zealand pot­ters are avid readers, and obtain mag­azines and books from all over the world. A lot of knowledge is thus accumulated, and we are not averse to borrowing a

few ideas. Most people here travel over­seas (at least once) at some time in their lives, and the “big names” come to talk and demonstrate, so we’ve “seen them all” and are not necessarily impressed for very long.

A funny mixture of confidence and inferiority complex prevails. The re­sume is unheard of and quite unnec­essary to most people. Getting into a “glossy” or writing an article is also not the aim of many. (We don’t really have a glossy, only the black-and-white New Zealand Potter magazine.)

The potters have organized into clubs, societies and associations. There must be hundreds of these, holding meetings, teaching, inviting guest speakers, etc. These are then linked to the National Society of Potters, which coordinates ac­tivities like conferences, exhibitions and visits from overseas potters—all done with volunteer help.

Another example of “doing it your­self’ is the many selling cooperatives that now exist. The bulk of the work is still functional domestic ware. However, in the cities clay art works and more decorative pieces are being shown in the bigger art galleries, and people are just beginning to collect clay art. There is a residue of rigid “fine art” thinking in some city galleries, but many museums have big collections of studio pottery and decorative ceramics. That means one can see a much wider range of work than previously possible. “Promotion” and “marketing” are words we seem to have imported recently.

Raku-fired form, approximately 12 inches in diameter, wheel thrown, incised,

by Brian Gartside.

May 1985 37

Potters Making Prints by Robert Sperry

A recent project at the Sun Valley Center for the Arts in Idaho enabled six ceram­ists to work with printmaking facilities to explore new directions. During their residencies in the graphics studio, the six ceramists produced prints to be included in 50 limited-edition portfolios. Shown as part of a traveling exhibition, the $2500 portfolio consists of seven images (one each by fenny Lind, Kirk Mangus, fim Romberg, Richard Shaw and Robert Sperry, plus a diptych by Akio Taka- mori).—Ed.By working with a visual idea in a different medium, often the idea can take on aspects which were not evident at first.

Thirty years ago while I was a stu­dent at the Art Institute in Chicago, I took a summer class in etching and thor­oughly enjoyed the process, which I felt at the time bore many similarities to ce­ramics. I had just changed my major from

painting to ceramics, so the etching ex­perience was put behind me and never pursued again until this year when I was invited to participate in the “Potters and Prints” project at Sun Valley.

Among the many similarities between etching and ceramics is the idea of an intaglio surface which is carved, en­graved or etched. Just as one rubs ink into the etching plate and rubs off the surface, one can do the same with an oxide or stain on a clay surface which has been carved or scratched. In both media there is a lot of technology and process between the physical expression of the artist and the final product, be it a plate of clay or a print taken from a plate of copper. There is also a finality to the printing press which is similar to the finality of the kiln; but in both cases one can go back and rework the plate to add to or redefine the idea, then reprint or refire.

When I went to Sun Valley I was in the middle of working on the concept for an llx30-foot wall for the King County Administration Building in Se­attle. To develop the idea for the wall, I had been painting with black-and-white acrylics on Masonite. These paintings were quite detailed, for I had to work the large space in sections. I had to know exactly what was happening on each tile because I would not be able to see the whole ceramic piece together until it was fired.

Several weeks before going to Idaho, I had begun to do some ink drawings specifically for etching. These drawings grew out of the wall ideas, but began going a bit beyond; in fact, they even­tually took a different direction and broke out of the strong vertical, horizontal grid I had been working with. The final im­age on the etching plate was eventually used as part of the idea for the wall.

Jenny Lind, La Cienega, New Mexico.Below Porcelain fish platter, 18 inches in diameter.

Akio Takamori, Helena, Montana.Below "Female Figure,” 22 inches in height, handbuilt.

Richard Shaw, San Francisco.Below eFigure on a Palette,” 39 inches in height, cast and handbuilt.

Robert Sperry, Seattle. Below "Wall 625,” 30-foot-long ceramic mural at the King County Administration Building.

38 CERAMICS MONTHLY

Right “Untitled,” lithograph, 27 inches in width, by Jenny Lind.“The crossover [to printmaking] seems to have strengthened the direction my work was taking, and I feel it also has helped the spontaneity. I enjoy more immediate results from printing, and the process particularly appeals to me because it shares with potting the mystery and unknowing until the final pull or opening of the kiln.

Right “Untitled,”27 inches in length, serigraph, by Akio Takamori. “While working on silk-screen prints, I was made aware of the difference between a two- dimensional image on paper and the type of drawing which I do for ceramic pieces. For the print my concern was not only the main beast image but also for the surrounding negative space on the picture plane.When I work with clay my image is formed by the outer dimensions of the clay.*

May 1985 39

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Left “Untitled ,” 27 inches in length, serigraph, by Richard Shaw. “Someone asked how and why I went from 2-D painting and drawing into ceramics and sculpture. Well I never gave it much thought even back then. It wasn’t a decision of going from flat into round. To me it was whichever was the most exciting and had the most possibilities. Ceramics seemed to be wide open for ideas.”

Left “Untitled,” 21 inches in height, etching, by Robert Sperry. “The subtlety of the blacks, whites and grays of etching gave me a different perspective on my ideas for the large ceramic wall I have been working on. The idea used in the etching became an important element in the final concept for the wall. I have always worked with ideas back and forth between different media and feel it is an excellent way to expand visual ideas.”

40 CERAMICS MONTHLY

A View from Norway by Arne Ase

Wheel-thrown porcelain bowl, 4 inches in diameter, by Arne Ase. After forming and drying, parts of the bowl are painted with shellac, then a layer of clay washed off the pot by rubbing

with a sponge. After the work dries again, the process may be repeated until the bare clay that remains is extremely thin. The shellac burns off in the Cone 9 reduction firing, leaving a pot

with varying levels of translucency.

When asked what I do for a living, it is always a bit awkward to answer, be­cause I run my own studio in the out­skirts of Oslo as well as the ceramics department of the National College of Art and Design. One part functions as a basis for the other, keeping me profes­sionally, emotionally and intellectually active.

Norway has hardly any tradition at all when it comes to pottery. The first organized training in this craft started in 1937 and was aimed mainly at de­signers for industry. Ceramic production on a studio basis did not develop until the early 1960s. Being 44 years of age, I am actually one of the oldest potters in Norway.

At my first studio, I worked with stoneware within the Leach-Hamada tradition, and also made clay sculpture and architectural forms. Although I still construct some large-scale architectural works, I have been turning more and more to the earlier ceramic tradition, to

explore the possibilities that lie hidden here.

While wishing to know as much as possible about my craft, I am not willing to spend too much of my time perform­ing the apparently vast number of chem­ical tests necessary to achieve “guaran­teed results.” This is a familiar conflict shared by many artists. Some solve the problem by choosing simple methods that require little know-how, trying to con­vince their colleagues that all the fuss with colors and glazes is quite unnec­essary and concerns the art only to a small degree. Such an attitude will limit the possibilities of expression and in the long run prove destructive. But the same can easily happen with an excessive fo­cusing on the purely technological side of the craft.

As both the “escape” and the “exces­sive testing” approaches seem rather un­satisfactory, I have tried to consider the basis of the problem and view it from different angles. Most ceramists tend to

regard their materials purely from the chemical point of view. By comparison, painters are not usually particularly anxious to learn about the chemical composition of colors. Because of the characteristic features of ceramics and painting—ceramics being the more in­direct and technological of the two—there are of course certain differences. It is doubtful, however, that they need be as great as they are. We ought to get rid of this chemistry “complex” and try not to make things more important and complicated than they really are.

Of course certain technical conces­sions are necessary. Colors, for example, should not change or disappear; glazes should not flake from ware exposed to “reasonable strain,” and surfaces should not be toxic.

To me it is first and foremost a ques­tion of how to be able to spend as much time as possible on the creative part of the process. Out of the various tech­niques, all can be executed in a simpler

May 1985 41

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(or more complicated) way. For my part, given half the chance of ridding myself of some cumbersome method, like throwing logs into a kiln, I am more than eager to grasp it. I would much rather spend time painting or modeling, or for that matter reading a book. Art­ists, engineers and people in other ca­reers alike, should try to make use of the most advanced forms of technology available—as they did in ancient Egypt.

Until 1980 I used a gas kiln con­structed especially for my production, but have now switched to an electric kiln with gas reduction capability. The latter is a car kiln built with fiber insulation and Kanthal Super elements. Computer operated, it can be adjusted progres­sively by means of three thyristor units. Reduction is brought about by a built- in gas supply, using roughly 1¾ pints of gas per firing. Noiseless and almost nonpollutive, it consumes energy equiv­alent to 25% of a typical gas-operated kiln.

In my current work, decoration takes up much of my time. The expressive values of decoration in many ways are comparable to those of music, and brushes and glaze have the same inherent qual­ities as a musical instrument. I try to improvise new expression through var­iations around one basic idea, one theme.

The following recipes were developed to be used with copper underglaze painting:

White Glaze 9(Cone 8-9, reduction)

Whiting........................................ 9.79%Soda Feldspar.............................. 35.54Frit 3482 (Ferro).......................... 31.78Flint ............................................. 22.89

100.00%Add: Tin Oxide............................ 1.25%

Zinc Oxide......................... 12.64%

White Glaze 11(Cone 8-9, reduction)

Magnesium Carbonate................. 1.82%Whiting........................................ 9.44Soda Feldspar.............................. 33.68Frit 3482 (Ferro).......................... 30.83Flint ............................................. 24.23

100.00%Add: Tin Oxide............................ 1.25%

Zinc Oxide......................... 12.51%The copper-red crystalline recipes shown in the next two columns are a by-prod- uct of the project, made for fun:

Copper-Red Crystalline Glaze 1(Cone 8-9, reduction)

Barium Carbonate........................ 8.79%Bone Ash...................................... 5.40Colemanite................................... 4.80Tin Oxide..................................... 1.40Zinc Oxide.................................... 38.56Potash Feldspar ........................... 24.97Flint ............................................. 16.08

100.00%Add: Copper Oxide ..................... 1.00%

Copper-Red Crystalline Glaze 2(Cone 8-9, reduction)

Barium Carbonate........................ 9.47%Colemanite................................... 5.26Tin Oxide..................................... 2.10Zinc Oxide................................... 38.95Potash Feldspar............................ 27.38Flint ............................................. 16.84

100.00%Add: Copper Oxide ..................... 5.26%

Copper-Red Crystalline Glaze 3(Cone 8-9, reduction)

Barium Carbonate........................ 9.14%Colemanite................................... 5.08Lithium Carbonate....................... 2.03Tin Oxide..................................... 1.53Zinc Oxide................................... 39.59Potash Feldspar............................ 25.88Flint ............................................. 16.75

100.00%Add: Copper Oxide ..................... 1.53%

Single-fired porcelain bowl, approximately 6 inches in diameter, with brushed soluble colorants.

