Q&A: Salt Firing Substitutes
Q: Can I substitute sodium bicarbonate for sodium carbonate in my soda firing kiln?
CLAYPIT
John Olsen and Me: A Collaboration
Over the later stages of his life and career, I worked with John Olsen in a joint investigation of the dialogue between art and ceramics. It was a rich, if rather complicated, collaboration. In this article I provide a personal account of that experience.
Garth Clark’s Endnotes: The Romantic Brutalist
I commented that they were too factory-like and while I like to blame my insensitivity on the gallery interior, it was really blindness on my part.
John Neely
John’s many achievements are presented formally elsewhere – his development of the train kiln, variants of which are now seen around the world; his research on reduction cooling and red colours in woodfiring, and his knowledge and teaching are all well known. I will write about him as a friend.
The Fairness Cup: A Greedy Alert from Ancient China
The ‘Fairness Cup’ is a porcelain cup, made for drinking, created by the Han nationality of Ancient China. It dates to the middle of the Tang Dynasty (827-841 AD), which is similar to the ‘Shentong Cup’ of the Tang Wenzong period described in the book, Qing Yi Lu, written by Tao Gu during the Song Dynasty. At present, the earliest unearthed ‘Fairness Cup’ is that from the Longquan Kiln in the late Song Dynasty and early Yuan Dynasty. However, due to the small number of discoveries during that time period, and the immature technology, it should be regarded as an example of early stage development.