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Twilight urn 26"h"
Klinsky Ceramics
Encinitas, California -to contact
Steve Klinsky- cerfsky@cox.net or 760 942-1603
While the majority of crystalline ceramists use an
electric kiln, programming it to fire automatically, all of my firings are done in a gas kiln, requiring my attention and
hands-on adjustment of temperature for up to 20 hours. The little bit of fumes from the gas firing, compared to the pristine
atmosphere of electric firing, have a slight effect on the colors, setting my glazes apart from many others.
My ceramics are all hand thrown on a potter's wheel. Whether made of porcelain or stoneware, the majority of my pieces
are crystalline glazed. This process requires me to make a catch tray for each piece, and a donut/stilt for each piece to
stand on as the glaze runs freely off of the piece. As the temperature climbs during the firing process, zinc silicate crystals
form spontaneously and run down the piece fusing it to the donut/stilt and catch tray. At the right moment, the temperature
is dropped rapidly to a specific temperature where the crystals actually grow in the still fluid glaze. This growing temperature
must be carefully maintained for 3-8 hours. When cooled the crystals are a permanent decoration. After cooling, the stilt
must be carefully removed and the bottom of the piece ground smooth to remove sharp or jagged pieces of glaze. With crystalline
glazes, at least one third of the pieces fired are not successful enough to sell, but the successful ones can be spectacular.
Because of the randomness of the crystal formation, no two pieces will be exactly the same, therefore realize that when ordering,
the colors and crystals will be similar, but not exact. All are food safe, non-toxic and washable.
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