Porcelain vase, 9 inches in height, with brushed soluble colorants for a water-color effect.

42 CERAMICS MONTHLY

Arne Ase Brush-decorated vessel, 5 inches in diameter, thrown porcelain, single fired in reduction toCone 9, by Arne Ase. “Two or more brushes are always used, very often combining the stroke of a big, flat, stiff brush with that of a small, soft one. Find what a brush can do,

then take advantage of the possibilities. ”

Applied thinly to normally, these glazes are fired in saggars to Cone 9. Reduction starts at Cone 07 and continues up to Cone 9, then down to Cone 5.

The following copper-red recipes produce smaller crystals:

Copper-Red Crystalline Glaze 4(Cone 8-9, reduction)

Sodium Bicarbonate..................... 2.01%Whiting........................................ 12.56Tin Oxide..................................... 2.01Titanium Dioxide......................... 1.51Zinc Oxide................................... 12.56Potash Feldspar ........................... 69.35

100.00%Add: Copper Oxide ..................... 0.50%

Copper-Red Crystalline Glaze 5(Cone 8-9, reduction)

Lithium Carbonate....................... 7.03%Tin Oxide..................................... 3.52Whiting........................................ 13.56Frit 3482 (Ferro).......................... 12.06Kaolin........................................... 13.56Flint ............................................. 50.27

100.00%Add: Copper Oxide ..................... 0.52%

These last two glazes are fired in the same way as the previous three, but it

is not necessary to use a saggar. The melting point is rather low, and glaze application can be very thin.

Recently I started using water-solu- ble colorants on single-fired porcelain to bring about an effect similar to water colors. Wheel-thrown vessels are paint­ed with water-soluble metal combina­tions, applying one layer of color on top of another. As a rule, the lightest shade is brushed first, with others applied ac­cording to degree of darkness. This is not always necessary, however, as a light color may often “choke” a darker one. The pure white is the color of the clay itself, but lighter shades may also be ob­tained by applying a tin-chloride solu­tion on top of a color.

The specialized brushes used to apply these colorants each give a different stroke. Two or more brushes are always used to draw a pattern, very often com­bining the stroke of a big, flat, stiff brush with that of a small, soft one. The secret in brush painting is finding what a brush can do, then taking advantage of the pos­sibilities. It takes a lot of practice to make the brush run; it is very easy to “play” false, either with the tool or the colors. Brush strokes cannot be removed when applying soluble colorants, and the pot may have to be discarded if the painting

is not as successful as you would like.The composition problems of inlaying

colored clay also seem to have something in common with those of painting (and music), the only variance being that the instruments and consequently the pos­sibilities are different. To achieve a range of colors, varying percentages of chrome oxide, cobalt carbonate, copper carbon­ate, rutile or commercial stain are wedged into the same plastic porcelain used for thrown ware. Patterned blocks can then be composed of these colored clays joined with colored slip. Vessels built from slabs cut from these blocks are single fired without glaze to Cone 9.

As development within ceramics has become increasingly more international and trend oriented, I have tried to pick up the threads leading back to our cul­tural heritage. In painting forms with water-soluble colorants I have attempt­ed to work out some way of applying early European brush decoration in a more modern setting. If being “inter­national” means the following of trends that more or less dictate what to create and how to do it, then I’d rather not be international. As an artist, I consider the right to choose my own path as impor­tant a privilege as that of being allowed to make mistakes.

May 1985 43

Steven Forbes-deSoule“Distant PLANETS,” a series of thrown and altered pots by Steven Forbes- deSoule, Atlanta, were featured recently in a solo exhibition at the Maralyn Wil­son Gallery in Birmingham, Alabama. Shown together with baskets, platters and bowls, these “globe” forms, ranging to 16 inches in diameter, were thrown from a commercial raku body or white earthenware, manipulated, then pat­terned by airbrushing layers of com­mercial underglazes and wax resist. Liquid wax on the form, blown with compressed air, causes lines and stria- tions which resist the successive coats of underglaze.

After the bisque firing, additional colors along with wax resist, were applied in the same manner; some pots were fired once or twice again before a final raku or low-temperature glaze firing. “More color is added to give depth to the sur­face,” Steven explained.

The raku forms were then fired to 1800°F and allowed to cool in the kiln to approximately 1200°F before reduc­ing in sawdust or newsprint.

The white earthenware pots were sprayed with commercial clear glaze for a shiny surface or satin matt for a soft finish and fired to Cone 04 in oxidation.

In his work Steven is seeking “to achieve a balance between conscious control and the more subtle, unconscious or ‘universal’ forces that permeate our reality. I attempt to realize this balance by consciously releasing control over the forms as they progress to completion.

“Change and growth are also impor­tant aspects of my work. I believe that it should be fun to make pots, and that playfulness is a key to releasing creative potential. Exploring new forms and re­fining old ones, along with a ‘what if I try this’ attitude, keep the work moving, changing and consequently growing.”

Thrown and altered form from Distant Planet” series, 15 inches in diameter, with airbrushed underglazes, raku fired.Left Globe form, 15 inches in diameter, patterned by airbrushing layers of underglazes and blown wax resist.Right aDistant Planet,” 15 inches in diameter, thrown, manipulated, sprayed with underglazes through a wire mesh; liquid wax resist on the surface was repeatedly blown with compressed air to yield striation patterns resisting successive coats of underglazes.

44 Ceramics Monthly

Steven Forbes-deSoule

May 1985 45

Sally Bowen Prange

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“Edge-Scape Vesselsto 91A inches in height, rim-altered thrown porcelain, with silicon carbide slip under matt crystalline glazes.

THROWN at the wheel (sometimes in sections, then joined when leather hard), the newest forms in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, studio potter Sally Bowen Prange’s ongoing series of bowls and vases have emphasis on matt crystalline or “barnacle” surfaces. Her porcelain “Edge- Scape Vessels,” recently featured at Ol­son Larsen Galleries in Des Moines, were glazed with the following:

Matt Crystalline Glaze(Cone 8-11, reduction)

Barium Carbonate........................ 16.85%Rutile ........................................... 7.30Whiting......................................... 8.43Zinc Oxide................................... 15.17Kona F-4 Feldspar....................... 43.82Kaolin........................................... 8.43

100.00%

Pink blushing on many of the crys- talline-glazed vessels is from volatile copper carbonate. Copper-red-glazed and matt-crystalline-glazed wares are pur­posefully fired together so that “the vol­atile copper circulates about the kiln un- predictably, flashing other vessels,” Sally explained. “I can tell when the copper is volatilizing when green flames lick out of the peephole at about Cone 7 to Cone 11. ”

The copper red glaze is applied over a thin coating of celadon, transparent gloss or matt dolomite glaze. Or some­

times one of those is sprayed thinly over the copper red.

Copper Red Glaze(Cone 7-11, reduction)

Frit 3124 (Ferro).......................... 81.73%Tennessee Ball Clay.................... 8.17Flint ............................................. 10.10

100.00%Add: Tin Oxide............................ 8.17%

Copper Carbonate............. 3.00%Bentonite........................... 2.94%

Matt Black Glaze(Cone 8-11, reduction)

Whiting........................................ 21.67%Kona F-4 Feldspar....................... 51.70Calcined Kaolin........................... 18.58Kaolin.......................................... 8.05

100.00%Add: Cobalt Oxide....................... 4.00%

Copper Carbonate.............. 3.00%Manganese Dioxide . . . 6.00%Red Iron Oxide.................. 4.00%

Barnacle-like surfaces are achieved with silicon carbide in slip. “The glaze surface could be likened to lava, but I prefer the term barnacle glaze,” Sally remarked. “I have had some pictures of barnacles on undersea hulls hanging in my studio for years, long before exper­imenting with this surface. At first I put 6%—10% coarse-mesh silicon carbide in my dry-weight porcelain scraps. Previ­

ously I had worked with local reduction from silicon carbide in an electric kiln. Then, using reduction firing in a caten­ary downdraft, natural gas, forced-air kiln, I found that clay with silicon car­bide in it did not slump and that the silicon carbide bubbled through a glaze in various ways, depending on the glaze viscosity and the firing. But silicon car­bide is not good to get mixed with other chemicals or surfaces in the studio un­less you are going to use it in everything you do. For this reason, I decided to brush a thick coating of silicon carbide slip onto the bone-dry vessels. This works just as well as incorporating it in the clay body.”

Sometimes, if a matt crystalline result is not to her liking, Sally heats the fired form and sprays it with silicon carbide slip. Heated again, the form is then sprayed with another glaze. Then refir­ing yields subtle bubbling and/or color effects. She also finds this process works well with the matt black glaze under­neath, and the matt crystalline glaze sprayed overall.

“There are no rules when using sil­icon carbide,” Sally noted, “except that not much will happen without a glaze application over it. The more organic a vessel looks, the better I like it. Still, I often leave some small, amorphous areas on the vessel, without any silicon car­bide, with only a little glaze covering there to reveal the basic clay under­neath.”

46 CERAMICS MONTHLY

Art in Saskatchewan by Joan McNeil

“Making ART in Saskatchewan: Five Approaches,” a recent exhibition at the Neil Balkwill Civic Arts Centre in Re­gina, reflected the diversity of daywork within this western Canadian province. These five have in common beginnings with a clay tradition from which devel­oped committed artists, each exploring new ideas and refining old ones.

Bruce Anderson (Regina) believes “what artists have to offer, beyond their technical finesse, is their unique percep­tion, formed through exposure to people, events, places and things. An artist’s is­sues are therefore a function of time, place and experience. My figurative sculptures speak metaphorically about the society I am a part of.”

For the past two years, Franklyn Heisler (Regina) has been developing a series of clay, paint and wood works based on his understanding of popular culture. Some reflect experiences from growing up in rural Nova Scotia: he remembers seeing industrially reproduced artworks placed in homes to fulfill aesthetic needs, paralleling the role of the original works in museums and collections. But these

reproductions misrepresent the art they copy; the industrial object becomes a work of art itself and this identity creates a myth. Attempting to locate the common ground between the myths created around high art and those created in popular culture, Franklyn structures his work on “personal reflections idealized within an object. Issues, such as the use of cliche, value, judgment, misconception, art about art, art about the perception of art, are important to me in my work. The works are created out of questions about values as we see them, as others see them.”

