TOO MUCH OR NOT ENOUGH

At first glance this bowl appears like just another faceted greenware teabowl but locked inside the clay is another idea for a test, made from scratch I added a measured amount of manganese dioxide and red iron oxide to the body for use under my new thin Hagi style glaze. The big question will be is it too much or not enough to affect the outcome? Though it is likely going to be a while before I get this in a glaze firing as I am working with terra cotta at the moment, I had the spare time and a long lists of things I want to test or try out including getting my matt ash glaze to work a bit better so I am working my way down the must try agenda and this idea was next up. For the record I am not expecting a super dark clay body but I am hoping that it darkens up enough and alters the white of the surface enough to create something of interest. There is not a lot invested in to the project, a little less than two pounds of clay, a tiny bit of two chemicals and perhaps 15 minutes to throw, facet, dry and tool the bowl, less time than I spend pulling my hair out watching the nightly news.     

As a postscript, I wrote this several months ago after making this test clay and bowl and finally got the piece into a kiln and fired though I wish I hadn't. Sometimes not knowing is better than what actually occurs and there is still some degree of promise but while unloading the kiln the results were in. The glazed test bowl had slightly melted to a piece of broken shelf as if the clay itself got just a bit wet and also became excessively brittle and broke as I tried to remove it from its safety plinth and to be quite honest it made for  a rather unattractive color all around for both clay and glaze. Though I really didn't use that much manganese or iron to this small batch white stoneware it still was enough to create havoc and a rather unexpected and unwanted clay base from which to move forward, maybe I'll just stick with the stoneware, white stoneware, porcelain and neriage moving forward. 

(Sorry there are no additional pictures,  I couldn't see the point of showing a pile of shards.)