Firing Process


				*Firing Process*



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What is Saggar firing?

A little background: The term "saggar" is used for any structure used to contain ceramic wares inside the kiln during the firing process. They were made to protect the pottery from debrit floating around that could potentialy land on and ruin the pots. With technology, came more efficient kilns, therefore the need for saggars diminished.

I use saggars in the reverse, I use them to contain debrit and fumes created from materials packed inside the saggars. This leaves very interesting, spontainous results.

I use a vacuum formed fibre cylindar, as my saggar inside an old converted electric kiln to propane. I fire outside only, due to fumes and the propane tank. The saggar sits on a shelf raised above the floor of the kiln about 2 inches, and is filled with organic materials and natural elements.

I add items such as copper sulfate, cobalt, coffee grounds, leaves, straw, basically anything I have experimented with that gives colour, patern and texture. It is very exciting to open the kiln and see new results from a new item I have experimented with!

I fire my kiln for 3 hours and let it cool over night before opening it. The temperature I fire to ranges from cone 08-04 about 1750-1950 degrees F. It has taken many experimental firings to get to the results I am at now, I am always playing around with different variables to get new and exciting out comes!

Is saggar firing like Raku?

Well, they are both fired with gas, both are non functional, but that may be the only things they have in common. My pots do not have glaze on the surface, they have a fine coating of clay called Terra Sigillata that is burnished with a leather chamois to give it a smooth, glossy finish and then is bisque fired followed by the saggar firing. The terra sigillata soaks in the fumes created by the materials burning in the kiln, giving brilliant colour and pattern to the pots.

After the firing, this is what the inside of the saggar looks like.

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