Lyla Kaplan Pottery

blackberries
Local blackberries, soda fired
 "Down to Earth" article in Ceramics Monthly		 egg cups
Local eggs, soda fired
"Half a dozen soft boiled egg cups"
Honorable mention: Pottery Making Illustrated

salt and pepper
Pepper - wood fired, Salt - wood/salt fired 

cups
Wood fired, glass drips

water jug
Wood fired "Nestled"
water jug and cup		 teapot
Soda fired
 
drew
My 20 ft soda/propane kiln was salvaged from a big salt kiln.  The feel and smell of clay, and the repetitive, gentle kicking motion of the treadle wheel quiet me.  I've been experimenting with mixing in hand dug clay. The cross-draft design creates a directionality of atmosphere. I single fire, which means i don't bisque my pieces first. From about 1400-1600F oxygen is taken out of the kiln to "reduce" the iron in the clay body to warm reds and browns.  Sodium is introduced briefly into the kiln to volatize around 2000F.
New glaze tests

Curator: Down to Earth Exhibit

Contact: lyla@lylakaplanpottery.com

Article in CCDwell:
teapot
Herb vase - photo by Leslie Kedash
 
Approach to clay:
I believe that random events in life can combine to create a single, meaningful moment: a spark, a jolt, an inspiration, a memory.  These moments are invisible, and yet are very real.  I am intrigued by soda or wood firing because they create an atmosphere of randomly and intentionally influenced interacting forces that become captured onto a pot, providing a glimpse of a moment. A pot can become familiar, like a friend, making the experience of eating and drinking more interesting and fun. 

etcetera...