Wall forms by Jack Sures (Regina) are “all about clay and its relationship to me. I’m all about my relationship to the world we live in; from the outside in, to the inside out.” Jack manages, however, to keep enough psychic dis­tance from the forms to prevent them from becoming mere expressionistic wanderings.

Randy Woolsey (Ruddell) began his ceramics career in Japan. After studying and working there nine years, he re­turned to rural Saskatchewan and es­tablished a studio with an Oriental wood-

burning multichambered kiln. He makes simple, classic shapes (bowls, plates, tea­pots, teabowls, pitchers). “My work has recently been moving in some unpre­dictable directions. However, I have usually felt best about attempting to combine direct space-filling forms with subtle surfaces.” He enjoys the firing rit­ual—the half-accidental, half-planned results that come with the salt-glazing and wood-firing processes.

Katherine Ylitalo (Regina) makes cy­lindrical bowls and vases from porcelain slabs with incised drawings, then accents the designs with polychrome overglazes. “Openness to chance and change can bring disaster or unexpected resolutions,” she remarked. “Making the most of these is more engaging than knowing exactly what I want and then getting it. When I start a piece I have a teenage infatuation for its potential. When I am done and the piece has survived technical/material shortcomings and my moods, it has be­come an old acquaintance.”The author Joan McNeil is a ceramic artist in Regina, Saskatchewan.

Jack Sures. “My work is all about clay and its relationship to me. I’m all about my relationship to the world we live in; from the outside in, to the inside out.”Right “Embryos ” 29 inches square, sawdust-fired clay, with acrylic and oil paints, by Jack Sures.

May 1985 47

Franklyn Heisler Randy Woolsey

“Disguised as a Flamingo,” 49 inches in height, clay, plaster, wood, paper, with paint, by Franklyn Heisler. “The works are created out of questions about values as we see them, as others see them ”

Stoneware teapot, 8 inches in height, salt glazed, wood fired, by Randy Woolsey. “My work has been moving in unpredictable directions. However, I have usually felt best about attempting to combine direct space-filling form with subtle surfaces.”

48 Ceramics Monthly

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Contemporary British Teapots

REPRESENTING a range of styles from the traditional to the abstract, approx­imately 50 teapots by 20 British potters were exhibited recently at Westminster Gallery in Boston. Interpretations of the teapot were handbuilt, slab built, wheel thrown and slip cast from porcelain, stoneware and earthenware. Surface variations included celadon, ash and salt glazes, as well as inlaid and onglaze dec­oration.Right “Luna C” teapot, 1V/2 inches in height, stoneware, slip cast in an edition of 50, by Marc Farrington.Below Porcelain teapot, 7½ inches in height, cast and assembled, with metallic luster decoration, by Mo Jupp.

May 1985 49

Above Porcelain teapots, to 6 inches in height, wheel thrown, with gold luster decoration over fired glaze, by Mary Rich.Left “Double-Lidded Porcelain Teapot 5½ inches in height, cast and handbuilt, incised lines filled with black slip, polished, fired unglazed, by Nick Homoky.Right Porcelain teapot, 9V2 inches in height, thrown, fluted, celadon glazed, by David Leach.

50 Ceramics Monthly

May 1985 51

Continued from Page 15

Florida, Orlando May 13-June 20 The “11th Annual Juried Competition: Small Works”; at Valencia Community College.Georgia, Atlanta through May 26 “Crossroads of the Ancient World: Israel’s Archaeological Her­itage,” 200 artifacts from recent excavations in the area surrounding the port of Haifa; at the High Museum of Art, 1280 Peachtree St., NE. through August 15 “Tangible Traditions: Folk Crafts of Georgia and Neighboring States”; at the Atlanta Historical Society, 3101 Andrew Dr., NW. Georgia, Gainesville through February 1, 1986 “Pieceworks,” national competition of work in­spired by quilts; at Georgia Mountain Crafts, 311 Green St., SE.Illinois, Chicago through May 17 “Feet of Clay” national juried show; at Lill Street Gallery, 1021 Lill St.through May 25 Arnold Zimmerman, 7- to 8- foot-high stoneware sculpture; Michael Gross, en­vironments; and Chris Gustin, Richard Hirsch and Neil Tetkowski, platters and vessels; at Objects Gallery, 341 W. Superior.through May 28 “Is Anybody Home?” house- imagery works by Christopher Davis-Benavides, Aurore Chabot, Christine Federighi, Ron Fondaw, Michael Lucero, Kirk Mangus, Patrick Siler and Marta Wallof. May 31-July 9 “Masters of the Vessel,” pedestal and wall forms by Victor Babu, Ralph Bacerra, Ken Ferguson, Karen Karnes and David Shaner; at Esther Saks Gallery, 311 W. Superior St.Illinois, Highland Park through May 14 Elaine Alt and David Crane, “Two Approaches to the Vessel”; at Martha Schneider Gallery, 2055 Green Bay Road.Iowa, Mason City May 19-July 7 The 20th annual “Area Competitive Art Show”; at Charles MacNider Museum, 303 Second St., SE. Louisiana, New Orleans May 10-26 Michael Sheba and Robert T. Reedy, raku; at Gallery 927, 906 Royal St.Maryland, Baltimore May 10-25 Ronni Aro- nin, Jean Cohen and Carole Cole, porcelain; at Baltimore Clay works Gallery, 5706 Smith Ave. Massachusetts, Boston May 2-June 3 “A Show of Fans”; at the Society of Arts and Crafts, 175 Newbury St.May 3-June 2 “Whimsy,” a multimedia show; at Signature, Dock Square, North St. Massachusetts, Gloucester through June 16 “Spectacular Vernacular: Traditional Desert Ar­chitecture of West Africa and Southwest Asia,” photographic documentation of the buildings; at Hammond Castle Museum, 80 Hesperus Ave. Massachusetts, Hyannis May 3-June 2 “Whim­sy,” a multimedia exhibition; at Signature, The Village Market Place, Stevens St.Michigan, Lansing through May 19 “Botanical Images” competition exhibition; at Lansing Art Gallery, 425 S. Grand Ave.Minnesota, Rochester May 11-June 15 A dual exhibition with Don Reitz; at Rochester Art Cen­ter, 320 E. Center St.Missouri, Saint Louis through May 5 Elaine Coleman, Tom Coleman, Pat Horsley, Jenny Lind, Jim Romberg and Tom Turner, “Group Clay Show”; at Hickory Street Gallery, 1929 Hickory. through May 19 “Ceramics from the Museum Collection”; at the Saint Louis Art Museum, For­est Park.New Jersey, Newark through May 26 The “1985 New Jersey Artists Biennial”; at Newark Museum, 49 Washington St.New Jersey, Piscataway through May 12 “Mid­dlesex County College Visual Arts—A 20th An­niversary Faculty Show”; at Cornelius Low House, Middlesex County Museum, 1225 River Rd. New Jersey, Summit through May 12 “Earth & Fire,” sculpture by Katsuyuki Sakazume, Jeff Schlanger, Toshiko Takaezu and Peter Voulkos; at Summit Art Center, 68 Elm St.

Itinerary

52 Ceramics Monthly

New Jersey, Tenafly through May 18 A six- person exhibition including Eilene Sky and Chris­tine LePage; at America House, 24 Washington Street.New Jersey, Trenton through May 19 A dual exhibition including Barbara Schaff, “Reflections/ Abstractions: Clay Work”; at the New Jersey State Museum, 205 W. State St.New Mexico, Santa Fe through August 11 Plains Indian art, includes pueblo ceramics; at Morning Star Gallery, 513 Canyon Rd.New York, Albany through June 2 “Disarming Images: Art for Nuclear Disarmament.” through July 21 “Useful Art: Long Island Pottery.” through September 2 “The Educated Eye,” objects from the collections of the 25 State Universities of New York; at the New York State Museum, Empire State Plaza.New York, Garden City through May 10 “Long Island Craftsmen’s Guild Juried Members Ex­hibition”; at the University Center, Adelphi Uni­versity.New York, New York through May 7 Second annual “Indian Market East,” contemporary San­ta Clara pottery; at Gallery 10, 29 E. 73 St. through May 12 Virginia Cartwright, Maishe Dickman, Rob Sieminski and David Williamson, raku-fired and smoked vessels; at Convergence, 484 Broome St.May 24-August 31 “Architectural Ceramics: Eight Concepts,” works by Cliff Garten, Tony Hepburn, Judy Moonelis, Patrick Siler, Beth Starbuck and Steve Goldner, Akio Takamori, Kurt Weiser and Betty Woodman; at the American Craft Museum, International Paper Plaza, 77 W. 45 St.New York, Scarsdale May 4-June 29 “For the Bride & Groom” includes functional and deco­rative works; at the Craftsman’s Gallery, 16 Chase Road.New York, Utica through May 12 A dual ex­hibition with Vincent Clemente, salt-glazed stone­ware pottery; at Munson-Williams-Proctor Insti­tute Museum of Art.New York, White Plains through May 21 The“32nd Annual National Open Juried Exhibition”; at the Community Unitarian Church, Rosedale Avenue.Ohio, Dayton through June 16 “Clay,” an ex­hibition of works by 27 contemporary American artists; at the Dayton Art Institute, Forest and Riverview Aves.Ohio, Delaware through May 12 “Faculty Show”; at the Lynn Mayhew Gallery, Humphreys Art Hall, Ohio Wesleyan University.Ohio, Wooster through May 5 “Functional Ceramics 1985”; at the College of Wooster Art Museum.Oregon, Portland through May 18 Richard Fox, vessels; and Danae Mattes, clay/mixed media wall relief; at Contemporary Crafts, 3934 S.W. Corbett Avenue.May 2-26 A group exhibition of ceramics cur­ated by Tom Coleman; at Lawrence Gallery, 842 S.W. First Ave.Pennsylvania, Philadelphia through June 8 “American Clay Artists; Philadelphia ’85”; at the Port of History Museum, Penn’s Landing. Rhode Island, Kingston May 17-31 “Earth­works ’85” juried exhibition; at Helme House, Route 138.South Dakota, Rapid City May 2-31 “Dakota Artist Guild National Competition”; at the Dakota Art Gallery, Dahl Fine Arts Center, 713 Seventh Street.Tennessee, Gatlinburg May 24-August 16 “Ar- rowmont Faculty Mixed-Media Exhibition”; at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts.Texas, Houston through May 26 “Newcomb Pottery: An Enterprise for Southern Women, 1895-1940”; at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, 1001 Bissonnet.May 3-31 “Rainbow Hues,” a three-person ex­hibition including Yvonne George, raku pottery; at the Adobe Wall, 61 Town and Country Village. Vermont, Middlebury through June 1 “Spring Light,” includes porcelain dinnerware by Mar­

garet Chatelain; at Vermont State Craft Center at Frog Hollow.Virginia, Charlottesville through July 12 “Sgraffitoed Clay,” includes ceramic works by Gene Kleinsmith; at Gallery II rsvp, 218 West Main Street.Washington, Seattle through May 15 “Invi­tational Porcelain Show”; at FireWorks, 210 First Ave., South.

