What a difference fire makes.

Raku fired ceremonial tea bowl. Created using pinch pot techniques. The glazes used are an opaque white and copper. Where no glaze is used the clay goes black with the firing. The firing takes place in a kiln outside (heated to 1000 degrees), but the fun is when they come out, as quickly as possible they must be packed into containers filled with sawdust and newspaper to create fire – this blackens the clay and creates the cracked finish. The outcome is interesting as it cannot be fully controlled, the temperature inside the kiln is measured by eye. 

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