Glazes

My work is inspired by the glazes and forms of the early ceramics from Japan, China and Korea. I have spent many years studying and working out recipes for the ancient glazes and have added my own intuition to increase their depth and beauty, achieving layers of colour within colour.

 I have developed a 'Lang-Yao' or Red Flambé glaze, a rich blue 'Jun', a green Celadon, and a Black 'Tea Dust' Tenmoku, Shino and Wood Ash glazes.  My kiln 40 cu. ft. in size, I built myself, is of my own design, fired mainly with natural gas. My firing technique is called 'Reduction' firing. This means that I reduce the amount of oxygen going into the kiln to burn the fuel, I also stoke wood into the kiln towards the end of the firing, to increase this effect. I overlay 4 or 5 different glaze mixes on each pot, not in any precise way or style, but in a manor  to ensure every piece of my work comes out different, and this coupled with the reduction kiln firing; and the placing of the piece within the kiln - where every position in the kiln will give a different result, even if the glaze combination was identical.
All my glazes contain a proportion of wood-ash ; this is the ash left over from the burning of hedge cuttings from a local Farm, and also from the burning of old (un-reusable) pallets on my home fire in Winter. One of my favourite wood ashes is from Wild Rose and Hawthorn . Wood Ashes provide many intimate elements that one cant get otherwise from standard glaze materials, most importantly phosphorous combined with Calcium. See my 'oriental mystery' page for some glaze recipes .

I have evolved my glaze recipes over a long period of time to arrive at the work you see today; however I continue my experiments to achieve more and new exciting colours and qualities. Some of the glazes have a crackle pattern within the glaze structure, as much loved by collectors of Japanese and Chinese ceramics. The crackle effect can slowly develop over a number of years adding to the beauty of the piece, and it can be deliberately emphasized buy rubbing  in a pigment, as the Chinese often did, or it can be just left to let time take its course and 'mature' the pot. The crackle dose not in any way affect the use or structure of the pot, as they are fully vitrified  at very high temperatures which make them non porous and fully usable if wished.

Another very important point to state; is that my glazes or materials do not contain toxic materials; so there is, no lead,  no barium,  no antimony, no cadmium, no uranium, no selenium, no chromium, no nickel, no manganese, etc.; (some potters still use these dangerous materials to achieve strong colours). My glazes do have a high percentage of Silica and Alumina being fired at high stoneware temperatures. The principle fluxing element in my glazes is Calcium combined with smaller amounts of Potassium, Sodium and Magnesium; and my colours I achieve from very small amounts of Iron and Copper.

 Therefore my work is safe for food & drink, the maker, and the environment.

Many people have commented on the similarities between my work and that of W. Howson Taylor's of the Ruskin Pottery (1898-1933). Taylor developed a range of glazes inspired like my own from the ancient Japanese and Chinese; he kept his glaze recipes and methods very secret. When the Pottery closed he destroyed all the records, so his secrets died with him. I believe I have rediscovered these famous glazes and improved upon them. The Ruskin Pottery was named after John Ruskin probably the most influential Art critic/historian, visionary of the 19th Century - see my Ruskin page about my exhibition at his home.

GLAZE CLOSE UPS

My Flambé glaze

See an article from Ceramic Review about my search to reproduce Chinese Jun glazes.