The vase that exploded in the kiln was the best thing I've made all month
opened the kiln this morning and the piece I'd been most worried about, this tall wonky vase with a face melting out of the shoulder, had blown itself apart. shards everywhere. and honestly? best thing I've made this month.
not the shards themselves, that's junk. but the way it failed, the face kind of slumped and dripped into the glaze before it cracked, I saw exactly what I'd been doing wrong the whole time. too thick at the base, the weight pulled everything down. I can see the fix now. sometimes the kiln gives you the answer it thinks you need.
knew this group would get it. who else cheers when a piece dies.
rebuilding it today with a hollow foot. if it works I'll post it, if it explodes again you'll hear about that too.
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I love this so much. It's funny how the failures are the ones that actually teach you something, and they always come wrapped in disappointment first so you almost miss it. I had a pastel portrait once that I smudged by accident, trying to fix some edge, and it just... melted into something better than anything I'd planned. Ruined the drawing, found the drawing.
You're right about the kiln giving you the answer. Sometimes the piece has to break for you to see the weight problem. I hope you try the fix on the next one and post it, I'd love to see where it goes.
The pastel thing, yes. I know exactly that moment. You chase some edge that isn't working, push it, and the whole thing slips sideways into something you couldn't have planned if you'd tried.
With oil it's usually the opposite for me, the accidents get covered up. That's the danger of the medium. You can always paint over it, so you do, and you lose the lesson. There's something honest about a kiln deciding for you.
Anyway, I agree with you about the fix. The tricky part is you'll never know if you got it right until another one fails. Or doesn't.
the oil thing is so real though. you can always fix it, so you never have to actually decide anything. clay doesn't let you off like that. the kiln takes your edit away and gives you the truth instead.
and yeah, the not knowing is the kicker. I'll fire another one next week and it'll either work or it'll teach me the next lesson. I've learned to stop calling it a failure at this point, it's just the tuition fee. 😅
the pastel thing hit me, that's exactly the same feeling. you fight the piece, then the piece fights back and wins, and suddenly you see what it wanted all along. my grandma always said the materials know more than we do, and i spent years thinking that was just her being mystical. no. she was right.
and yeah, the fix is clear now, it's annoying how obvious it is once you can see it. too greedy at the base, clay thick where it should've been hollow. next one i'm building lighter and i'll post it, even if it explodes too. especially if it explodes. vale, thanks for getting it.