Beginning Ceramics: Day 8

Today the students were anxiously  waiting to see their freshly fired glazed pinch pot projects.  Before handing out the projects Ms. Wager explained to the class the importance of fully glazing their entire projects.  Ms.Wager held up student work of both successful and unsuccessful glazing techniques.  The class held a discussion about which pieces were more successful and why.  Typically, the pieces that had 3 solid coats of glaze were the most successful.  It was common that students did not fully coat their pieces and wherever there wasn't any glaze white showed through (the true color of fired clay).

During this class the students and I finished glazing our rattle head projects.  The students took their time with glazing their pieces after reflecting upon their glazed pinch-pot project.  The students had a better understanding of the media and were more cautious while coating their pieces.

The skull images are pictures of the rattle head I created.  Influenced by the Mexican holiday Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) I created a piece that depicted life and death.  The rattle head has a beautiful noise when you shake it (proof that I constructed the thickness of the walls successfully).  As for glazing--I didn't! I used a staining technique which is applied with a brush and then is rinsed off with a sponge.  The staining technique provides an aged look and helps add contrast to the piece by giving it depth.  Also, staining is great for showing off detailed work.  After the piece is stained it is then re-fired to preserve the stain.  The true color of the clay is white and as you can see it is a great natural contrast to the stain.  I am very happy with the outcome of my piece!