Raku Intensive

This workshop will explore the art and craft of the raku firing technique. Raku means “joy and gathering” in Japanese, and the technique was developed in the 16th century by a Japanese Tea Master. In the 1950s several American artists looking for a new voice began to use the raku technique, creating the so called “American Raku” style. One of the most exemplary artists to explore this style was Paul Soldner.Raku can provide various surfaces and textures for the artist who is seeking to use clay in their contemporary practice. Whether you want to create an installation work with several objects or are trying to concentrate the flow of your creative energy into a single sculptural piece, the raku technique can provide one of the most diverse ranges of gestural marks, surfaces, and textures allowing the artist to partly become an observer of a process. The closest feeling to raku-making is the method of action painting and the various forms of “happenings”. During the week-long Raku course you will learn techniques to create your ceramic objects (slab, coiled, pinched, thrown and carved). You will learn glazing and surface decoration and the way of raku firing. The workshop will focus on guiding participants toward a personal aesthetic that reflects their own creative motivations, developing strong interactions between form, surface and the raku technique. There will be daily demonstrations and discussions. All levels are welcome!- See more at: https://wassaicproject.org/education/raku/#sthash.I1nfBxJS.dpuf

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Photo by Patrick L. Sullivan

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