Raku – Playing With Fire with Michael Thornton – G24070303
Come experience an intense and engaging week in the world of Raku Pottery. No prior experience necessary.
The Raku method of firing pottery has evolved from its Japanese origins to become a popular technique for potters seeking to invite an expressive element of surprise and spontaneity into their ceramic work. The exciting and quick firing process involves dramatically opening the kiln at the peak of its heat and removing the glowing-orange pottery with long metal tongs. The blazing hot pottery is then smoked in post-firing reduction chambers, creating trademark, exotic effects in the glaze and surface patina. Participants will engage in intensive studio sessions making new pottery pieces for undergoing the Raku-firing process. Glazing and surface treatments such as Crackle, Metallic Luster, Black Matte, Horsehair and Naked Raku will be instructed.
A growth opportunity for everyone – learn as a beginner, or deepen your knowledge and experience while exploring the possibilities of Raku Pottery. Take away completed ceramic artworks as enduring mementos of your time at Ghost Ranch.
Instructor
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Michael ThorntonMichael Ray Thornton is a master potter and art teacher whose work expresses his affinity with Oriental pottery traditions and aesthetics. He has studied his art for over 30 years in America and Japan with such ceramics masters as John Takehara, Jim Srubek, Manji Inoue and Ko Inoguchi. From the painstaking craftsmanship demanded by the Arita porcelain technique, to the wabi-sabi aesthetic of stoneware tea ceremony vessels, and the seductive depth of a classic celadon glaze, Michael finds a well of knowledge and inspiration in the ceramic traditions of Japan, China and Korea. He draws from these traditions liberally as he expresses his own creative vision in clay.
As Artist in Residence in Takeo, Japan, Michael spent four months teaching and learning about ceramics – deepening his appreciation for the culture and its ceramic legacy.
Michael’s work is in public and private collections around the globe.