Get inspired and get glazing!

INTRODUCTION

HUMANS LOVE TO AMAZE. It is in the nature of our species that we are continually trying to impress each other. A glance at social media will quickly illustrate this point! We also have the capacity to amaze ourselves—and this sensation never gets old. Discovering something new or achieving a goal fills us with joy and a sense of accomplishment. Pushing our limits bolsters the spirit and helps us to find more meaning in our lives. There’s not much better than that particular satisfaction: the smile, the energy, and even at times a newfound peace with the world.

GETTING STARTED

WHETHER YOU GRADUATED from a well-stocked university or moved to a new town with a community studio, we’ve all been there: that moment when you may recognize a glaze or two, but much is unfamiliar. Perhaps you are now using a different clay body or considering firing to a new temperature. There could be a moment of trepidation, worry that you may coat good pots in bad glaze. In this situation I encourage you to face that fear and dive right in! In the act of searching to make your own work you have to experiment, stretch, and try new things, expecting that not all of them will work out.

MID-RANGE (CONE 6) GLAZES

IF YOU EVER DOUBT THE MAGIC of mid-range, look no further than Tenmoku Gold. A versatile glaze, it looks amazing all by itself: you can get lost staring at its golden crystals floating in an amber sea. Tenmoku Gold also plays well with others. Used over another glaze, it often adds depth with those wonderful crystals. However, as a base glaze in the tests run for this book, I found it combined with several other glazes in surprising ways—creating iridescent purples and blues the likes of which I have never seen come out of an electric kiln. It is simply amazing!

HIGH-FIRE (CONE 10) GLAZES

THE FIRST POTS I EVER SAW come out of a high-fire gas kiln made quite an impression on me. They were a dark stoneware, reduction fired, with iron-bearing glazes that produced wonderful, warm earth tones. They had a natural, organic look that suggested the geological origins of clay and glaze—an aesthetic popular in the 1970s. To me, these pots had the soft feel and muted tones of a pair of well-worn corduroy bellbottoms. I have since come to realize that high-fire possibilities extend beyond the Shinos, celadons, and tenmokus that first drew me to high-fire pottery. In this book, I have tried to include a full spectrum of possibilities. I made sure to include plenty of examples of classic glaze recipes, but have also included copper reds, titanium whites, and barium blues that are brightly colored and really pop. I have to say, some of the combinations are mind blowing! Ready to dive in? Let’s go!

LOW-FIRE (CONE 05) GLAZES

ALTHOUGH OVERLOOKED WITH REGULARITY by some artists, low-fire clay and glaze remains one of the most fascinating areas of study within the field of ceramics. Notably, low-fire directly traces major achievements in human evolution. In his book Low Fire: Other Ways to Work in Clay, Leon Nigrosh points out the most basic of low-fired clay objects is the sun-dried adobe brick. Adobe (and cob building and similar methods) changed the game for humans and has provided a cooling shelter from the elements for many thousands of years. Many of the methods used in making adobe brick continue to be used in building to this day.

FIRING AND FINISHING

YOU CAN PUT HUNDREDS OF HOURS into making quality work and developing beautiful glazes, but a hard truth in ceramics is that work can be easily lost if you neglect any aspect of firing and finishing. Bad firings happen to the best of us and the loss of effort, time, material, and money due to a bad firing can ruin an otherwise sunny day. (Speaking of, if things have gone wrong and your misery would like company, Taylor Robenalt’s “Ceramic Casualties” is a great Instagram follow!) Sure you can turn to non-attachment to outcome as an important lesson in these scenarios, or perhaps blame it on the kiln gods, but it is more important to isolate what happened and correct it. Thankfully ceramics is based on physics and chemistry, which might be the most powerful kiln gods of all. I know you’ve worked hard, and the goal of this book is to make sure that your hard work pays off!

TEST TILES

Once you’ve properly prepped your glaze, always test it first before glazing a whole kiln load. Have test tiles on the ready, and make an attempt to try something new every time you fire. The test tiles themselves should be little works of art that represent your style so they give you meaningful information about how the glazes will perform on your work. The test tiles for this book are wheel-thrown tumblers, quick to make and tall enough to show how far a combination will run, but also a saleable item when they turn out well.

When testing a new glaze, apply one coat and let it dry. You may want to apply a second or even third coat near the top of the tile to get more information about how the glaze performs when applied more thickly. Similarly, test new combinations on a tile: Dip the entire piece in the first glaze. Let it dry. Then apply subsequent layers of glaze toward the top of the piece until you can see how they interact.