Fairs, Festivals and SalesCalifornia, Oakland May 31-June 2 “Festival at the Lake Craft Market”; at Lakeside Park. California, San Francisco May 17-19 “ACC Craftfair San Francisco”; at the Showplace Square, The Concourse, Trade Show Center.Colorado, Boulder May 10-12 Boulder Pot­

ter’s Guild members’ 15th annual “Spring Sale”; at 4750 N. Broadway.Connecticut, Westport May 25-26 The 19th annual “Westport Handcrafts Fair”; at Staples High School, North Ave.Georgia, Rock Eagle May 25-26 “Georgia Folk Festival”; at Rock Eagle 4-H Center, High­way 441.Illinois, Winnetka May 18-19 The 12th an­nual “Midwest Craft Festival”; at Old Orchard Center, Skokie Hwy. and Old Orchard Rd. Indiana, Evansville May 18-19 “Arts on the Walkway,” part of the “Ohio River Arts Festival”; downtown.Iowa, Dubuque May 16-19 Seventh annual “Dubuquefest”; at Washington Park, Sixth and Locust. Continued

May 1985 53

Kentucky, Louisville May 11-12 “Old Browns- boro Road Arts and Crafts Festival”; at the Thom­as Jefferson Unitarian Church, 4938 Old Browns- boro Rd.Maryland, Frederick May 17-19 The “11th Annual Frederick Craft Fair”; at Frederick Fair­grounds.Massachusetts, Lexington May 10-11 “The Ceramic Guild of Lexington May Sale”; at the Lexington Arts and Crafts Society, 130 Waltham Street.Massachusetts, Worcester May 17-19 The “15th Annual Craft Fair”; at Worcester Craft Cen­ter, 25 Sagamore Rd.Mississippi, Laurel May 18 “A Day in the Park”; at Mason Park.Missouri, Kirkwood May 31-June 2 The first annual “Great Northwest National Fine Arts and Fine Crafts Show”; at Northwest Plaza. Missouri, Saint Louis June 1-2 “Laclede’s Landing Artists’ Showcase”; downtown, at the riv­erfront.New Jersey, Flemington May 25-26 Eighth annual “Flemington Festival of the Arts”; down­town.New York, Great Neck May 5 “Great Neck Celebrates Crafts”; at Middle Neck Road, Old Village.New York, New York May 17-19 and May 31-June 2 The “2nd Annual WBAI Spring Crafts Fair”; at Columbia University, Ferris Booth Hall. New York, Sugar Loaf May 18-19 Eleventh annual “May Craft Fair”; at Sugar Loaf Crafts Village.New York, Uniondale May 31-June 2 “Spring Fling Crafts Festival”; at the Nassau Coliseum. Ohio, Columbus June 1-2 “Greater Colum­bus Arts Festival”; downtown, along the Scioto River.Ohio, Dayton May 25-26 The 18th annual “Art in the Park”; at Riverbend Art Center, 142 Riverbend Dr.Oregon, Portland May 3-5 “Ceramic Show­case ’85”; at the Oregon Potter’s Cooperative, 8245 S.W. Barnes Rd.Wisconsin, Milwaukee May 11-12 “Craft Fair USA”; at the Wisconsin State Fair Park, 8100 W. Greenfield Ave.

WorkshopsArkansas, Hindsville June 10-21 “Arts and Crafts Seminar” includes pottery sessions. Con­tact: Ozarks Arts & Crafts Fair Assn., War Eagle Mills Farm, Route 1, Hindsville 72738; or call: (501) 789-5398.California, Berkeley May 19 “An Afternoon with Linda Genet,” slide lecture and demonstra­tion on glazes, multiple firing, lusters and china paint. Fee: $10. For further information contact: ASUC Studio, Lower Level Student Union, Uni­versity of California, Berkeley 94720; or call: (415) 642-3065 or 642-6161.California, San Diego May 18-19 “Paul Sold- ner Workshop.” Fee: $40. Contact: University of California Crafts Center, B-023, La Jolla, Cali­fornia 92093.California, Santa Monica May 11-12 “A Workshop with Ken Ferguson,” slide lecture and demonstration at the Clayhouse. Contact: Regis­trar, Orien Pagan, 23814 Twin Pines, Diamond Bar, California 91765; or call: (714) 595-3446 or (213) 828-7071.California, Sunnyvale May 31-June 1 “Pipe Sculpture Workshop” with Nina Koepcke will ex­plore methods for making sculpture from sewer pipe. Fee: $20 includes a 2-foot pipe section. Con­tact: Sunnyvale Creative Arts Center, Box 60607, Sunnyvale 94088; or call: (408) 738-5521. Connecticut, New Haven May 18-19 “Color, Surface and Form” with Chris Staley. Fee: $45. Registration deadline: May 10. Contact: Creative

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54 CERAMICS MONTHLY

Where to ShowContinued from Page 9

ern Chester County Arts/Crafts Festival” (Sep­tember 21-22) is juried from 4 slides. Jurors: Lial A. Jones and Mitch Lyons. Fee: $10. Contact: R. Samuel Lam, 157 Lloyd Rd., West Grove, Penn­sylvania 19390; or call: (215) 869-9494.June 17 entry deadline

Aurora, Illinois “Autumn Fine Arts Showcase” (October 19-20) is juried from 5 slides, 1 of display. Entry fee: $5; booth fee: $30. Contact: Aurora Art League, Rosemary Smillie, 1431 W. Downer PI., Aurora 60506; or call: (312) 896-2491.June 30 entry deadline

Baker, Oregon Third annual “Miners’ Jubilee Craft Fair” (July 19-21) is juried from slides. Fee: $20. Contact: Mimi Peters, Crossroads Arts Cen­ter, Box 235, Baker 97814.July 1 entry deadline

Madison, Indiana “Chautauqua of the Arts” (September 28-29) is juried from 4 slides, 1 of booth. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Dixie McDonough, 1119 W. Main St., Madison 47250; or call: (812) 265-5080.

Gaithersburg, Maryland The “10th Annual National Craft Fair” (October 18-20) is juried from 5 slides. Entry fee: $8; booth fee: $150-$250. For further information contact: Noel Clark, Na­tional Crafts, Ltd., Gapland, Maryland 21736; or call: (301) 432-8438.

Las Vegas, Nevada “KNPR Craftworks Mar­ket” (October 26-27) is juried from up to 10 slides. Entry fee: $10. Booth fee: $100. Contact: Craft­works, 5151 Boulder Hwy., Las Vegas 89122; or call: (702) 456-6695.

Scaly Mountain, North Carolina “High Coun­try Art & Craft Show” (August 2-4) is juried from slides or photos. Fee: $70. Send self-addressed, stamped business envelope to: Virginia Smith, High Country Crafters, 29 Haywood St., Asheville, North Carolina 28801; or call: (704) 254-0070.

Dayton, Ohio “Dayton Art Expo ’85” (Octo­ber 11-13) is juried from 3 slides. $2000 in awards. Contact: Dayton Society of Painters and Sculptors, Box 404, Dayton 45409.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania “A Fair in the Park” (September 6-8) is juried from 5 slides. Entry fee: $5; booth fee: $75 for a 10x8-foot space. Contact: A Fair in the Park, Craftsmen’s Guild of Pitts­burgh, Box 10128, Pittsburgh 15232.July 3 entry deadline

Dillon, Colorado “9th Annual Craft Fair” (July 20-21) is juried from 3 or 4 slides or photos. Fee: $40. Contact: Lake Dillon Arts Guild, Box 1047, Dillon 80435; or call; (303) 468-0035.July 10 entry deadline

Sapphire Valley, North Carolina “High Coun­try Art & Craft Show (August 8-10) is juried from slides or photos. Fee: $70. Send self-addressed, stamped business envelope to: Virginia Smith, High Country Crafters, 29 Haywood St., Asheville, North Carolina 28801; or call: (704) 254-0070.July 15 entry deadline

Asheville, North Carolina “High Country Summerfest Art & Craft Show” (August 15-18) is juried from slides or photos. Fee: $85. Send self- addressed, stamped business envelope to: Betty Kdan, 40 Hyannis Dr., Asheville 28804; or call: (704) 253-6893 or 254-0070.

Scottdale, Pennsylvania “11th Scottdale Coal & Coke Heritage Festival Juried Craft Show” (September 20-22) is juried from 3 slides or pho­tos. Fee: $25 plus commission. Contact: Juried Crafts, Scottdale Coal & Coke Heritage Festival, Box 276, Scottdale 15683; or call: (412) 887-6350 or 887-5700.July 18 entry deadline

Coeur dAlene, Idaho “Coeur d’Alene Arts & Crafts Festival” (August 2-4) is juried from works; up to 2 entries. Fee: $3 per entry. Awards. Contact: Citizens Council for the Arts, Box 901, Coeur d’Alene 83814.August 1 entry deadline

Ormond Beach, Florida “23rd Annual Hali­

fax Art Festival” (November 2-3) is juried from 3 slides. $10,000 in awards. Fee: $55-$60. Con­tact: Halifax Art Festival, Box 504, Ormond Beach 32074; or call: (904) 441-6937.

Cashiers, North Carolina “High Country Art& Craft Show” (August 30-September 1) is juried from slides or photos. Fee: $70. Send self-ad- dressed, stamped envelope to: Virginia Smith, High Country Crafters, 29 Haywood St., Asheville, North Carolina 28801; or call: (704) 254-0070.August 9 entry deadline

New York, New York “14th Annual WBAI Holiday Crafts Fair” (November 29-December 1, December 13-15 and December 20-22) is juried from 5 slides. Entry fee: $15. Booth fee: $410. Contact: Matthew Alperin, WBAI Crafts Fair, Box 889, Times Square Station, New York 10108; or call: (212) 279-0707.

