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Reactive glazes don't melt into a homogeneous melt and they don't freeze as a typical glass. The physical nature of the material powders (e.g. their particle size and the individual nature of how they respond to heat, soften, melt and interact with their own kind and others) create a melt that does not solidify into a homogeneous glass. These glazes are said to be dynamic. And unpredictable effects often occur during firing, like color variegation, speckles, streaks, mottled and flowing textures, crystallization, pooling, etc. The outcome is influenced by factors such as the materials chosen to source the needed oxides, firing schedule, kiln atmosphere, cooling or heating cycle, etc. These glazes are at their best when each piece has a unique, artistic character. But, this is also their worst feature, making them "tipping point glazes", ones whose visual character is a product of fragile and not well understood features of the materials and process. Small changes typically produce big changes in fired appearance (often to the chagrin of the potter).
Made at MidJourney.com with the prompt: A porcelain bowl with layering of an iron red and rutile brown glaze.
Glossary |
Reactive Glazes
In ceramics, reactive glazes have variegated surfaces that are a product of more melt fluidity and the presence of opacifiers, crystallizers and phase changers. |
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