Mastering Raku

Covers such topics as the history and philosophy of raku, types of clay, forming techniques, firing, glazes and decoration. Types of kilns and kiln construction are also fully explained and the book includes a gallery of works from around the world along with updated clay and glaze recipes.

Learn the key techniques, tips, and tricks for pit, barrel, raku, and wood firing. Fall in love with flames, wood, and the effect that unique firing methods have on pottery. Move beyond the electric kiln and explore the dramatic surfaces of raku, the flashes of salt firing, and the rustic look of ash rivulets. In this book, Lindsay Oesterritter provides a crash course in the most accessible methods of alternative firing. Raku firing requires minimal equipment and can easily be fueled with a standard propane tank. Likewise, pit and barrel firing do not require much in the way of initial investment. Yet all these techniques provide an immediate glimpse into the magic of firing. Bright reds and blues, dramatic black and white crackle, even metallic luster are instantly possible. For more experienced potters and studios looking to offer more, Oesterritter also explores wood-fired kilns. Drawing on years of experience and extensive interviews with fellow wood-fire potters, there is no comparable resource on the market. Features on top potters working today get to the heart of specialty techniques and asides show firing variations and traditional kilns in different cultures around the world. A gallery of showstopping work from a diverse group of artists round out the package and inspire you to get started.

Learn the key techniques, tips, and tricks for pit, barrel, raku, and wood firing. Fall in love with flames, wood, and the effect that unique firing methods have on pottery. Move beyond the electric kiln and explore the dramatic surfaces of raku, the flashes of salt firing, and the rustic look of ash rivulets. In this book, Lindsay Oesterritter provides a crash course in the most accessible methods of alternative firing. Raku firing requires minimal equipment and can easily be fueled with a standard propane tank. Likewise, pit and barrel firing do not require much in the way of initial investment. Yet all these techniques provide an immediate glimpse into the magic of firing. Bright reds and blues, dramatic black and white crackle, even metallic luster are instantly possible. For more experienced potters and studios looking to offer more, Oesterritter also explores wood-fired kilns. Drawing on years of experience and extensive interviews with fellow wood-fire potters, there is no comparable resource on the market. Features on top potters working today get to the heart of specialty techniques and asides show firing variations and traditional kilns in different cultures around the world. A gallery of showstopping work from a diverse group of artists round out the package and inspire you to get started. The Mastering Ceramics series is for artists who never stop learning. With compelling projects, expert insight, step-by-step photos, and galleries of work from today’s top artists, these books are the perfect studio companions. Also available from the series: Mastering Hand Building and Mastering the Potter's Wheel.

Raku is an ancient ceramics technique enjoying a modern-day renaissance. This groundbreaking new entry in the highly successful 500 series demonstrates the vitality and invention of today's raku ceramics. Objects including cups, plates, bowls, vases, and statuary contribute to this international gallery of work juried by Jim Romberg, one of the leading practitioners and teachers of raku in the world."

Advanced techniques in raku firing; covers production, kiln construction, glaze formulation, tools and more.

Mastering Hand Building teaches everything you need to know about building with clay by hand, from the basics of coils and slabs through more complex form design.

Covers a wide range of ways to use slips to decorate ceramic works, illustrated with contemporary examples.

In Raku: Investigations into Fire, David Jones examines contemporary work in the light of the three hundred and fifty year old aesthetic that led to its development. He demonstrates how this can still inform current expression. This book explores the movements of though and the transmission of knowledge across continents as the sparse details concerning this seductive technique were communicated. The processes characteristic of Raku particularly crackle and lustre development are examined and explained. Culminating in a questioning analysis of the contribution made by Raku to current practical and philosophical explorations into nature of clay and fire, this book is lavishly illustrated with images of new work and experiments with flame. AUTHOR: David Jones is currently a senior lecturer in the ceramics department at the University of Wolverhampton. His Raku fired ceramics have been exhibited and are in collections in Europe, Japan and USA. He is a fellow of the Craft Potters' Assoc. 200 colour photos