August 15 entry deadlineNashville, Tennessee Eighth annual “Tennes­

see Fall Crafts Fair” (November 1-3) is juried from slides. Contact: Alice C. Merritt, Tennessee Fall Crafts Fair, Box 120933, Nashville, 37212; or call: (615) 383-2502.

Dallas, Texas “Craft Guild Fair” (November 9-10) is juried from 3 to 5 slides. Fee: $5. Send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Barbara Ryan, Craft Guild of Dallas, Kramer Center, 7131 Mid- bury Dr., Dallas 75230.August 31 entry deadline

Herkimer, New York “10th Annual Herkimer County Arts & Crafts Fair” (November 9-10) is juried from 5 slides. Awards. Fee: $65. For further information send self-addressed, stamped enve­lope to: Grace McLaughlin, HCCC, Reservoir Rd., Herkimer 13350.

May 1985 55

56 Ceramics Monthly

News & RetrospectKatharine Pleydell-Bouverie, 1895-1985

As this issue goes to press, CM has learned that one of England’s first studio potters, Katharine Pleydell-Bouverie, has died this January. Born in Coleshill (Berkshire), a stately 17th-century house, she started pot­ting at the Central School in London, an endeavor almost unheard of for women of that time. A meeting with Bernard Leach at one of his early exhibitions led to her accep­tance at Saint Ives as his second student— Michael Cardew had arrived earlier that year. Also at the Leach Pottery then was Japanese potter Tsurunoske Matsubayashi, from whom Katharine took meticulous notes on clay and glaze chemistry and kiln construction. In 1925 she left Saint Ives to set up a pottery at Coles­hill, constructing a wood-fired stoneware kiln with Matsubayashi’s help. Norah Braden (another Leach student) joined her there in 1928 and for the next eight years they con­ducted numerous experiments on wood and plant ash glazes. The war temporarily halted her potting and in 1946 Coleshill was sold. Katharine moved to Kilmington Manor, Wiltshire, reestablished her pottery in an ad­joining barn and continued producing vases, bottles and bowls glazed with various ash recipes. A retrospective exhibition of her work (see the September 1981 CM) was organized by the Crafts Study Centre (to which she gave many works together with her glaze rec­ipes) and presented at the Holburne Mu­seum, Bath. Still making pots at that time, Katharine observed: “I imagine that the great thing about potting—for those of us who work on the wheel—is that one works with things

Katharine Pleydell-Bouveriethat are alive. The clay comes to life as the pot grows; the fire—even in its most malle­able form of electricity or gas—is always alive.

So the element of chance, in a sense the ele­ment of adventure, is always present, yet apart from one’s own immediate effort. And, after all, to the potter the fun is in the making, not the made.”Native American Pottery

As appreciation escalates for historical and contemporary Native American pottery, prices are rising sharply. So much so that in the recent, second edition of an identification and value guide, American Indian Pottery (re­leased just three years after the first), prices for many of the illustrated works are esti­mated to have more than doubled. For ex­ample, a Hopi Sichomori polychrome can­teen, circa 1920, was previously listed at $450-$600, but the updated value is $2000. Prices for more recent works have not risen quite as dramatically, but certainly substan­tially—an award-winning blackware wed­ding vase made by Rose Gonzales at San Ildefonso Pueblo in 1979 was valued at $550 and now is listed at $850. Only the price on the most expensive item shown in the guide (a $6000 black-matt jar by Maria Martinez and Popovi Da) remained the same.

Raku and Smoke North AmericaA selection of works by 22 artists was drawn

from the “Raku and Smoke North America” competition exhibition organized by Salve Regina—The Newport College and the Newport Art Museum, Rhode Island, and presented recently at the American Craft Museum II in New York City.—Ed.

The combination of raku and smoke-firing techniques has historical roots in both East­ern and Western traditions. From a 15th- century red raku teabowl to a Mimbres Val­ley spirit bowl, these ritual beginnings have been transformed into a contemporary view­point. The artists represented in “Raku and Smoke North America” continue to maintain that ritual in terms of material and tech­nique, while stretching the limits of this art- ist-process-material relationship through technical innovations. These innovations are often the result of observing a spontaneous occurrence and subsequently using that in­formation to orchestrate an idea about clay. The common denominator is always the di­rect interaction with the fire, leaving its un­deniable mark on the finished work.

The artist using raku or smoke techniques has artistic roots planted firmly in tradition

You are invited to send news and photo­graphs about people, places or events of interest. We will be pleased to consider them for publication in this column. Mail submissions to: News and Retrospect, Ceramics Monthly, P.O. Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212.

“Artifacts of the ’80s/A Vase” by Robert Behrwhile facing the challenge posed by honesty to materials and process and the possibility of chance effects. Shown from the exhibition is a raku-fired clay, wood and paint construc­tion, 15½ inches in height, by Robert Behr, Quakertown, Pennsylvania.

As one of the exhibiting artists in Raku and Smoke, Harvey Sadow, Clarksburg, Maryland, wrote: “Regarding the raku pro­cess in general, the ultimate surrender of control after carefully orchestrating a set of possibilities always gives the pot an oppor­tunity to be a little bit better than the potter.” Text: Jay Lacouture; photo: George Erml.

Slippery When Wet SymposiumDemonstrating at the “Slippery When Wet”

symposium at Drake University in Des Moines were four artists with varied ap­proaches to ceramics: Warren MacKenzie, Stillwater, Minnesota; Kirk Mangus, Mer­cer, Pennsylvania; Judy Onofrio, Rochester, Minnesota; and Peter Vandenberge, Sacra­mento, California. Each was allotted a three- hour session during the day to demonstrate and discuss his or her work. The open-space arrangement of the Drake Fieldhouse en­couraged participants to move freely among the artists’ work areas, so they could observe first-hand the various techniques, from War­ren MacKenzie’s wheel-thrown vessels to the theaterlike installation by Judy Onofrio.

The “firing” of Judy’s 16-foot-high con­struction was dramatic. She had stacked a series of open framework wooden units, around and through which was wound chick­en wire to support scores of dishes and shards—mostly commercial patterns famil­iar in kitchens of the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s.

ContinuedMay 1985 57

ItineraryContinued from Page 54

Arts Workshop, 80 Audubon St., New Haven 06511; or call: (203) 562-4927.Connecticut, Williamantic July 1-12 “Wil- liamantic Art and Crafts Workshop” will include instruction in handbuilding, throwing and glazing with Peter Sabin. Fee: $404-$450 includes room and board. Contact: Continuing Education, East­ern Connecticut State University, Williamantic 06226; or call: (203) 456-2231.Illinois, Northfield May 13-July 1 A session on throwing and handbuilding in porcelain and stoneware, glazing and decorating. Contact: Northfield Pottery Works, 1741 Orchard Lane, Northfield 60093; or call: (312) 446-3470. Kansas, Pittsburg June 4-27 Pittsburg State

University is offering a workshop on raku firing for beginning and intermediate students. Contact: Continuing Education, Pittsburg State University, Pittsburg 66762; or call: (316) 231-7000, ext. 4177. Maine, Tenants Harbor August 25-30 “Ce­ramics in the Raw,” a workshop on primitive firing techniques, digging clay and use of natural ma­terials, at Blueberry Cove Camp. For further in­formation contact: Box 520, Tenants Harbor 04860; or call: (207) 372-6353.Michigan, Ann Arbor July 14-21 “First An­nual Clay Cousins Workshop,” with Janet Pugh and Fred Blackwood, will include raku and pit firing. Fee: $275 includes materials, firing, camp­ing and meals. Registration deadline: June 15, with $100 deposit. Contact: Fred Blackwood, 10351 Fieldcrest, Brighton, Michigan 48116; or call Jan­et Pugh: (419) 855-3858.

Minnesota, Wayzata August 2-3 “Raku Work­shop,” applying and firing copper-flashed surfaces, with Richard Gruchalla. For all skill levels. Fee: $45. Contact: John Heck, Art Center of Minne­sota, 2240 Northshore Dr., Wayzata 55391; or call: (612) 473-7361. #New Mexico, Abiquiu May 29-June 2 A hands- on workshop with Rudy Autio at Ghost Ranch Conference Center. Fees: $80 for members of the New Mexico Potters Association; $95 for non­members. Contact: Bill Armstrong, Box 706, Cor- rales, New Mexico 87048; or call: (505) 898-7471. New York, New York May 4 and June 1 “Ce­ramic Jewelry” with Liz Rudey. Fee: $100; non­members $110. Contact: Janet Katz, Craft Stu­dents League of YWCA, 610 Lexington Ave., New York 10022; or call: (212) 755-4500, ext. 59. May 31-June 1 A slide lecture and demonstra­tion on surface treatment with Andra Ellis. Fee: $30. Contact: Greenwich House Pottery, 16 Jones St., New York 10014; or calk (212) 242-4106. New York, Port Chester July 15-16 “Japanese Wheelthrowing and Decorating Methods” with Makoto Yabe, as part of “Clay Art Center Summer Festival.” Fee: $35 for one day, $65 for both. Con­tact: Clay Art Center, 40 Beech St., Port Chester 10573; or calk (914) 937-2047.North Carolina, Brasstown May 19-June 1 “Spring Craft and Home Week II” includes pot­tery with Marcia Bugg. Contact: John C. Camp­bell Folk School, Brasstown 28902; or call: (704) 837-2775.North Carolina, Raleigh May 18-19 “Deco­rating Workshop,” slide lecture and demonstration with Susan Icove. Fee: $35; nonmembers $40. Contact: the Pullen Park Arts Center, 105 Pullen Rd., Raleigh 27607; or call: (919) 755-6126. Ohio, Cleveland May 11 “Symposium on En­glish Decorative Arts: 1840-1890” will include discussions on the arts and crafts movement, design and manufacture of Victorian decorative arts and the Martin Brothers pottery. Fee: $25 includes lunch. Students free (no lunch provided). Contact: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 11150 East Blvd., Cleveland 44106; or call: (216) 421-7340. Tennessee, Murfreesboro May 14-31 “Terra Cotta: Clay and Glazes,” a session with Peter MacDougall for intermediate through advanced students, will cover handbuilding and throwing. Contact: Art Department, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro 37132; or call: (615) 898- 2300, ext. 2012.Texas, San Antonio May 6-10 “Handbuilt Con­structions,” slide lecture and demonstration, with John Gill. June 7-9 “Large-Scale Ceramics” with Tony Hepburn.v June 15 “The Ceramics of Robert Sperry.” July 8-12 “Porcelain and Salt-Glazed Ceramics” with Robert and Paula Winokur. July 29-August 8 “Functional Pot­tery” with Michael Simon. Contact: Southwest Craft Center, 300 Augusta St., San Antonio 78205; or call: (512) 224-1848.Utah, Salt Lake City May 11 “Neriage and Nerikomi Vessels and Clay Sculpture Workshop,” demonstration and slide lecture with Ban Kajitani. Fee: $20. Contact: Salt Lake Art Center, 20 S.W. Temple St., Salt Lake City 84101; or call: (801) 328-4201.Vermont, Middlebury May 11 “Health Is­sues for Artists & Craftspeople” with Dr. Julian Waller. Fee: $20. Early registration required. For further information contact: Vermont State Craft Center at Frog Hollow, Mill St., Middlebury 05753; or call: (802) 388-3177.Washington, Seattle July 19-20 “Ceramic Mosaic Workshop” with Linda Beaumont and Ann Gardner. Contact: Jean Griffith, Pottery North­west, 226 First Ave. N, Seattle 98109; or call: (206) 285-4421.International EventsCanada, Alberta, Banff May 13-24 “History/ Aesthetics/Criticism,” a forum for discussion on ceramic art issues, will encourage dialogue and

Continued58 CERAMICS MONTHLY

News & Retrospect

Judy Onofrio: performancelike installationAfter painting parts of the framework and some of the dishes, she hung a V-shaped veil from the top of the ceramic-invested struc­ture. That night she set it all afire.

