Alfred University Summer Ceramics, Wednesday July 12th
I arrived at the studio at 6:00 AM for a three-hour kiln shift — loading wood, watching the temperature rise 20 degrees, then letting it cool 10 degrees before adding more wood. Additional TAs were available for kiln-sitting, so I could leave early. To get an idea of the process click on the following brief video clips: Grad student loading upper fire-box; and In-Chin adjusting air intake in lower fire-box or ash pit. The temperature of the first chamber was around 2300 F and the second chamber a few hundred degrees cooler; we were close to the peak temperature. The bricks were radiating a great amount of heat, so much so, it was uncomfortable to be near the kiln. The temperature inside the kiln provides only a rough gauge of the firing progress. The key indicator is the state of pyrometric cones, which are positioned in several places inside the kiln behind peep-holes (in an indoor gas kiln) or removable bricks (in an outside “atmospheric kiln,” i.e. a wood, salt, or soda kiln). The cone-shaped ceramic material, which is set upright in refractory clay at an 8 degree angle, begins to melt and bend over when a specific amount of heatwork is attained. The kiln operator uses a series of cones representing heatwork from low-fire to high-fire ceramics. The series shown in the photo above, from low to high, left to right is, first row: Cone 011, 010, 08, 06, 05; second row: Cone 7, 8, 9, 10, 11. As the kiln progresses, first the low-fire cones melt and bend over, following by the higher-fire cones. 
The kiln operator keeps a close eye on the progress of the increasing heatwork. The kilns I used this summer all fired to cone 10, the point at which cone 10 softens and bends over. The wood kiln reached its maximum heatwork during the day, and later in the evening, the glow of the red-hot kiln shown through cracks in the bricks.
Today six bowls came out of bisque, and I threw five plates and two bowls. Julia, the potter next to me, gave me 2 lb of porcelain clay to try. This was the first time I threw porcelain, which has its own unique throwing properties. Compared to stoneware, porcelain is much softer and more malleable, almost like soft butter. I enjoyed throwing the porcelain and made two 1-lb bowls. I also trimmed and handled five mugs — losing one because of trimming too aggressively.
Visiting studio potter Bruce Cochrane presented the afternoon lecture. John Gill summarized his work as one of asking two related questions, “What can we do with material?” and “How can we dialog with it?” “Over the years,” he went on to say, “Bruce’s work has changed but the simplicity of the process has remained the same. He has a generosity of ‘the idea’ — seeking how the idea can expand.” Much of his work involves altering thrown clay — changing the form by manipulating cylinders and bowl-shaped forms into to entirely new forms, adding pierced designs, and altering the texture. I was fascinated by the world of possibilities involving altering thrown clay, and this is an area I’d like to explore.
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