Soda Firing
Soda firing refers to the process of introducing soda ash (sodium carbonate) into the kiln during a gas or wood firing, creating a vapor that weaves through the pots, binding with the silica in the clay to leave behind a dynamic sodium-silicate glaze.
This effect is emphasized further by flashing slips, applied before the firing, made from alumina-heavy clay that forms colorful “flashing” patterns that capture traces of the surrounding atmosphere on the surface of the pots.
I got to learn about soda firing this summer and try it out on a handful of pots, fired alongside Damian Grava’s work in his soda kiln at Westwood Art Studio. The slips, techniques, and processes are Damian’s, and while I have a ton to learn, soda firing is a really engaging facet of ceramics that I’d like to follow through on.
These first soda pots of mine, which I don’t plan to sell, are also the first iterations of the organic layered pots that now make up the majority of my current work.