Bright, multicolored flashes erupted when charges inside the structure went off, fol­lowed by billows of smoke. When the fire reached the dishes, some crackled in the heat while others crashed to the ground as the framework gave way. One listener said the

Throwing cups for the installation “firing” partyinstallation became like a giant windchime. Judy later compared the quiet dish-sounds to the roar of the fire itself, recalling the delicacy of the forms and patterns of the dish­

es in contrast to the power and violence of the fire.

Interested in processes rather than objects, Judy is more concerned with mystery and evolution than with resolution and clear-cut statements, and projects such as the one at Drake have less to do with physical objects in space than with creating a metaphor for psychological space. A temporary, perfor­mancelike installation that provides an ex­perience rather than a static, unchanging ob­ject is more suited to her goals. After all, once the work has been “fired,” its existence is primarily a memory, thus accomplishing her aim to transfer the concept to psychological space. (Photographs were made of the in­stallation but their purpose is documentary.)

Rather than creating a specific object, Judy has chosen to deal with internalized images. She admits that such an aim complicates the artist’s work and brings more pressure to bear because she must decide not only the physical aspects of the installation but also must speculate on the effect it will have on observers.

After “firing” her installations, Judy col­lects the shards and will sometimes include them in other works. Thus, construction and destruction are not single situations existing in a specific time and place but, indeed, are processes in which observers participate only partially.

Balancing Judy Onofrio’s nontraditional approach to ceramics was Warren Mac- Kenzie’s utilitarian pottery. Calling himself a conservative midwesterner, Warren rep­resented his philosophy that there must be a direct connection between the person and the work he produces.

The utilitarian tradition and aesthetic which he embodies arise from the constant work and self-examination of the artist who makes pots as part of his daily life, pots that are not primarily for exhibition but intended to function straightforwardly, yet intimately in everyday circumstances. Warren explained how, as a student in the 1940s, he had re­jected his art school training which insisted on laboring over the refinement of every as­pect of each object, and turned instead to­ward a more utilitarian approach. As he studied the history of ceramics, he found that the work to which he responded had been done before patronage (of collectors and mu­seums) had been established in a culture. He observed that once ceramics were removed from a strictly utilitarian context, the quality of the work declined—a situation which could be as true today as in the past. In a related statement, he referred to the folk potters of the American Southeast who had created a strong tradition but one which had nearly been lost because many American ceramic artists were blind to its value.

Reflecting on his own life and develop­ment, Warren characterized it as a slow con­tinuum of change. His goal has been to im­part an emotional and spiritual content to a

ContinuedMay 1985 59

participation in a seminar format. Instructors: Dan Mato, Petra Von Morstein, Russell Keziere, Phil­ip Rawson and Jeff Perrone. Fee: $275. Contact: Visual Arts Registrar. The Banff Centre School of Fine Arts, Box 1020, Banff, Alberta TOL 0C0; or call: (403) 762-6180.Canada, Manitoba, Snow Lake July 1-Septem- ber 1 “Throwing and Primitive Firing Work­shop” will include firing local and foreign clays with wood, leaves and chips. Instructor: Emily Crosby. For intermediate and advanced students. Camping and live-in accommodations available. Fee: Can$100 (approximately $77) per week. Contact: Emily Crosby, Box 484, Snow Lake, Manitoba ROB 1M0.Canada, Ontario, Guelph May 2-19 “Guelph Arts Council’s Juried Exhibition”; at 21 King St. Canada, Ontario, Haliburton July 1-5 “Clay Production” with Jane Agnew. July 8-12 “Handbuilding Clay Sculpture” with Dzintars Mezulis. July 15-19 “Porcelain Teapots” with Harlan House. July 29-August 2 “Raku Pot­tery Expression” with Tim De Rose. August 22-26 “Functional Pots and Decoration” with Matthias Osterman. Fee: $45 each session. For further information contact: Haliburton School of Fine Arts, Box 339, Haliburton, Ontario KOM ISO; or call: (705) 457-1680.Canada, Ontario, Toronto through May 13 An exhibition of works by the George Brown College ceramics department. May 28-June 15 Silva Leser exhibition; at the Pottery Shop, 140 York- ville Ave.England, Bourton-on-the-Water through May5 A multimedia exhibition including ceramics by Ray Finch and John Jelfs; at Chestnut Gallery, High St.England, Keighley through May 19 “Table­ware: New Domestic Pottery”; at the Cliffe Castle Museum.England, London through May 24 Nick Hom- oky, new ceramics; at the Victoria and Albert Craft Shop.through June 30 “Design in America: The Cran- brook Vision, 1925-1950”; at the Victoria and Al­bert Museum.England, Oxford through May 22 Philippa Cronin, earthenware sculptural vessels; at Oxford Gallery, 23 High St.England, Penzance July 13-August 17 West Cornwall School of Art is offering 1-week sessions on wheel throwing with Peter Smith and hand- building with David Williams. Fee: $80 per week. Contact: David Williams, Prospect Place, New­bridge, Penzance; or call: (0736) 788239. England, Stoke-on-Trent May 20-September7 Alan Caiger-Smith retrospective exhibition; at the Stoke-on-Trent Museum.France, Anthy/Thonon June-September “Wall Ceramic Workshop,” 1-week sessions for all skill levels; maximum: 4 students each session. Instruc­tor: Liekie Schooneman. Instruction in English, French, German and Dutch. Fee: $250 includes materials, studio space, sleeping accommodations and transportation from and to Geneva airport. Contact: Liekie Schooneman, 33 Les Savoyances, 74200 Anthy; or call: (050) 717134.France, Nan^ay May19-June17 A group ex­hibition including ceramics by Buchholtz; at Gal- erie Capazza, Grenier de Villatre.Mexico, Guanajuato, San Miguel de Allende May 17-31 The first “Mexican National Ceramic Exhibition”; at the Centro Nigromante.Norway, Trondheim through May 5 An ex­hibition of works by the Danish group Multi Mud; at the Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum, Munkegatan 5.Switzerland, Geneva through May 18 A dual exhibition including works by Frangois Ruegg; at the Centre Genevois de l’Artisanat, 26 Grand-Rue. Switzerland, Zurich May 1-31 A dual exhi­bition with Carmen Dionyse, sculpture; at Maya Behn Gallery, Neumarkt 24.

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60 Ceramics Monthly

News & Retrospect

Warren MacKenzie: utilitarian potteryutilitarian object, to produce an object that would not only “feed the spirit” of the ob­server but of the creator as well. He de­scribed how, with age and experience, he in­creasingly prized investigation over dogma. As his understanding of himself and of others has deepened, he has become less prescrip­tive in assessments of worth. Whereas in the past, he was very certain of what the qual­ities of a “good” pot were, today he is less doctrinaire about what makes an object good and what constitutes “progress,” and is more accepting of the validity of all expressions.

In contrast to Warren’s utilitarian ap­proach, Kirk Mangus works on large, im­posing vessels with deeply cut or slip-painted surfaces. Despite the size of these forms, Kirk emphasized that he does not see them as sculpture, but indeed as vessels—as clay Kirk Mangus

ContinuedMay 1985 61

62 Ceramics Monthly

Kirk Mangus: carved and painted vesselworked within a ceramics tradition. Quickly and vigorously, he uses a knife to gouge and colored slips to draw heads and figures that have a distinctly primitive character. That theme of primitivism moves throughout Kirk’s work, from the sturdy asymmetrical shapes of the vessels to the cracks and splatters of the painted surfaces to the ritualistic pres­ence of the finished forms. Further, he is interested in the animism that often char­acterizes primitive societies and has invested many of his vessels with something of that spirit.

Concerned with process, he explains that much of it, especially the painting, is carried out in a “stream of consciousness” mode that befits the direct, unrefined nature of his work. Drawing is an important activity for him, and some of the responsiveness and imme­diacy of that experience is transferred to the vessel surface. He strives for fluidity and constant motion as he shapes, cuts and paints the clay.

Kirk allows the firing to help create the character of the painted surfaces, knowing, for example, that the colored slips will crack and he can only partially control what emerges. The artists he admires (Dubuffet, Tapies, Pollock and Guston) also prized an unself-conscious approach that often resulted in rawness, directness and a process-reveal­ing quality. At the same time, later German expressionists such as Grosz and Bechmann are attractive to him because of their feeling for people and their interest in human psy­chology.

Like Kirk, Peter Vandenberge also com­bines primitive and modernistic sensibilities in his work, but his sculptures (and he does think of them as such) have an intimacy re­flecting the artist’s personal involvement. He

Peter Vandenberge

News & Retrospect

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64 Ceramics Monthly

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News & Retrospect

Peter Vandenberge: figurative sculpturedescribes his work as falling “somewhere be­tween the Easter Islander heads and Mo­digliani’s,” a compendium of people he knows and historical influences. Text: Lea Rosson DeLong and Rimas VisGirda; photos: Jacobi, VisGirda and Ytsma.

Anne BarresConceptual sculpture by French artist Anne

Barres was installed recently at Galerie Alain Oudin in Paris. Her latest works, such as “Soulevements” (Upheavals), stoneware with

“Soulevements” approximately 23 feet longgrillwork, represent terrestrial movements.

Photo: courtesy of Galerie Alain Oudin.

