Clay vessels made by young people attending Summer Art Camp at Oliver Art Center in Frankfort. Photo by S.A. McFerran.
By Stewart A. McFerran
During a family trip in the station wagon, we made a stop at Bybee Pottery in Kentucky. As a teenager, I was impressed with the production of clay vessels on the potters’ wheels. We watched as lumps of clay turned into pitchers and bowls in the potters’ muddy hands as they went about throwing clay on the wheel. We bought some large bags of Kentucky clay, and I pursued pottery upon our return to Michigan. I built my own potter’s wheel, and even though my wheel was a bit wobbly, I was able to throw pots with red clay from Kentucky in our Michigan basement.
North Muskegon High School had a limited ceramics program, so my parents signed me up for a class at Muskegon Community College. Our instructor, Kent Foster, had one rule: no ash trays. Mr. Foster stressed that chemistry was the key to ceramics, and now, years later, I am delving into what makes up the earthly clay. There are many kinds of clay, but the best ones have plasticity, which is a property that allows the clay to be molded into almost any shape.
Clay from the banks of the Kentucky River needed little processing before being thrown onto the spinning potter’s wheel. There are countless other locations around the world where potters have dug clay to make vessels of all shapes and sizes. While Bybee pottery was the oldest business (1809) in Kentucky, there are many vessels preserved from much older pottery operations. Forms created millennia ago by ancient civilizations persist to this day because the ceramic body undergoes chemical changes in the kiln, preserving its shape. Much of what is known about the art of ancient people has been gleaned from these kiln-fired vessels found in museums worldwide.
Recently, I had the opportunity to teach ceramics at the Oliver Art Center in Frankfort. The young students collaborated to make a series of boxes. They made designs in slabs of clay that were then assembled into large boxes that were fired in the kiln. The firing process preserved these moments of creation, wherein children let their imaginations guide their hands. The glazes applied with the deftness of six-year-olds will withstand time and persist for millennia. Just what happens to these clay pieces will depend on how the collaboration proceeds.
My former ceramics instructor had explained to our class that by using minerals from the earth, a glaze can be produced on the clay’s surface. A wide variety of colors can be obtained. The sky is the limit when the potter is able to produce any texture and shape. Once again, my teacher was correct; chemistry is key in the ceramic arts.
After vessels are loaded into the kiln, they are heated to a high temperature. As the ceramics become hot, the minerals on the surface melt and become fused with the ceramic body. The glazes used can create a wide range of effects. This firing process is exciting, and as the kiln cools, the pottery can be unloaded. Changes to the ceramic material after firing are fascinating to see. Unfortunately, this part of the process was not shared with the young students, who were only at the art center for a short time.
It was such a pleasure to collaborate with the young people attending the Summer Art Camp. The kids made small sculptures using air-drying clay and Sculpy that were baked in an oven for 20 minutes. They made beads and strung them on pieces of yarn to form necklaces they could take home with them that day.
Hopefully, some of the art campers will return to Frankfort and see that the marks they made in clay have been preserved and put on display. Maybe they will even get a chance to see pottery created on a potter’s wheel, as I did years ago.
Stewart McFerran illuminates current environmental issues in a historic context. He hopes readers will gain an understanding and insight into ways people interact with their environment.
