[Clayart] does claybody matter/long

[mel jacobson]

that question appeared last week. YES, CLAY BODY ALWAYS MATTERS.
One can create a body that will tolerate fast drying. Adding grog
or fine sand will for sure aid in careful no crack drying.

Raku clay for example. It takes a great deal of abuse. Then with extreme care
we have raku'd porcelain.

Many people get the wrong impression when I say I "make my own clay body".
I alter the clay to make it work for the mission. What am I doing, and how
do I get there without cracked, stupid pots?

I am for sure going to say again..."everyone wants glaze recipes, I want a great
colored clay body that makes my simple glazes turn to racers."

I have loved firing electric and having a clay body that can be colored any way I want.
It is never just white.

All of my clay comes from my pug mill. Never a box. If everyone uses the same boxed clay
the pots are the same. That is the reason for searching for a magic glaze.

I start every series of pots with a self discussion about "what clay to use?". Do I add
ochre, red iron, black iron?  What happens if I fire some of the pots in the gas kiln
to cone 7, or the electric kiln to cone 7. How does reduction affect the outcome???  One
glaze makes ten different colors and surface. With down firing as we know...we have five
new colors. And multi layers can be magic.

At present I am only firing 5/20 in five colors...white, black, blue, green and brown.
they come out 50 different pots. I don't even use a scale. I have a yogurt container
that I fill five times. add water. I use a tablespoon to add oxides. I do not write
down anything. My greatest quest is "serendipity". I want to be "Awwed"

There is a major study in the AW factor and depression. People that have no moments of
internal joy, or.."Aww, look at that mountain this morning" can go into depression.
PTSD can be helped with learning AW. A kitten will work. Looking at my Great Grand son
can make me shiver. Opening a kiln full of new work makes me shiver. The morning sun in the
pine trees covered with snow makes me shiver. My life is overloaded with AW. I create paths
in my work to make me "see new and different outcomes"/

I have been painting the past two weeks. In the living room, over a Persian rug. The biggest
table I have is in that room. I draped a huge old sheet over everything. I put the sheet over
my lap. works great. When I see dead grass green next to violet it makes me smile. I aw myself.
I paint to please me. And the problem solving is amazing. Twenty problems solved in a half hour.
I am not sitting in a chair, drinking scotch waiting to die. I push me, all the time. I love the idea,
"paint it white, start again."

I am working on a new idea every day. Cone 7 shino made from altering 5/20. Increase the feldspar.
add soda ash. fire reduction to cone 7, down fire with carbon. there are over 100 pots done, waiting
for the snow to melt so I can get to the kiln. It will snow every day this week. 70 inches of snow
will be surpassed this week. I am AWWWWED by nature. I can wait.
Love to all, Mel

website: www.melpots.com
www.melpots.com/CLAYART.HTML