Today a few artists and I went to get supplies to make our artwork! First off was clay!
Each 2 lines of vertical squares is a different clay fired at different temperatures. One line is the fired clay without glaze, the other is fired clay with glaze. They have many different types of Earthenware/Terracotta, Stoneware, and Porcelain. I chose one red clay and one white clay.
We also had the chance to see how they process the clay. The raw materials from the mines are gound down and mixed into vats. Then they are put into the mixing mills! These mills can hold and mix 6 tons at a time! That is 12,000 pounds!
The clay, once mixed, is pressed to remove excess moisture. We got to see this machine in action!
The clay is then cut and put into a pug mill, a machine that gets all of the air bubbles out and shapes the clay.
Each bag of clay is about 25 pounds.
After getting clay we went to the glaze and tool shop! This shop is full of colors and tools to make whatever you want. I also liked the baseball tanuki!
So with my new tools I am starting to create some work. Here is a preview of my first piece!
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