Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Must Read for Potters, October 13, 2004
Potters are largely known as a generous group. However, there are a few clay artists whose working methods are kept like a closely guarded secret. If there were any secrets with regard to high fire ceramics, John Britt has shed light on a range of materials and processes that will help aspiring ceramists working in this challenging area. Some of the topics covered by Mr. Britt include raw materials, mixing, application, firing, and glaze recipes. The chart for limits and firing cycles are especially informative. In addition to the illustrations, I also a appreciate the photographic images of the pottery and sculpture. They are well lit and in full color and provide an example of the glaze color and texture. I highly recommend "The Complete Guide to High-Fire Glazes." It is a must read for potters.
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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Mandatory Book for High-Fire Glazes and Glazing!, September 27, 2004
The Complete Guide to High-Fire Glazes: Glazing & Firing a Cone 10 by John Britt is the most beautiful and comprehensive book written to date on the subject of high-fire glazes. John Britt has literally filled the high fire information vacuum. This book covers everything that you might want to know about glazes and glazing from a very practical and operational standpoint ... the materials, the cones, the type of glaze application, the recipe, the type of firing, and reproducibility. Just as important, there are so many pictures of glazes on real pots as well as test tiles, all well labeled, for the visual learners (and aren't we all?!!!). This book is a major contribution toward demystifying high-fire glazing and glazes, and will become the foundation for high fire ceramics, much as Mastering Cone 6 Glazes and Glazes Cone 6 have become the guides for intermediate-temperature firing. This is the book for which I have been waiting ... I can't put it down! The only thing better would be John Britt in person.
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20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must-have reference guide to all high-fire glazes!, September 8, 2004
Ah, the rich and wonderful world of glaze recipes!
John Britt's enthusiasm is contagious and heartening to anyone who has ever pulled pots out of kiln thinking or saying: "I thought that was going to be green!" Mr. Britt, first as a student, then a teacher and, ultimately, as coordinator at the Penland School of Crafts has seen hundreds of firings and thousands of students unload kilns with that same quizzical look. This book, studied and understood, will help everyone who works with clay get closer to a rewarding final product. Or, at least, you'll understand why your pot turned red when you thought it would be green and what you need to do next time!
Mr. Britt has written and compiled a comprehensive guide to just about every type and color of high fire glaze that you might ever have an inclination to fire. The book, perhaps like no other of its type, delves deeply and thoroughly into the many sub-divisions within glaze families. Most students and pottery appreciators know that iron will give you celadons and temmokus, but rarely has anyone walked us into the murky waters of oil spot glazes and the science behind them. With dashes of wit and sardonic humor, Mr. Britt takes the student as well as the professional through the processes and systems necessary to understand and demystify high-fire glaze chemistry.
Writing a book about glazes is tricky business: there's a fairly large gray area where aesthetics and science overlap. There are also eons of information that, over the years, has been interpreted and re-interpreted by countless teachers and students. Mr. Britt deftly avoids these pitfalls by showing us the results as he's recorded them.
Everything you need is here: A "how-to" on cone packs (one of the most important parts of glaze testing) and keys to good test tiles. He gives the reader systems for understanding the mixing of glazes and the application of glaze. We see test tiles fired in different kiln atmospheres and he discusses plainly how these atmospheres can dramatically affect our glazes so that we can clearly begin to see the relationship between recipe and firing. Wonderfully, each section is bursting with glaze recipes so that the reader can immediately begin to round out their own palate of five-gallon buckets.
Like a great dance teacher, he shows us that within a system of steps, there is unlimited opportunity for fun and satisfaction. Those quizzical looks at the kiln will be replaced by smiles. Plus, we won't look like such goofballs on the dance floor at NCECA. Well, one out of two isn't bad.
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