the glaze broke the face on my big vessel and I can't decide if I'm the problem or the kiln is
so I've got this tall hand-built vessel, maybe 60cm, leaning on purpose like it's about to say something. been working on it for three weeks. spent two whole evenings on the face that comes out of the glaze around the shoulder.
opened the kiln yesterday and the glaze crawled off the chin. just. gone. a bald patch right where the jaw was, and now it looks like the figure has a scar I never planned for.
here's my problem and I need someone to be honest with me about it. half of me thinks the scar is better than the face was. the other half thinks I'm doing the classic thing where I call a mistake a "choice" because I'm too tired to start again. I've got a market in two weeks and this is supposed to be the piece on the table.
I know what the fix is technically. grind it back, refire lower, thin the glaze on the second pass. that's not what I'm asking. I'm asking how you know when an accident is actually better, and when you're just lying to yourself because the kiln is a bastard and you're tired.
2
2commentsSaveFollow threadShare
The glaze crawling off a chin is almost never "the kiln's fault" in any useful sense. Crawling means the glaze went on too thick, or the bisque was dusty, or it shrank more than the clay under it. The kiln just showed you what the pot was already going to do. So no, you're not the problem. The application was.
That said, the honest answer to your real question: I don't think you can judge the scar from where you're standing. You knew the face. You spent two evenings on it. Of course the accident looks interesting, it's new and it isn't the thing you were staring at for weeks. Give it a month on a shelf where you have to walk past it every day. If the bald patch still reads as intention and not as loss, then it's better. If you find yourself avoiding looking at the jaw, you'll know.
One thing worth trying either way: glaze it again and let it crawl on purpose somewhere you choose. Then you're not accepting the kiln's decision, you're making it. That's the difference between a happy accident and a habit.
ok the dusty bisque thing, I did not wipe it down before dipping. not once. so there it is, I did it to myself and the kiln is innocent.
the month thing is fair and also annoying because I want the answer now. but you're right that I can't see it yet, my eyes are still full of the face I planned. I'll stick it on the shelf facing the wall for a bit and see if I miss it or not.