Saggar fired pottery
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Saggars are boxlike containers made of high fire clay or specialized fireclay which are used to enclose pots needing special treatment in the kiln. Historically, saggars were used to protect specialized glazes from open flame, gases and ash present in wood fired kilns. This technique was used in ancient China, Korea and Japan, and was popular in the industrial potteries of Great Britain. Saggars are still used for some industrial production. The name itself derives from a contraction of safeguard
Clay artists and craftsmen during the late 20th and early 21 centuries experimented with saggars to create decorative ceramic pieces. In contrast to the more traditional use of saggars, many modern artists use the containers to concentrate the effects of salts, metal oxides and other materials on the surface of their ware. Pots are nestled into saggars filled with beds of combustible materials, such as sawdust, mixed with salts and metals. These materials ignite or fume during firing leaving the pot buried in layers of fine ash. Ware produced in filled saggars are characterized by dramatic black and white markings and by flashes of other distinct colors. The texture of the pottery surface may also be altered by ash and salt deposits. Porcelain and white stoneware clay bodies are ideal for displaying the striking patterns obtained through saggar firing.
The revival and alteration of saggar firing methods by modern artists is echoed in the use of other traditional pottery processes, including low-temperature pit firing, the Asian technique of raku and the use of salt as a glaze element.
[edit] Reference
- Hamer, Frank and Janet. The Potter's Dictionary of Materials and Techniques. A & C Black Publishers, Limited, London, England, Third Edition 1991. ISBN 0-8122-3112-0.
