DIY Network

Glazing the Bowls Bill Van Gilder applies black and white glazes to the servers. From "Throwing Clay" episode DTHC-202

Master potter Bill Van Gilder is making two double-bowl servers. He started by throwing straight-sided bowls on the wheel, making sure each set was the same size and weight. Next, he joined the bowls to make servers and set them aside to dry soft-leather hard. When they were dry, he thumbed the bottoms smooth before adding textured handles to the sides of the servers.

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	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E

He's now ready to prepare the bowls for bisque firing before glazing the server sets.

1. Bill won't fire the bowls until they are bone dry. He dries them slowly and evenly, over the course of several days, with plastic covering the bowls. The plastic ensures the thin walls won't dry faster than the combined double walls; drying too fast could cause cracking (figure A).

2. When the bowls are dry, he loads them into the kiln for the bisque firing. The kiln will fire for 10 to 12 hours and cool for approximately 24 hours before the bowls can be removed and prepared for glazing.

3. Glaze colors of black and white are chosen for the servers. The sharpness of the two glazes against each other accents the oval shapes of the bowl (figure B).

4. Before glazing, Bill applies a circle of wax-resist emulsion to the foot of the bowls. He grips the bowls at the side of each handle and on the waxed areas on the base before submerging it in the black glaze. After dipping, he touches up any blemish spots with a finger dipped in glaze. Glaze drops on the wax-resist emulsion are wiped away: if left on the emulsion, they would melt and stick the bowl to the kiln shelf during firing (figure C).

5. He switches to a cream-rust glaze for the second dip. Because he doesn't want the glaze to enter the inside of the pot, he keeps the bowls very level as he dips them, stopping about 1/2" short of the foot. This ties the outside color visually to the inside color. Before turning the bowl over, he waits for the glaze to set up; this wait time prevents the glaze from running down the inside of the bowl. Where his fingers touched the handles, he touches up the spots with a brush dipped in glaze. The second server is dipped using the same techniques.

6. When the servers are dry, they are placed in the kiln for their high-temperature firing (figure D). The kiln will fire at a temperature of 2,200 degrees for 10 to 12 hours; after cooling for 24 hours, the kiln can be opened and the clayware removed (figure E).

RESOURCES :

Kilns
L & L Kilns
Website: www.hotkilns.com

Clay
Highwater Clays
Website: www.highwaterclays.com

Extruders
American Art Clay Co. Inc. (AMACO)
Website: www.amaco.com