DEVELOPING AN AESTHETIC

Most people have a firm opinion when it comes to their favorite colors, textures, and patterns. This personal aesthetic is an ever-evolving reflection of our worldview and affects what we think of as “beautiful” or “ugly.” The differences in these values for every individual are part of the beauty of ceramics; each of us can contribute uniquely to the conversation. Certain glazes will give you the power to express what you find beautiful. Hopefully you will find many of them in this book!

There are also glazes and combinations that you will dislike, though even these can be useful in making certain types of artistic statements. In certain types of art, sometimes “ugly” is the goal! It is okay to not like certain glazes or to not pursue them any further. Do remember that glazing, and the appreciation of glaze, is a highly personal matter. Just because a particular result makes you want to cry doesn’t mean someone else won’t treasure it.

MID-RANGE GLAZE RECIPES

SUNSHINE

Cone: 6

Atmosphere: Oxidation

Surface: Semigloss

Color: Yellow

MODIFIER GLAZES

CHUN CELADON

Cone: 5–6

Atmosphere: Oxidation

Surface: Glossy

Color: Celadon

TWO-GLAZE COMBINATIONS

Spearmint + Isa’s Bomb Blue

THREE OR MORE GLAZE COMBINATIONS

Oatmeal + Gen’s Satin Matte +

5×20 Clear

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Get inspired and get glazing! Amazing Glaze Recipes and Combinations provides a captivating collection of sure-fire glaze recipes and electrifying combinations for low-fire, mid-range, and high-fire potters. Hundreds of photos and technically-edited recipes ensure you’ll get the best possible results.

Whether you’re searching for excitement at cone 6 or looking for the perfect high-fire shino recipe, you’ve come to the right place. Join Gabriel Kline, author of Amazing Glaze and founder of Odyssey Clayworks, for page after color-filled page of glazes. Start by learning the keys to success when applying glazes, then choose the temperature range you want to explore first. Gabriel’s collection of well-tested recipes draw on his decades of experience as an instructor and leader of a communal arts studio—including current and past student favorites as well as a few timeless gems.

Of course he doesn’t stop there! In addition to plentiful tiles showing off two-glaze combinations, Gabriel shares multi-glaze combinations developed through years of trial and error. From waterfall blues to eye-popping bursts of red, there’s a rainbow of options. Just as in Amazing Glaze, the recipes have all been technically edited and each one has a photo. By controlling specific gravity and application, the goal is always getting the perfect coat of glaze recipe after recipe.

Special topics like majolica and raku firing provide welcome detours, and a variety of artist features serve as launching points for new explorations. Stunning galleries from today’s top artists provide even more glazing ideas.

From the Publisher

Get inspired and get glazing!

INTRODUCTION

HUMANS LOVE TO AMAZE. It is in the nature of our species that we are continually trying to impress each other. A glance at social media will quickly illustrate this point! We also have the capacity to amaze ourselves—and this sensation never gets old. Discovering something new or achieving a goal fills us with joy and a sense of accomplishment. Pushing our limits bolsters the spirit and helps us to find more meaning in our lives. There’s not much better than that particular satisfaction: the smile, the energy, and even at times a newfound peace with the world.

GETTING STARTED

WHETHER YOU GRADUATED from a well-stocked university or moved to a new town with a community studio, we’ve all been there: that moment when you may recognize a glaze or two, but much is unfamiliar. Perhaps you are now using a different clay body or considering firing to a new temperature. There could be a moment of trepidation, worry that you may coat good pots in bad glaze. In this situation I encourage you to face that fear and dive right in! In the act of searching to make your own work you have to experiment, stretch, and try new things, expecting that not all of them will work out.

MID-RANGE (CONE 6) GLAZES

IF YOU EVER DOUBT THE MAGIC of mid-range, look no further than Tenmoku Gold. A versatile glaze, it looks amazing all by itself: you can get lost staring at its golden crystals floating in an amber sea. Tenmoku Gold also plays well with others. Used over another glaze, it often adds depth with those wonderful crystals. However, as a base glaze in the tests run for this book, I found it combined with several other glazes in surprising ways—creating iridescent purples and blues the likes of which I have never seen come out of an electric kiln. It is simply amazing!