Seth Cardew“I was born in the small wooden hut in

the orchard to the rear of Winchcombe Pot­tery on November 11, and if November 12 in that year was a sunny day, the shadow of the old bottle kiln may well have fallen across me, marking me, so to speak, from a time of tenderness to become a potter. Fanciful may­be, but early impressions of father [the late Michael Cardew], Ray Finch, Sidney Tustin and his brother Charley talking and laughing and making pots certainly formed a strong impression, and this, I tend to feel, is the

Continued

66 CERAMICS MONTHLY

News & Retrospect‘stuff’ of qualification for the life of a potter rather than examination results,” observed British potter Seth Cardew.

“Later, however, I did attend Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts, studying sculpture with Karel Vogel, and for some years after that worked as a sculptor and ornamental clay modeler in the London Film Studios— an excellent experience. One learned to place weight in space in such a way that it did not intrude. This may not sound a great achieve­ment, but it is a satisfactory starting point for the statements that do have to be made in form; for instance forms can be right and say nothing, or they can be right and give off this glow that is the ‘beyond words’ expression.”

An exhibition of Seth’s functional forms was presented at Oxford Gallery in Oxford, England, through March 13. “In pottery,” he continued, “regarding the actual making, we at Wenford (my son and I) do what is known as repetition throwing, which means

Sgraffito-decorated covered jar, 20 inches in heightthat while similar, the pots are not identical and one works in a rhythm. From these boards of pots in the green stage naturally some are better than others and often the best pots one had no recollection of making. This is one of the thoughts that Bernard Leach brought from the Far East, that pots are very phys­ical.”

Cadmium WarningThe National Institute for Occupational

Safety and Health (NIOSH) recently pub­lished a bulletin announcing that an “epi­demiological study has demonstrated a sta­tistically significant excess of lung cancer mortality among workers exposed to cad­mium oxide (CdO). A chronic inhalation ex­posure study with rats provides toxicological evidence that exposure to cadmium chloride

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68 Ceramics Monthly

News & Retrospect(CdCl2) aerosol can cause a dose-dependent incidence of malignant lung tumors. Based primarily on these data, NIOSH recom­mends that cadmium and its compounds be regarded as potential occupational carcino­gens and that appropriate controls be used to reduce worker exposure.”

In ceramic materials, the major source of cadmium is cadmium sulfide or cadmium sulfoselenide pigment in low-fire glazes, frits and enamels (the bright red to orange color from cadmium/selenium is fugitive above Cone 010). Avoidance is the best precaution; however, if cadmium-containing materials are to be used, take stringent safety measures. When applying cadmium glazes or enamels with a brush, do not eat, drink or smoke while working, and carefully wash hands af­terward. Spraying or airbrushing should only be done in a well-exhausted booth. Also, such materials should be fired in kilns vented with a canopy hood.

Brazil’s Mary Di IorioAs a faculty artist at the Federal Univer­

sity of Uberlandia, Brazil, Mary Di Iorio is engaged in continuing research on the ce­ramic arts in her country; as an individual artist she wishes to discover and to gain knowledge on materials, and to transmit through clay and glazes all her perceptions, intuitions and thoughts. Art critic Walmir Ayala noted after attending her exhibition in Rio de Janeiro: “In a land such as ours, rich

Untitled form, approximately 26 inches in heightin natural clay reserves, the servile and in­cipient state of artistic ceramics is incom­prehensible, attenuated only by sparse work­shops originated in Oriental colonization, a fact which indicates neither a style nor even a specific national vocabulary for a medium that in many countries of the world syn­thesizes an image of the character and cul­ture of its peoples. In Brazil, it is true, ce-

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70 Ceramics Monthly

News & Retrospectramies of popular origins have a story to tell, and what makes Mary Di Iorio’s work stand out is certainly the strong creative intuition

14-inch sculpture by Mary Di Ioriowhich takes from those roots and conditions them to a language that does not stylize in­nate invention, but informs on its purity of critical and conceptual connotations.” Pho­tos: Sebastiao Dias dos Reis.

12-inch bowl, with black gloss rimin Frederick, Maryland. John coated all these forms with black slip, then accented the rims with wood ash and/or brightly colored glazes and fired them to Cone 6 in oxidation. Photo: Harriet Wise.

Direct Marketing GuidesA range of opportunities now exists for

those potters interested in marketing their wares directly to the public, but many be­ginning professionals or those interested in expanding their sales area do not know where to find pertinent information. Of course, CM’s Where to Show department lists juried in­ternational, national and regional exhibi­tions, plus fairs, festivals and sales. Also available are several regional and national guides listing nonjuried events as well.

At the regional level, for example, the 1985Continued

John ZentnerThrown and altered baskets, bowls and

platters by studio potter John Zentner, Brad- dock Heights, Maryland, were presented re­cently in a solo exhibiton at Catepetl Gallery

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72 Ceramics Monthly

News & RetrospectOhio Art Festivals and Competitions booklet (published by the Ohio Arts and Crafts Guild, 9 N. Main St., Mount Vernon, Ohio 43050) indexes shows, competitive exhibitions and mall promotions by name and by city. Broad­er areas are covered by such publications as the Fairs and Festivals in the Northeast guide compiled by the Arts Extension Service, Di­vision of Continuing Education, University of Massachusetts, Amherst 01003.

For national information, potters can refer to such publications as Arts & Crafts Cat­alyst, a bimonthly guide, available at: Box 15102, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46885.

In MassachusettsPresented in a recent multimedia show at

Ten Arrow Gallery in Cambridge, Massa­chusetts, were functional stoneware vessels by Judy and Hiroshi Nakayama, New York City; Jeff Oestreich, Taylors Falls, Minne­sota; and Nancy Steckel, Carmel, New York.

Christina and Michael Adcock’s “Black Pine Saggar”Also featured were saggar-fired pots, such as this 13-inch-diameter bowl, woven with dyed pine needles, willows, date palm fruit stalks and hand-painted cotton thread, by Christina and Michael Adcock, Santa Barbara, Cali­fornia. Photo: Mehosh Dziadzio.

Functional Clay in South Carolina“A functional potter today exists in a world

informed by the drastic break with tradition represented by Peter Voulkos, the abstract expressionist movement and the somewhat later pop movement, as well as the organic functionalism of Bernard Leach, Michael Cardew and Marguerite Wildenhain,” ob­served Nina Parris, curator of the “Func­tional Ceramics” exhibition featured at the Columbia Museum in Columbia, South Carolina, through March 3.

“For some, their recent involvement with sculptural forms provides a bridge, and many

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74 Ceramics Monthly

LettersContinued from Page 1

one feels little more than the futility of the whole thing.

There are times, one suspects, when jus­tice to the work itself could best be served by eliminating all but the quintessential re­marks by the potter or ceramist about the works pictured. There may even be times when the total deletion of verbiage is desired. In either case, the works found in the com­pany of these forced and so-called brilliant afterthoughts (communicating elitism, exclu­siveness, arrogance and little else) are some­how cheapened by the excess of words.

There are contemporary trends in ce­ramics as there are in many other areas. Is there a problem in that? One sees the word “trendy” used with distaste by some potters in their letters pleading to see more func­tional work.

Funk is another story entirely. It refers to a particular time and even a particular place in history, and protested standards by which we comprehend that which is beautiful in a way not unlike the Ashcan School and Da­daism. I’m certainly not saying that funk is dead, but it most certainly cannot be defined as being simply all that is not functional.

In learning to see, that is to comprehend, one can potentially enjoy so much more than the limited areas each of us can possibly mas­ter. Only in learning to see can we begin to stop mindlessly blocking out all that is not familiar or comfortable and, with that, the extraordinary.

Dave Burrows Washington, Pa.

Back to OriginsLet’s have more decadent, pseudo-esoteric

drivel. The original purpose of ceramics (March letters) was not pots, bowls, pitchers, jars, plates, etc., but to stick things together.

Brad Pekoe Chesterhill, Ohio

A Personal Cutting EdgePlease keep up the excellent cross section

of what’s going on in the world of ceramics. There could be, however, fewer letters and articles from those myopic, self-indulgent “artists” who have been on their own “cutting edge” for the past ten years and continue to overestimate their work and worth to us.

Jon M. Homer Spokane, Wash.

Finding New MeaningWe started our pottery business in 1976

on a prayer and a song. At that time we also subscribed to Ceramics Monthly. We would look through it and mostly comment on the “crazy art” more than anything else. So after three years we discontinued our subscription.

Now it’s 1985. Last July or so, we started going through some old issues, needing some outside stimulation (nine years of production

pottery and feeling like a mechanical zom­bie). We could not believe that we missed the value of this publication. Even the “crazy art” holds new meaning to us. Looking through the old issues brought to mind that with pro­duction, expression has been lost. Always in a hurry, always worried about the money (how many of these things can I make in an hour?), always the same, the same, the same.

All this is to say please renew our sub­scription.

Kathy Wolff Stirling City, Calif.

More HistoryCeramics Monthly is doing a good overall

job of covering ceramics. However, we feel that too many people are ignorant of the his­tory of ceramics and more of it should be included. We enjoy CM in the gallery.

Barbara Lippert The Private Collection, Inc.

CincinnatiOne of the Basics

The “trickle down” economic theory hasn’t reached my level yet. However, as I place my personal austerity program into effect (the seventy-fourth one) I can’t bring myself to cancel Ceramics Monthly. It belongs to the same category as beer, clay and iron oxide.

Robert Swanson Center Point, Iowa

Subscribers’ CommentsYou pros out there: try to remember those

of us who sit on the outside looking at you and listening to whatever you share. I’ll nev­er be your critic or your competitor, so please take the time to be a little basic. It is really appreciated and helps me to understand and appreciate your work and techniques. Be­sides—I think that there are more of us tuned into CM than there are of you.

Mitchel L. Kotula Salinas, Calif.

Who will be angry at Ceramics Monthly next month? That is the question. I love the funk vs. functional controversy. I want to see some of everything; it makes the magazine exciting. Print it all. I’ll read it.

Suzanna Van Schoonhoven Perkasie, Pa.

May we never resolve the art/craft debate. In 14 years we’ve all come a long way.

Helen Beswick Dundas, Ont.

Please, let’s see more from the third world.Penelope Williamson

ChicagoShare your thoughts with other readers. All letters must be signed, but names will be withheld on request. Address: The Editor, Ceramics Monthly, Box 12448, Columbus, Ohio 43212.

