Ceramic Jars

                                   Ceramic Jars

There is a bit of misunderstanding about the Raku ceramic process and Smoke Fire process and how they differ.  I want to show three jars which illustrate the differences. 

This is a raku pot.  The low fire green and white glazes went on, then fired, then back into a Raku kiln, and pulled out red hot and dunked in leaves.  Then the jar body washed and  waxed.  The Raku glaze is brittle and cracks easily when stressed in the firing, thus the crackle pattern on this jar.  The black areas are bare clay surface.  In the reduction, created by putting hot pots into leaves, these areas (unprotected by a glaze) are blackened.  The interior of this pot is bare, unburnished ceramic though the clear lip glaze extends down into the pot an inch or two.  (size 10" X 8"): 

This smoke fired jar was covered with a red slip, burnished, bisqued, glaze added, then thrown into a smoke fire barrel and smoked.  The lip was protected by glaze.  The smoke gives the surface a darker, mottled finish.    This jar has a smooth, functional interior glaze and would hold liquids, though is probably not suitable for kitchen use.  This jar is 10" X 8":

This jar (below) was bisqued and painted panels and designs added to the white slip surface, then the panels were covered with a clear glaze and fired, then it went in a smoke fire barrel, cooled, cleaned and waxed.   This jar is not typical of a lot of smoke fires ware.  Size is 10" X 8":