Salt firing Swirly Butt KOP, light blue and toasty nude, Stripes 'n Dots

Celadon filled Swirly Butt cup in the toasty colors of the bare clay from the salt firing. Light Blue Stripes vertically in sludge with gold Dots in aurora colors. Celadon craquelure in the typical sea blue color washes over the edge. Each side of the pot is different and has its own spectrum of colours. The underside and the soul (between the base ring) of the head has a nice warm and toasty tone and a darker blue.

This cup is from my first salt firing and is unique, there is no second copy.

This item is fired in a gas kiln to which salt has been added during the firing. This is a traditional way of firing in which the salt causes a chemical reaction in the clay. This creates the glaze on the pot without it being applied. The firing trajectory also includes a period of reduction, which results in certain colors. Because the salt spreads unevenly throughout the oven, each side of the item is different. The sides that have an 'orange peel' on the surface have been hit a lot by the salt. The unpredictable nature of this process is what makes it so intriguing. Every firing is exciting!

This special process makes salt-fired items much more precious than electric-fired items. I have my work fired in Veghel.