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76 Ceramics Monthly

New BooksTraditional Islamic Craft in Moroccan Architectureby Andre PaccardFor 14 centuries the secrets of Moroccan maallems (master craftspeople) have been jealously guarded. Previously, designs were passed down only by word of mouth from father to son and to favorite disciples. In this lavishly illustrated two-volume set, the au­thor reveals many of their secrets, defining and detailing the concepts behind traditional patterns and processes; the first volume is primarily devoted to mosaic tilework.

A typical Moroccan house is stark on the exterior, while the interior floors, walls and ceilings are elaborately decorated with tile panels. “We might almost say that, for the Moroccan, architecture is decoration,” notes the author. The intricate mosaic patterns are composed of glazed terra-cotta tiles cut (after firing) with a sharpened hammer into a mul­titude of shapes and “assembled like a jigsaw puzzle into a design based on one of the tra­ditional grids which underlie all the Islamic arts.” Patterns are basically geometric (some are calligraphic) because Islamic law pro­scribes the making of likenesses of living creatures. 1090 pages (in both volumes). Ap­proximately 2000 color photographs, plus pattern development drawings, overlays and original designs from maallem sketchbooks. $250. Editions Atelier 74, 169 Prospect Park West, Brooklyn, New York 11215.

Worcester Porcelain The Klepser Collectionby Simon SperoFounded in June 1751 at Warmstry House on the banks of the River Severn, the Worces­ter Tonquin Manufacture (later the Worces­ter Porcelain Company, and now called the Worcester Royal Porcelain Company) began production of decorated tableware made with a “special body” based on a “soapy rock” (talc) mined at the Lizard Point in Cornwall. As noted in the foreword by Henry Sandon, this ingredient (combined with ball clay and sand) gave the porcelain “an edge over other En­glish soft paste porcelains in that it did not craze or crack with the use of hot liquids, and the founders of the Worcester enterprise appreciated its potential.” The early forms (on which this collection is based) were often derived from Oriental shapes or reflected En­glish silver vessels. Decorative influences were primarily Chinese and to some extent Jap­anese, with delicate polychrome flowers, birds and pseudo-Oriental figures.

Kenneth and Priscilla Klepser’s interest in Worcester ware began after she enthusiasti­cally described several small pitchers she had seen while shopping in a Seattle store’s an­tiques department. Kenneth “lost no time in going to see the little pitchers which had so

excited his wife’s interest, and promptly bought all seven,” the author relates. “He became a student of porcelain and was soon buying pieces whenever the opportunity arose.” In­strumental in the forming of this collection was an English antiques dealer, T. Leonard Crow, who “diligently scoured the country and from time to time secured pieces which, after an exchange of letters, were dispatched to Seattle.” Although a successful business­man, Klepser was not motivated to collect Worcester porcelain for its investment po­tential. “Once he had purchased a piece of porcelain, it became a part of his home ... to be studied, to be cherished and to be a con­tinuous source of pleasure.” 224 pages, in­cluding identification appendixes, selected letters from T. Leonard Crow, general index and index of patterns. 49 color plates; 211 black-and-white photographs. $48. Abner Schram Ltd., 36 Park Street, Montclair, New Jersey 07042.

Last of the Handmade BuildingsGlazed Terra Cotta in Downtown Portlandby Virginia Guest FerridayWritten by an architect, this is a study of terra-cotta decorated buildings constructed in Portland, Oregon, from 1905 to 1930. The five basic types of glazed terra-cotta orna­ments were supports (columns and pilasters); bands (friezes, cornices, etc.); panels; diapers (overall patterns); and free ornaments (ro­settes, finials, cartouches, etc.). Support or­naments were used at the building base, cap and sometimes on the corners. Bands were installed between horizontal divisions (base, attic, shaft and cap) and at the roof line. The panels were between windows; diapers on floors; and free ornaments accented the roof line, corners and intersections of major com­positional lines. Made by handpressing clay into plaster molds, these ornamental hollow blocks were approximately 4 inches deep with faces 12 to 18 inches in length. They were applied to the exteriors of a variety of build­ings ranging from a 2-story church to a 16- story office building. While much of the text is concerned with sociological aspects, it does describe production, installation and resto­ration processes. 149 pages, including al­phabetical list of buildings discussed, notes on the architects, selected bibliography and index. 106 black-and-white photographs, line drawings and maps. $22 (softcover). Mark Publishing Company, Box 40668, Portland, Oregon 97240.

Pottery Designsby David CloseA guide for beginners, this British text is divided into step-by-step sections on histor­ical slipware techniques; pinched pottery and

primitive firing; slab- and coil-built pottery; figurative and relief work; and press-molded pottery. The author’s aim is “to present a range of projects that offer scope for further development.” With the exception of wheel throwing, he covers most basic pottery con­struction and preglaze decoration tech­niques. Photographed examples are often students’ works. 72 pages, including glossary, further reading list and index. 85 black-and- white photographs. $14.95. David & Charles, Inc., North Pomfret, Vermont 05053.

Masterpieces of Wedgwood in the British Museumby Aileen DawsonPrimarily for collectors, this text illustrates selected forms from the museum’s extensive collection, ranging from a lead-glazed, cau- liflower-shaped earthenware teapot, circa 1755-65, to a matt-glazed polar bear figure, circa 1935-39. Following a brief biography of Josiah Wedgwood, the text discusses the establishment of his Burslem pottery, early production practices and “useful” partner­ships. Cited letters and documents help ex­plain circumstances surrounding design and marketing decisions. Concerned with retain­ing his upper-class market for agate vases, Wedgwood wrote to his partner Thomas Bentley: “We have packed some Pebble Cof­feepots, T.pot, sug.rs and Cream Ewers, but they are too like the Agat [sic] pottery which has been made before & you will see by these specimens that it is the forms more than the colours of many of the Vases which has raised & unvulgariz’d them—Make exactly the same pebbles into Tea ware & they are let down to the Class of common Pott ware again, many degrees below Queens ware—Some of the things now sent may be rais’d again by tipping them with burnt in Gold. ..” Less than a year later (in August 1772), he wrote to Bentley about selling vases to the middle class: “The Great People have had their Vas­es in their Palaces long enough for them to be seen & admir’d by the Middling Class of People, which we know are vastly, I had said almost infinitely, superior in number, to the Great, & though a great price was, I believe, at first necessary to make the Vases esteemed Ornaments for Palaces that reason no longer exists. Their character is established & the middling People would probably buy quan­tities of them at a reduced price.. .” Two of Wedgwood’s most famous forms—the Peg­asus and Portland vases—are thoroughly ex­amined in individual chapters. 160 pages, including appendix listing the present loca­tions of early Portland vases, notes and in­dex. 16 color plates; 109 black-and-white photographs. $27.50, clothbound; $17.50, paperback. Indiana University Press, Tenth and Morton Streets, Bloomington, Indiana 47405.

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News & RetrospectContinued from Page 73

171/i-inch extruded vase by Jamie Davisof the artists included in the exhibition in­tegrate the excitement of pop and abstract forms, as well as surface decoration with the requirements of use.” Shown above is “Blue Extruded Square Vase,” earthenware, by Ja­mie Davis, Pickens, South Carolina.

“Others have never discarded their in­volvement with function,” Parris continued. “Each brings to the functional medium a unique perspective drawn both from ancient and recent history. The variety of their ap­proaches grows out of their relationships to this past and their own involvements with14-inch coffeepot and bowl by Robert Reedy

the present.” From the exhibition, the stone­ware coffeepot and bowl (below left) were thrown and salt glazed by Robert Reedy, Mantachie. Mississippi.

“How well their work functions and stands the test of time both from a useful and an aesthetic perspective has to be the ultimate criterion for judgment,” Parris concluded. “That is why their work was photographed both as sculptural forms and as containers in the service of their function.” Photos: Hunter Clarkson.Carolyn Dulin

“Wings,” a stoneware relief by Rochester, Michigan, artist Carolyn Dulin, was in­stalled recently at the headquarters of Lowry Computer Products, Inc. in Brighton, Mich-

Extruded stoneware “Wings,” 12 feet in lengthigan. Designed to suggest both a symbol of forward movement and a literal flight of birds appropriate to its setting among the trees in the central atrium of the contemporary building, it was composed of extruded stone­ware tiles, glazed and some accented with gold luster, cemented to wood panels and bolted to the wall. Photo: James Galbraith.

A Commissioned ReliefDo you work any larger? I had been wait­

ing to hear this question for about a year. Alan Meyers, a Washington, D.C., architect, asked me that in April 1984, and in Septem­ber my first large-scale commission was in­stalled at the Duron Paint Corporation’s new

“QUAD,” 32 inches in heightheadquarters. The real difference between what I had been producing and the Duron relief is that up until this point I had been selling existing works for existing spaces. Able to design for a specific site, I planned the commissioned relief to be a reflection of the

ContinuedMay 1985 79

News & Retrospectexterior elements of the industrial complex.My proximity to Washington allowed ac­

cess to the building while designing the panels. Although I had seen plans and consulted with the architect, I actually gathered the most visual information while sitting in the lobby and photographing the complex’s exterior. The development of the grid structure in each panel came from the movement of people in the complex.

To secure the commission, Meyers had presented slides, resume and a scale model to the client. The model was constructed from watercolor paper (using the same techniques that would be employed with clay), sprayed with clay stains and slips, then fixed with gum arabic.

After approval of the project by the client and architect, there were business policies to set as well as aesthetic and technical decisions to be made. By talking to other artists, I had devised a contract that structured the work and the payments. Because my studio is small,I found that the timing of the payments was critical. While the commission was in pro­duction, other work was pushed aside and backed up in firing.

Because the relief was to be constructed in sections, it was not necessary to alter my Cone 04 vitreous clay body or slips. The only physical element I needed to research was adhesives. In looking for an adhesive with better shear strength than I had previously used, I found that most corporations have research and engineering staffs that are will­ing to provide technical advice, specification sheets and samples for testing.

The installation of “QUAD” was simple. Each fired clay panel was mounted to wood, then suspended individually from stainless- steel studs. Text: Christine Demeter/Zim­merman; photo: Breger & Associates.

Arizona State Centennial ShowDuring the university’s centennial cele­

bration, the Arizona State University Art Collections presented a 15-month exhibition program devoted to ceramics. On view in Tempe through February 24 were works by ceramics faculty artists Jeanne Otis, Donald Schaumburg and Randall Schmidt, plus the11 current M.F.A. candidates. Shown from

Iridescent raku plate by Donald Schaumburgthis exhibition is a thrown plate, approxi­mately 14 inches in diameter, reduced in pine needles, by Donald Schaumburg, who has taught ceramics at Arizona State University for more than 30 years.

80 CERAMICS MONTHLY