Term paper on Raku Ware And Staffordshire Pottery

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Raku Ware and Staffordshire Pottery

Essay submitted by Donovan Glass

Raku Ware was originally from Japan in the town of Kyoto and was named after the

Raku family during the 16th Century. At this time, the Emperor Hideyoshi had conquered

Korea and the native potters immigrated to Japan bringing with them pottery

techniques and knowledge.

The pots were produced for the Zan Buddhist tea ceremony and the decorating and

firing of the pots were part of the tea ceremony. Bernard Leach introduced Raku into

the west after living in Japan and China setting up pottery in St. Ives, England in 1920.

It is still popular today, and made almost worldwide. Raku Ware is still produced today

by the 14th generation, of the same Japanese family.

Staffordshire was a large and important part of Britain for earthenware production. The

first known examples of Staffordshire slipware date back to early Seventeenth Century.

Even though lead-glazed earthenware seemed to be established before this time, the

market generally went beyond Staffordshire. Butter pots made in Staffordshire were

well known for their quality by dairy farmers in England and surrounding areas. Slipwares

are named for their decoration with liquid clays, usually poured or trailed onto the pot.

Although this was a highly developed technique in Staffordshire it was used in other

surrounding areas such as London and Wrotham.

Staffordshire slipware usually has three categories flatware which are plates, dishes

and bowls, jugs and lidded pots are classified as hollow ware, and miscellaneous ware

includes money boxes, cradles and candle sticks.

Just as tea was important in the development of Raku Ware in Japan, so the Elers

brothers who studied salt glazes in Europe and moved to Staffordshire in the 1690s,

produced small tea pots, tea canisters, teacups and jugs. They used finely prepared

red clay which was thrown on the wheel, and then lathed when leather hard. (Common

salt is thrown into the kiln during firing 1200oc to produce a salt glaze)

In Raku any clay that copes with the firing technique must be able to withstand heat

shock without warping, distorting or cracking. The clay needs to have particles in it to

allow water to escape quickly so calcinated China clay or clay with temper (grog, flint

or shell) added to it, is successful. This clay occurred naturally in Japan. Many

contemporary potters have favourite clay recipes for their clay bodies when making

Raku Ware.

Staffordshire slipware clays usually have trouble withstanding higher temperatures

without distorting and warping while stoneware can. It was discovered that when

calcined flint was added to the clay, it would allow the pot to withstand higher

temperatures and even whiten the overall appearance of the pot. This whitening effect

in the pots was adapted as a alternative to porcelain. There was not a suitable white

firing china clay as used in the East, found in England, except in Cornwall. The

porcelains in the Staffordshire area are known as ' soft paste ' because of their low

firing temperature and the clay body was rich in quartz and low in clay with glass...

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