Joan Carcia
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SAGGAR-FIRED VESSELS

I have been working with clay for over 35 years and still delight in and get excited by its versatility and tactility. Over these years I have evolved from a functional potter to a sculptural artist/potter. For the past eighteen years I have put most of my energy into hand building with clay. I find clay to be a limitless medium in which I am able to express and explore ideas. I love its tactile quality as well as its resiliency and strength.

In this series I am exploring and expanding basic vessels made from coils. The beautiful but simplistic forms cry out for “something of interest” ON the “skin” of the vessel itself. For me, this “something of interest” is achieved in the visual texture, pattern and color produced by saggar firing the vessel.

While hand building my vessels by using coils, I incorporate traditional hand building techniques of Mexico and Nigeria. These vessels are neither Mexican nor Nigerian; they are unique to me.

THE PROCESS

These pieces are all hand built. When they are bone dry, they are covered with fine clay particles called terra sigillata. Three or four coats of terra sigillata are brushed on each pot; the pot is burnished after each coat and then bisqued to a temperature of 1751 degrees F in an electric kiln.

Next sea hay, seaweed, marsh hay, and/or green hay are wrapped around the pot. Each piece is then placed in a saggar (a clay container), and small amounts of salt and oxides are added. It is this combination that produces the array of colors on each piece.

The saggars are fired in a gas kiln to 1587 degrees F. This firing takes six to seven hours. Finally the kiln is unstacked and the saggars unpacked—this is the most exciting part. I never know quite how each piece will come out—but I know each will be different!

The low-firing temperature makes these pieces porous. This porosity allows the clay body to absorb the effects of the oxides, salts and combustibles during the firing.

These pieces are to be used in a purely decorative or sculptural way.

SOUTHWEST ARCHITECTURE

The architecture and colors of the Southwest have inspired me to combined texture, color and space for these pieces. I call this series "New Ancients" because they have evolved from my visits to the Southwest and in particular to the pueblos.

Each piece is hand built using clay slabs. All the corners are cut at an angle before painstakingly joined together. After drying the pieces are bisque fired to about 1700 degrees and then painted with under glazes. They are then fired in an electric kiln to about 1900 degrees.

Member:
Concord Art Association
Lexington Arts and Crafts Society
NCECA

Gallery Affiliations:
Depot Square Gallery, Lexington, MA
Sharon Arts Center, Peterborough, NH

Selected Publications:
“Ceramics Monthly”, January 2005 “ Built by Hand, Painted by Nature”
Handbuilt Ceramics by Kathy Triplett, Published 1997
“Ceramics Monthly”, February 1995 and March 2000 “Up Front”

Selected Juried Exhibitions and Awards:
Depot Square Gallery, Lexington, MA
Concord Art Association, Concord, MA
(Best Craft 2004)
Lexington Arts and Crafts Society
Parsons’ Gallery, Lexington, MA “The State of Clay”
(People’s Choice Award 2004)
Market House Craft Center, Lancaster, PA
Strictly Functional Pottery National
Concord Art Association, Concord, MA
(Merit Award 2003)
Guilford Handcraft Center, Guilford, CT
The Two Collection, WGBH, Boston, MA
Newburyport Art Association, Newburyport, MA
(Award for Excellence)
Laura Knott Gallery (Bradford College), Haverhill, MA
ArtsAround Boston
The Whistler House, Lowell, MA
ArtsAround Boston

The potters with whom I have studied and who are still influencing me are Juan Quezada (a national treasure of Mexico), Michael Wisner, Makoto Yabe, Winnie Owens-Hart and Suzanne and John Stephenson.

E-mail: jcarcia@comcast.net
Website: www.jcarcia.com

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