HIGH-FIRE (CONE 10) GLAZES

THE FIRST POTS I EVER SAW come out of a high-fire gas kiln made quite an impression on me. They were a dark stoneware, reduction fired, with iron-bearing glazes that produced wonderful, warm earth tones. They had a natural, organic look that suggested the geological origins of clay and glaze—an aesthetic popular in the 1970s. To me, these pots had the soft feel and muted tones of a pair of well-worn corduroy bellbottoms. I have since come to realize that high-fire possibilities extend beyond the Shinos, celadons, and tenmokus that first drew me to high-fire pottery. In this book, I have tried to include a full spectrum of possibilities. I made sure to include plenty of examples of classic glaze recipes, but have also included copper reds, titanium whites, and barium blues that are brightly colored and really pop. I have to say, some of the combinations are mind blowing! Ready to dive in? Let’s go!

LOW-FIRE (CONE 05) GLAZES

ALTHOUGH OVERLOOKED WITH REGULARITY by some artists, low-fire clay and glaze remains one of the most fascinating areas of study within the field of ceramics. Notably, low-fire directly traces major achievements in human evolution. In his book Low Fire: Other Ways to Work in Clay, Leon Nigrosh points out the most basic of low-fired clay objects is the sun-dried adobe brick. Adobe (and cob building and similar methods) changed the game for humans and has provided a cooling shelter from the elements for many thousands of years. Many of the methods used in making adobe brick continue to be used in building to this day.

FIRING AND FINISHING

YOU CAN PUT HUNDREDS OF HOURS into making quality work and developing beautiful glazes, but a hard truth in ceramics is that work can be easily lost if you neglect any aspect of firing and finishing. Bad firings happen to the best of us and the loss of effort, time, material, and money due to a bad firing can ruin an otherwise sunny day. (Speaking of, if things have gone wrong and your misery would like company, Taylor Robenalt’s “Ceramic Casualties” is a great Instagram follow!) Sure you can turn to non-attachment to outcome as an important lesson in these scenarios, or perhaps blame it on the kiln gods, but it is more important to isolate what happened and correct it. Thankfully ceramics is based on physics and chemistry, which might be the most powerful kiln gods of all. I know you’ve worked hard, and the goal of this book is to make sure that your hard work pays off!

TEST TILES

Once you’ve properly prepped your glaze, always test it first before glazing a whole kiln load. Have test tiles on the ready, and make an attempt to try something new every time you fire. The test tiles themselves should be little works of art that represent your style so they give you meaningful information about how the glazes will perform on your work. The test tiles for this book are wheel-thrown tumblers, quick to make and tall enough to show how far a combination will run, but also a saleable item when they turn out well.

When testing a new glaze, apply one coat and let it dry. You may want to apply a second or even third coat near the top of the tile to get more information about how the glaze performs when applied more thickly. Similarly, test new combinations on a tile: Dip the entire piece in the first glaze. Let it dry. Then apply subsequent layers of glaze toward the top of the piece until you can see how they interact.

DEVELOPING AN AESTHETIC

Most people have a firm opinion when it comes to their favorite colors, textures, and patterns. This personal aesthetic is an ever-evolving reflection of our worldview and affects what we think of as “beautiful” or “ugly.” The differences in these values for every individual are part of the beauty of ceramics; each of us can contribute uniquely to the conversation. Certain glazes will give you the power to express what you find beautiful. Hopefully you will find many of them in this book!

There are also glazes and combinations that you will dislike, though even these can be useful in making certain types of artistic statements. In certain types of art, sometimes “ugly” is the goal! It is okay to not like certain glazes or to not pursue them any further. Do remember that glazing, and the appreciation of glaze, is a highly personal matter. Just because a particular result makes you want to cry doesn’t mean someone else won’t treasure it.

MID-RANGE GLAZE RECIPES

SUNSHINE

Cone: 6

Atmosphere: Oxidation

Surface: Semigloss

Color: Yellow

MODIFIER GLAZES

CHUN CELADON

Cone: 5–6

Atmosphere: Oxidation

Surface: Glossy

Color: Celadon

TWO-GLAZE COMBINATIONS

Spearmint + Isa’s Bomb Blue

THREE OR MORE GLAZE COMBINATIONS

Oatmeal + Gen’s Satin Matte +

5×20 Clear

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Quarry Books (August 31, 2021)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 176 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1589239806
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1589239807
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.7 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.3 x 0.95 x 10.25 inches

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ASIN : 1589239806

Price Last Updated: Feb 26, 2025 23:17:10 UTC