Abstract:
AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY TOWARDS THE APPLICABILITY
OF CERAMIC MATERIALS AND SURFACES AS ALTERNATIVE
DRAWING MEDIUM.
The use of specific colour and tonal range when drawing on paper is a
luxury that does not exist when drawing is executed on ceramic ware. Most
colour pigments and tonal ranges are often only revealed after glaze firing,
this makes the visualization of the final product very difficult.
In an article 'Glaze Page', De Boos writes: "One of the first lessons we all
learn when glaze testing is that the most reliable characteristic of glazes is
their unreliability. "
By means of thorough pre-testing and careful documentation a range of
pastels and pencils have been developed resulting in minimal variation after
glaze firing, if kiln temperature and glaze specification are kept constant.
The use of commercially produced ceramic colourants which for the most
part are similar to the final product, aids visualization of final result after
glaze firing.
Although the results were sometimes unpredictable the candidate has
succeeded in identifying specific problem areas and thus limiting variation
to a minimum. The possibility of making drawing on ceramic ware a
permanent part of everyday living has thus been achieved
