Ohi style raku: A transparent glaze with iron and manganese, resembling molasses. Where it pools it is almost black. Where thinly applied it is a dark amber. The transparency shows nicely when the glaze is used over a white clay.
Yellow raku: Yellow slip is applied before the piece is bisque fired. A clear glaze is then applied for the raku firing.
Metallic raku: When glazes high in metallic oxides are exposed to intense reduction at low temperatures, as in the smoke chamber following raku firing, the surface becomes lustrous, oily looking, or metallic. This sample shows a combination of clear color and metallic lustre.
Colored raku: Various metallic oxides are mixed with the transparent glaze. Underglaze blue is also used. All are then covered with more transparent glaze to discourage a metallic surface from developing. During firing the colors have dripped and blended.
Old Seto Glaze: A greenish transparent glaze based on wood ash, feldspar, and red clay. It is best on porcelain or light stoneware, or on dark stoneware over white slip.
Old Seto Glaze over white slip. The white slip acts as a transparent veil if thin, or if thickly applied, can completely mask the dark clay underneath.
Matte Black ash glaze: Ochre and ash are the essential ingredients of this matte black glaze. The surface becomes slightly metallic in high temperature reduction firing. Under certain firing conditions and when the glaze is thickly applied, thickly glazed areas may appear browner or develop greenish yellow specks, as shown in the sample.
Underglaze blue: A variety of clay and glaze combinations are used for this style. The glazes are stabilized by a high kaolin content so they will not run and distort the drawing. Porcelain or white stoneware is generally used as the clay body for underglaze blue, but some felspathic glazes with a high kaolin content remain opaque enough to appear whitish even if used on a toasty clay, while still allowing the blue drawing to show through.
Iron Slip Glazes: Local common iron bearing clays and ground shales melt to form smooth dark browns, such as found on old stoneware jugs and bottles. Varying amounts of wood-ash, feldspar, or limestone are added for black, mottled ochre-green, or a metallic red "persimmon" color.
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Karatsu Glaze: A very simple feldspar based glaze with small amounts of added hardwood ash, red clay and kaolin. This is usually a gray glaze, semi-opaque, best on buff to dark stoneware. Because of the iron content in the red clay, cool blue and greenish tones develop at higher temperatures (cone 10) in heavy reduction.
Kaki Glaze: This is the Karatsu Glaze with 10% red iron oxide.
Ash glaze: High proportion of wood ash, with some clay and feldspar. The ash glaze is naturally tan to greenish yellow and varied in color and texture throughout, with a tendency to collect in pools where it has run on the insides of plates and bowls. Wood-ash alone, or with only small amounts of clay and feldspar, makes a mottled glaze that gathers in rivulets and runs when it is thickly applied and fired high. Fired too low, it is gritty and dull gray.
Shino: The combination of feldspar, clay, and soda ash gives this glaze it rosy blush. This. Is actually American Shino, inspired by Japanese Shino but quite different. On stoneware the thinly applied Shino can appear the color of traditional red lacquer ware. A double layer gives a contrast of pearly white over the reddish tones. If very thick the opaque white "crawls" leaving areas of the clay exposed, creating even more surface interest.
Chun: Chun glaze appears bluish from the presence of magnesium and iron and flashes red when exposed to copper in the firing. This type of glazing dates back to the Sung dynasty in China.
Flashing and dripping: In a hot part of the wood-fired kiln but protected from ash buildup, this unglazed sample caught glassy drips from the shelf above where thick natural ash glaze had built up over time. Flashing refers to the reddish color of the bare clay which develops in the atmosphere of the wood-fired kiln.
Fused ash: Wood ash carried by the swift passage of flame over the ware during wood-firing lands on a horizontal surface and fuses, leaving a natural mottled gold tone as a surface effect.
Hidasuki: Wood-fired with straw marking. Placed in a section of the kiln where little ash reaches it, the piece gains interest when ash from the straw placed on it leaves reddish lines.
Burnished red clay: Fired to low temperatures this red sculpture clay is a warm sandstone hue and remains chalky and porous. The burnishing adds a slight sheen and smoothes the surface so that roughness will not detract from the flowing lines of the small sculpture. Burnishing is also done on pieces that will be smoked black. The clay is rubbed with a polished stone when it becomes hard but not yet dry.
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