Raku

The Raku style of pottery is closely associated with the Japanese tea ceremony. The word  "Raku" comes from the Chinese symbol representing concepts such as pleasure, enjoyment, comfort, peace and happiness.

The technique became popular with contemporary potters able to exploit the special qualities providing by the glazing and firing processes

Raku glazes are usually fired at around 900*C. They can be applied directly to the raw pot but a bisque firing beforehand reduces the risk of pots exploding and cracking

Raku kilns can be bought ready made and fully portable for regular use. They are usually quite small and therefore quick to heat up, even so, this initial heating could take two or three hours with refractory brick construction. Ceramic fibre has made the construction and firing of Raku a much shorter and reliable process. The insulation proprieties of ceramic fibre means that the kiln can be heated in a short time and quite easily kept up to the temperature.

The Raku kilns have removable doors or lids, which allow the pots to be taken out (when the glaze is seen to melt) using long handled tongs.

The alternate cooling and smoking of the pot creates coloured patterns in the open texture of the clay, lustre with some metallic oxides and interesting crackle effects.

  Raku is a fascinating means of introducing the student potter to all the elements of the art in one session: mixing the open textured clay, making the pots, applying the glaze by dipping and pouring, then painting with glaze and oxides (copper being a particularly effective one). The dried pots are placed into the red-hot interior and, because the kiln has a removable lid or door, it's possible to see when the glazes melt. The pots are then withdrawn from the kiln, glowing red, go be plunged into peat, damp leaves, shredded paper or sawdust.

The resulting clouds of smoke, and even flames, create reducing conditions, which can be controlled to some degree and so produce unusual and unique effects.

Raku firing is one of the most dramatic spectacles with the added bonus that the finished work will be on display at the end of the day