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Date: October 19th, 20th, 21st, 22nd, and 23rd
Times: 9am start time w/ varied times during the week
Level: All
Membership Price: $720 (Members use discount code MEMBERS10 at checkout to receive 10% off)
Workshop Description:
Are you queer? Interested in woodfire but sometimes find woodfire spaces to be a bit straight male centered? Come to the Mendocino coast to load and fire our wood-soda kiln! Katie Applebaum will guide students through loading and firing the cross-draft catenary wood soda kiln. Participants will get hands-on experience and develop an understanding of loading and firing strategies for this particular kiln- with plenty of one-on-one instruction within the safety of the queer community. This workshop will be a deep dive into the wood firing process. As we load and fire the kiln, students will learn about slips and glazes appropriate for these types of firings. Participants will get hands-on experience loading their own work and assisting each other through the process. They will learn how to "read" the cues of the kiln. They will learn how to mix and introduce the soda atmosphere into the kiln, all within the safety of their own community. Each student may bring up to 3.5cu/ft of cone 10 bisqueware to fire in the kiln (the final amount will be determined after registration is closed). Students will rotate shifts stoking the kiln. On the last day of the workshop we will unload the kiln, discuss the results, and celebrate the experience before packing up and bidding farewell.
After the kiln is lit, participants will be taking 6 hour shifts for about 48 hours. The schedule will be made when everyone is present on the first day.:
Day 1: Glazing and wadding 9am, beginning to load kiln by 11am, lunch after back stack, bricking up door by 5pm lighting kiln by 8pm
Day 2: Hours vary
Day 3: Hours vary
Day 4: Kiln is cooling
Day 5: Unload begins at 9am
Please reach out to ceramics@mendocinoartcenter.org with any questions you might have!
About the Instructor:
Katie Applebaum is from Paradise California, a small town in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains. She graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Arts, with a minor in Environmental Science and Sustainability, from California State University at Chico. There she was nominated for the Windgate Foundation Grant in fall of 2019. Her work is a synthesis of multiple materials, primarily ceramic and metal. In 2022 Katie completed a ceramic woodfire residency term at Cub Creek Foundation, where she became Assistant to the Director. Katie has worked in multiple galleries, from large universities, to small local non profits. Most recently she has completed a residency here at Mendocino art center in 2023 and has been retained as a full time staff member. “In my work I like to replicate forms that bring to mind different memories for each individual. The objects I choose to glorify or replicate are often antique. I feel the variable conditions of atmospheric firing plays well with these “antique“ forms, as age and patina are often variable. I fixate on hardware, fixtures and details.”
Required Materials:
Cotton clothing, close toed shoes, bandana
Optional Materials: Work gloves, welding gloves, green glasses, respirators (n95s)