On Saturday and Sunday, 2nd and 3rd June Kirkcaldy Art Club's annual Raku outdoor firing saw a new venue this year. The first challenge was to find it - Hill Farm near Kingskettle. Many thanks to Cheryl for being a wonderful host. The pots had all been made during the six week summer school pottery classes, and had already been fired and glazed, ready for the excitement of the Raku process, ie taking the pieces from the kilns fired by a gas burner when glowing red hot and plunging them into bins filled with sawdust. The resulting smoky magic created patterns on each pot. Once out of the sawdust the pots were hosed down with water to reveal the results. There are always surprises and a lot of examination of the pots at this point, with many delights at unexpected effects. Tutors Jenny Rae and Heather Gilbert must have been exhausted but would be pleased with how it went. Grateful thanks to them, and to Martine and Alister who fired up many, many kiln loads over the two days. Health and safety issues were in place with people using the protective gauntlets and very long tongs provided. A barbecue was much enjoyed, and the entertainment was Cheryl's two puppies, one small and one extremely large, trying to get in on the action. It was a wonderful end to the pottery year. Thank you to Janice and Debbie for comments.
Thank you to all members who sent pictures of the weekend. We hope to get a full report of the Raku firing on the website soon with lots more pictures. Pictures below are taken by Tina Norris. Thank you Tina.
There is still time for art club members to visit a shared exhibition in the Mercat Centre, Kirkcaldy. The art club is participating in a shared event in the Community Space, along with the Mining Heritage Society, the Civic Society and the Photographic Society. This will run until Sunday 17th June, 10am - 4pm.
