Home Paintings Horsehair Pottery Pottery Links FAQ’s About 7917 Burkesville Road Columbia, KY. 42728 etta@duo-county.com 270-378-6421 Media Website Design and Maintenance by HyperCo Web Solutions. Copyright 2010 Highland Raku Studio No part of this website may be copied without prior written consent by Jeff or Henrietta Scott. 1. What is raku? The term raku comes from the Japanese and means “enjoyment.”  The Japanese developed this process of very quickly firing clay.  It was introduced into the U.S. in the 1960’s.  In the U.S., the process involves quickly firing the clay and once the glazes flux, placing the pieces in reduction so that the oxygen is removed from the closed container. 2. How do you fire your pieces? These pieces are fired twice.  The glazed pieces are bisque fired and then glazed. The raku kiln is then used to bring the work to about 1850 degrees F very quickly.  The kiln lid is then opened and the pot is removed and placed in a closed container with combustible materials.  The fire looks for oxygen and as a result, it pulls oxygen from the compounds in the glaze. 3. How are the metallic colors achieved? Horsehair pieces have no glaze so they are fired to about 1150 degrees and taken from the kiln, placed on a turntable and horsehair is applied. 4. How are the horsehair pots different from the glazed pieces? The metallic comes from oxides of metals that are in the glaze.  When placed in reduction, the fire pulls the oxygen from the oxides leaving flashes of color. 5. When do you apply the actual horsehair to the piece? These pieces are fired twice.  The glazed pieces are bisque fired and then glazed. The raku kiln is then used to bring the work to about 1850 degrees F very quickly.  The kiln id opened and the pot is removed and placed in a closed container with combustible materials.  The fire looks for oxygen and as a result, it pulls oxygen fro the compounds in the glaze. Horsehair pieces have no glaze so they are fired to about 1150 degrees and taken from the kiln, placed on a turntable and horsehair is applied. The horse hair is applied with the hands to the hot pot.  This makes it very important to have long horsehair.  The hair is stretched and brought in to contact with the hot surface and then released to sizzle, burn, twist and smoke. 6. Are these pieces functional? Raku is basically a form of art pottery and as such has limited use as a functional piece. 7. Could you take a picture of my horse and its hair and create a custom piece? We have created many custom pieces for people using a picture of their horse and their horse hair. 8. What would be the terms for custom work? The terms for custom work are ½ down and the remainder on completion. 9. If I order a piece will it look exactly like the picture? Keep in mind this is a painting on a clay surface and it will not be a photographic image. 10. What is the time table for delivery? Because the clay must dry before it is fired, we usually advise that it will take between 4 and 6 weeks to complete a custom piece.