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Ravenheart Ceramics

@ravenheartceramics.bsky.social

490 followers 1.1K following 260 posts

I'm a primarily hobbyist ceramicist in northern New England. My 🏳️‍🌈 and political content will probably remain primarily @ianmnoone.bsky.social, but not entirely. May get sweary

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · Jan 11

I've started this account specifically to share my pottery content, since Meta has decided preemptively to jump on the fascist bandwagon. It's a shame, since Insta is the best medium for sharing visual content, but fuck Zuckerberg.

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 1d

When I was digging this out of the creek bed last March, my mom said that somebody from a mining company had once approached my grandfather about mining kaolin on the property, which nobody had ever mentioned before

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Reposted by Ravenheart Ceramics

Athanaca @athanaca.bsky.social · 1d

Iridescent black🖤

#bird #raven #birdart #animalart #digitalart #illustration #birdwatching #crow #original #colorful #avian
#feather

A raven with colorful reflections on its feathers

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 1d

I had a chance to talk with Hitomi Shibata, who works with NC wild clays, at a conference in June, and she thought it had a good likelihood of being high fire based on her experience. I fired it inside a sacrificial bowl just in case, of course, but I've got a bunch of this clay, so I'm excited

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 1d

The way this rutile glaze shimmers

Wood-fired bud vase with a glimmering, honey brown glaze

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 1d

My SC wild Creek bank clay survived ∆10, and I could not be more stoked!

Small rice bowl of 100% wild stoneware, fired to ∆10 in a wood kiln

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 1d

Only ash that deposited in the firing. Otherwise it's 30 Minspar : 30 silica : 20 EPK : 20 whiting with 1% iron oxide

I did some others with the same base and 10% light rutile + 5% iron oxide

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 1d

Really happy with how this glaze came out in the front stack. Hoping it's consistent through the kiln

Whisky tumbler glazed inside with a basic opaque celadon glaze

Small dish glazed thinly with celadon glaze, which is more transparent due to the thickness of the glaze application

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 1d

Not beating the allegations of being a hot mess

Photo of a person's nose and mouth smeared with black wood ash

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 1d

When I first saw the orb, I was thinking more Star Wars

a man with a beard is standing next to a woman and says that 's no moon .

Alt: Obi Wan Kenobi seeing the Death Star and saying that's no moon .

media.tenor.com

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 1d

About to open this baby up and see what we've got

Photo of the interior of a Japanese-style, wood-fired anagama kiln just prior to opening

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 7d

A few of the peepholes did not have cone packs, and one of my pots was right in front of one of those, so I got to see a little of my work in progress

Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 8d

Jet of orange-red flame emerging from a chimney above a metal roof against a moonlit night sky

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 8d

Here for my fourth of four overnight shifts. Temps are holding steady and things are moving along

Large Japanese-style anagama kiln in an open shed with fire coming from ports on top

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 21d

Come to New England and they could become a reality 😁

Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 21d

Once the anagama gets going it'll be like that to stoke, but I signed up for overnight shifts where it's getting down into the 40s

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 21d

I'm at anagama kiln loading but it's in the 60s and not humid

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 21d

Mugs and whisky tumblers and bowls, plus my one wild clay bowl that I'm hoping doesn't melt

Array of glazed pots staged on a table for loading into the kiln

Three kurinuki style thrown and carved and glazed whisky tumblers, with some other pots and ceramic earthworms visible off to the left of the frame

Wild clay rice bowl wadded over a high fire clay bowl in case the wild clay melts in the high temperature wood firing

Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 22d

Was so busy glazing today that I forgot to take any pics! Now everything's loaded up in the car to take to kiln loading tomorrow

Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 27d

Sounds like argle bargle to me

Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 27d

The kiln actually cooled enough overnight that I was able to empty it before I got on the road this morning, after all. The only casualty, sadly, was the dog bowl I threw for Petal in 100% wild SC clay. May still glaze okay, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. The rice bowls I did in the same clay turned out great

A jumble of freshly bisque-fired ceramics in a makeshift kiln

A straight-sided, bisque-fired, ceramic dog bowl with a hairline crack running up the side

Same dog bowl as the previous photo sitting on a tea towel on a workbench to show the entire form. The hairline crack is just visible at the front of the piece

A rice bowl with a deep foot ring made from 100% wild clay harvested in South Carolina

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Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 28d

All valves are open now and the highest temp I saw was 783.5°C. Now it's hovering a bit lower and will be going down as the propane runs out, but I think I got about cone 016, which is sufficient for bisque firing. Probably won't be cool enough for glazing before I have to leave tomorrow, though

$An orange pyrometer sitting on pieces of refractory brick showing a temperature of 780°C$

Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 28d

Using this setup with only 20# propane tanks, I've not been able to get things above bisque temps. That's at least adequate to get work ready for the anagama, though

A small outdoor kiln made of white insulating firebrick with a propane weed burner inserted into a port at the base

$Orange pyrometer sitting on top of pieces of refractory brick showing a temperature of 700°C$

Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 28d

Hello, quartz inversion!

$An orange pyrometer sitting on pieces of refractory brick showing a temperature of 573.7°C. At around 573°C, quartz in ceramics undergoes a change in crystalline structure that results in a rapid and reversible change in its volume. This can result in cracks in vulnerable or stressed areas in the ceramic$

Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 28d

Now we're cookin' with gas!

$An orange pyrometer sitting on pieces of refractory brick showing a temperature of 209.7°C$

Ravenheart Ceramics @ravenheartceramics.bsky.social · 29d

Today was the last work day at the anagama before loading starts next weekend. Since I'm away for work all this coming week, I need to try to bisque fire tomorrow, so I put my whisky tumblers in a low oven (mine heats as low as 170°F/77°C) before I left. Hopefully there won't be any disasters

Half a dozen thrown and carved unfired whisky mugs sitting on a beat up aluminum pizza pan in an oven

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