#the kilns

[claypigeonpottery]

@unwanted-dandelion-seeds

(about this guy)

a kiln god is a small clay sculptural creature that stays on/in/near a kiln while it’s firing, to watch over the pottery inside and protect it

mine are all vaguely humanoid and holding pottery, but they can be anything

a lot of people leave their kiln gods unglazed, and only ever make one or two. because I work with a shared kiln, my kiln gods have to be inside the kiln so they don’t get bumped or broken, so it makes more sense to glaze them and keep making more

(^this one I kept, she lives on my pottery desk)

people have lots of little traditions around kilns and pottery. there are so many variables to successfully finishing a piece of pottery, and many of the steps are out of our control. it’s nice to have a kiln god watching over our work

if you take a pottery class, your teacher might mention the kiln gods. for some potters/studios they’re more of a concept than anything physical

what can I say, humans just love to make little guys

[robinsceramics]

she turned out SO pretty <333

image description: a ceramic coyote with warm brown fur striped with black. It looks up, mouth open to reveal its little fangs.

[shattered-earth]

I accidentally made a bowl you can't set down looollllll....

I love it but my mind boggles at how it even exists

[fuckyeahchinesefashion]

handmade square zishahu紫砂壶(chinese yixing clay teapot) by 一壶yihu

[muzsmocsing]

Reading svsss really puts into perspective just how MIRACULOUSLY normal Hua Cheng turned out despite his arguably worse circumstances.

[regionalpancake]

MY FIRST CLAY BUST I’M SO PROUD

[behind the scenes post here]

[diabolicjoy]

some handmade ceramic plates 🍊🌷my ig

[androgynousalienart]

ANOTHER ONE FROM MY MOST RECENT FIRING ✨

[sleepnoises]

Commission of a Weather Angel to sit by the window and watch the rain. It ended up looking very weathered, fittingly!

[chimerical-daydreams]

who in the polycule could pull off fishnets, a croptop and a miniskirt all at once?

I think there is only one correct answer.

[radiantmists]

he xuan spending years trying to break out of the kiln: -_-

the massive xie lian statue in the corner:

🙂

[claypigeonpottery]

How does glazing work? In the photos you just posted it looks like a solid layer like mud I was picturing it like a translucent coating like paint or modge podge. Does it peel off after firing?

it actually melts! it hardens into that glassy finish once it cools. often the glazes are completely different colours before and after firing.

ceramic glaze composition is a bit beyond me tbh—it’s either chemistry or witchcraft lol

ceramic glaze coats the bisqueware and melts in the kiln. that’s why you have to be sure there’s no glaze on the bottom of pieces, or anything leaning against the piece, because once the glaze cools it will be attached to whatever it was touching

(and these ones have glass marbles over the clear glaze—they melt down and create a cool watery effect)

[customcreatures]

Recently started making little Kiln Spirits to watch over other ceramic pieces during the firing process <3

[waspspots]

The finished fossil timescale vase! Seven periods represented by seven fossils in the seven colors of the rainbow. Closeups and fossil names below

Red: Trilobites, ammonites, and pikaia among other things for the Cambrian. Orange: Tiktaalik filling in as the Devonian representative, had to include the iconic transition fossil :] Yellow: Thrinaxodon and Broomistega in the Triassic cuddle. Green: my favorite pterosaur, Ramphorynchus, representing the Jurassic. Blue: my first favorite dinosaur, Spinosaurus, for the Cretaceous. Indigo: my favorite animal, a coelacanth, sort of wedged in for the Late Cretaceous since I couldn't come up with a better Cenozoic fossil in time. Violet: Sahelanthropus Tchadensis, an early hominid (I'm not 100% on if it's still regarded as our earliest known ancestor, cool regardless!!)

[moldspace]

tarasque

[searchsystem]

Studio Kiln / Mayda / Sign / 2024