I love the magic that happens when you take a coloring mineral like copper, add heat and an alkaline base glaze.
-in a neutral or oxidizing atmosphere and you can get a glossy copper blue (teal) color.
-change it to a reduction atmosphere with some tin and perhaps a clear cover coat to get a gorgeous red.
-make the base glaze more acidic you can get a green.

 

About Liz Gowen

I fell in love with clay in 1970, and during the past 40+ years I have developed my passion for pottery and learned many techniques to accomplish making what I had in my mind.Life accidents and aging has caused me to adapt to new ways of working. I have been inspired by ancient pottery especially Greek and Asian Pottery, having minored in archaeology. I also have benifitted from modern improvements such as color stains.
Living across from the Delaware River, supplies a multitude subject matter for my current work with carved porcelain, inlaid slip, and underglaze painting. From the birds, wildlife, and fossil collecting to name a few.

 

It is like Christmas, opening the kiln to see what turns out and I often have to go away for part of the day so it can cool properly without me wanting to peek. I hope you enjoy looking through my pieces here and at some of my other links. They will all be updated as more work is available or sent to new homes.

Thanks for visiting. Liz

USES: don’t be stuck with what a pot should be used for. A tumbler can be; a vase, pencil holder, kitchen tool holder, drinking cup.

COLORS: for basic color coordination Look at a color wheel on the web, use a colors opposite, or a color in the piece. Most of all buy it because you like it!

Some terminology:

Mishima: carved lines filled with color or black slip then scraped away leaving a colored line.

Reduction fired: generally done in a fuel kiln where by decreasing the amount of air let into the kiln during firing causes a chemical reaction that changes glaze color ie. copper red.

Engobe: is a slip ( liquid clay) with a chemical added to lower the melting point. Mine are generally colored.

Porcelain: a white clay, fired to vitrification. ( just below melting point) This makes a nice “canvas” to do my paintings.

Tubeline decorating: Using a thickened slip, pushed out of a tube with a narrow end to draw a design that will remain elevated after firing.

Feathered slip Decoration: Putting a base coat of 1 color slip on a pot followed by say smaller circles on top. Take a pointed item, like a feather quill and draw it through the circles, pulls design in on top of circle, leaves a tail after coming out.

Colored transparent glaze: May be a clear glaze with colorants added in small amounts to put over a carved work. This allows the carving to be seen through the glaze.