Raku? On St. Patrick's Day?

Whoa. What a tantalizing combination might that be? But having a good dose of shamrocks in my lineage, I was up for the challenge. The Irish, I've been told, have a pugilistic streak. So here were my contenders for tonight's match. One bird. (Center) One bull. (On the Right) Both set to take on the Raku kiln.



There was one firing before theirs. Two pieces. One from someone I have yet to meet at Clayworks. And one from a gal who does some really extraordinary work. Karen's thrown/coiled bottles are fantastic. She uses nails in some of her pieces . And her use of oxides and washes and wax resist just blows me away!



If that's not a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, I don't know what is. Good on ya, Karen! (Sheesh! Aussie slang on Saint Patty's Day? Have I had enough green beer?)

Bird and Bull made it to the second "match" tonight. Truth be told, this was a pivotal point for me. I've had a hard time with raku. Not enough firings to really learn. Not enough knowledge to glean some understanding. So I held my breath tonight. I really wanted to -- finally -- see a reason to keep trying. And I got it.



The Flaming Moondrops flamed too much. Too hot. But I like what raku brings to the parietal images. Thrown forms & cave art work in raku. Done right --- and I will do it right --- the images can be glorious! This is what I really wanted to know. And I got my answer. Raku & Cave Art can be a good combination.

But I guess my happiest moment tonight came with this little bird. Clear Crackle glaze on her back and wings (thanks to Raku Traveler for that suggestion ) gave her flight.



So Raku on Saint Patrick's Day really was a pot of gold at the end of my rainbow. I hope the leprechauns were equally as generous to you!