Quote of the day: “Fire isn’t always an element of destruction. Classical alchemical doctrine teaches that it also has dominion over another province: change.” ― Jim Butcher, Cold Days
You can see ghostly shapes of red-hot vases being fired
Saturday night I had the privilege of photographing the last night of Clayton Amemiya’s firing pottery in his traditional cave kiln at his home in Hilo. I arrived just before sunset and stayed until full dark, watching Clayton open the kiln, stir the ashes, and add wood 3 times in about an hour’s time.
Fully Loaded Kiln (from March 2011) just before firing began – the space in front of the pottery is where the fire will be
Clayton (see The Pottery of Clayton Amemiya) is a Hilo potter who fires his pottery using a traditional Japanese cave kiln that he built himself. Once the kiln is loaded, the firing takes 4-5 days with the fire needing tending every 20 minutes, 24 hours a day during the firing.
A Closeup of the pottery in the kiln (from March 2011_
He uses 2 1/2 cords of wood (a cord is roughly a well-stacked pile of wood 4 feet high 8 feet long and 4 feet deep) for each firing and usually fires pottery twice a year. He buys the ohi’a wood (ohi’a is a native Hawaiian tree with very hard wood) and with the help of his son splits it to the size needed to fire the kiln.
Only a little wood remains for this firing
Tending the kiln every 20 minutes day and night for 4-5 days is exhausting, even with help from a friend who has helped Clayton fire pottery for over 20 years.
As we chatted during the 20 minute waits between feeding and tending the fire, Clayton told me that he had closed his eyes that morning to wait five minutes until he needed to tend the fire, and woke up 25 minutes later, having missed a whole cycle. Fortunately the fire was very hot and the missed cycle was not an issue.
A Very Tired Clayton sits and Watches the Kiln, adding wood every 20 minutes day and night
Clayton estimated that the temperature of the fire was about 2300 degrees in the kiln when I was there. Such high heat means complete mindfulness and care must be taken opening the kiln to feed the fire. He uses heavy asbestos gloves which he doused with water before opening the kiln.
Opening the kiln to stir the fire and add wood
The fire was so hot that the clay slab that he uses to close the kiln glowed red-hot in the center. At that temperature, a mistake could cause a burn to the bone, so despite his fatigue from several days of little sleep, Clayton was totally mindful and present as he tended the fire.
Looking at the fire
Each time he adds wood, the flames are so great that they extend through the kiln and up the chimney. It is truly amazing to see flames shooting out of the chimney more than 15 feet from the fire’s source.
Raking the ashes
He planned to end the firing at midnight Saturday night and would not even open the kiln to look until Thursday possibly. This is a part of the process where patience is a virtue – if opened too soon, the cool air can crack the pottery. If he opens the kiln on Thursday, it will be for just a short peek and then he will close it up again until it is cool.
What an amazing process firing is — transforming fragile clay pots into sturdy works of art!
Raking the ashes
Fire glow at the chimney
Red hot clay slab
The kiln glows in the night
Flame emerging from chimney
Almost done with this firing
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