Post 94 New Pots

 Since getting back from my little mission looking at trees and pots my friend the kiln and I have been busy. I've had two bisque firings and two of a scheduled three glaze firings with the third on for tomorrow. There has been a queue of commissioned pots and others that I need to finish before next week when I hit the road to head to Canberra for the AABC (Australian Association of Bonsai Clubs) annual National Convention from May 17 to 20.

I was always planning on taking about 10 pots to Canberra to show anyone who may be interested, but the trip will now also be to deliver pots in Newcastle and Sydney on the way as well as a couple of 'show and tell' calls.

My first port of call in Canberra will be the new Arboretum and now home of the National Bonsai and Penjing Collection, which sounds like a pretty impressive development.

 So there are a few pots to show from all this effort.

This one is one of my big Taraibune oval pots, number 40, so it's been sitting there for quite a while waiting its turn. Final size is 422 x 310 x 94, would be good with a big ficus.

The glaze on this one is formulated from John Post's Tomato Red glaze. I've used it quite a bit and have used this blue before but previously with 6% Rutile as well as the Copper and Cobalt.  I have a very nice Lilly Pilly in another big tub like this one that has the opacified blue and looks great. This time I just used the 0.5 Copper and 1 Cobalt straight and the colour is much brighter. The application itself has provided some nice colour differentiation.




This next one is a round Literati pot, number 60, of 304 diameter and 68 high. It's been commissioned for a literati pine and so it's almost mandatory to have a darker tone which looks a bit like a dark iron rich waxed unglazed pot. I think it's all of that with the added benefits of a glazed finish. I've put the glaze on reasonably heavily to get uniformity and also glazed the feet for the overall look.

The detail picture has come up a little lighter with the flash but shows the depth of glaze finish. The uniform satin finish has that nice tangible hard but soft feel of polished timber about it . The full pot picture is more faithful to the actual colour.

The glaze is an Iron red brown with just a little Titanium and Tin, again using an adapted form of John Post's Tomato base. The Iron source I used here is the Yellow Ochre. Now I think that's what it's called but I also think it's more of a pigment than any pure for of Iron Oxide. Typically you don't get the normal 'truth in labelling' rules applying in pottery shops! But I must ask. Regardless I've been experimenting with it lately too and find a much better red tonal response than with the Red Iron Oxide (which I'm pretty sure really is Iron Oxide). With the straight RIO the colour too often becomes a green toned bronzy brown. This Ochre stuff is great, really gives the colour a lift..