I am building another, more ambitious kiln out of clay, kelp and rushes this Summer. It will mark my 30th year of being a potter amd progress my sculpture techniques and the scope of my work.
I would like to invite all my friends, patrons and all those who are interested in clay and fire to come to a firing celebration and barbeque on Thursday the 3rd August from 6pm onwards.
The idea of the kiln is a series of cave like structures that will meander through the fruit trees and up the bank in the pottery garden.
Of course building the kiln is going to be an interesting experience in itself and I am hoping some people would like to share this with me and volunteer for adobe making days.
I need people that are prepared to slosh about in clay, roll big stones around the garden, chop rushes and kelp and various other related tasks. We have already made the base and first fire box and we anticipate that after completion of the domes we will have a spectacle equal to the kiln we built at the Yarrows Prehistoric Festival last year. Many thanks to Creative Scotland and the HIgh Life Highland for the Visual Artists and Craft Makers award that has enabled me to buy the materials for this project.
I am looking for helpers on any day between Monday 24th of July to Wednesday 2nd of August – for an hour, for a day… or more. We have space to camp in the garden and have a couple of two man tents we could lend. There is also local accomadation such as Forse of Nature (Bed and Breakfast) and Bonnie Views (Bed and Breakfast) both are here in Forse and within walking distance. There will be plenty of food in our kitchen and beers in the fridge! And any potters can bring pieces to place inside the kiln. I am hoping to fire the kiln up to stoneware temperatures and I will be using soda.