Tag Archives: enamels

French Raku Studio “la porte du soleil”

Raku tumbler by Philippe Buraud

Philippe Buraud

 

La porte du soleil – ‘Gate of the Sun’

 

Situated 37km south of Paris in the region of Essonne in a rural location is a quaint studio that attracts pottery aficionados wanting to explore the applications of Raku Ceramics. The workshops are conducted by Philippe Buraud and Jacqueline Hoerter whose backgrounds were respectively in Photography and Scientific Research before following their desire to create  French Raku pottery.. After 20 years of striving, testing and researching various raku pottery techniques they  now, on a fulltime basis, confidently guide others to achieve fantastic results in the subtle art of Raku. Their influences have ranged from ancient African techniques of pottery from the Kalabougou Malian Association Teria to internships with Brigitte Mororn  Houdebine and Patrick in the Ardeche. The ceramic styles they pursue are Raku, firing in saggers, raku naked, cooking with wood and  terra sigillata. Judging by the results , they have an intrinsic flair for inspiration and creativity and guiding others to find these attributes.

The ancient Japanese practices of Raku are still honored in their courses. For example in the creation of the Japanese tea ceremony bowls ( chawan )  irregular, uneven, flawed, sometimes rough form is encouraged to enhance their organic charm.  In April 2007 The Association The Gate of the Sun ( la porte du solei )was created as it seemed to Phillipe and Jacqueline to  be  the best way to naturally discover and share their passion and to encourage meetings and enthusiastic discussions . They regularly conduct 4 day workshops ( 2  weekends ) during the Spring and Summer.

Chawan Raku - la porte du soleil workshop

Raku chawan

A distinction between the Raku techniques covered in the course are : Unlike a conventional ceramic cooking, which includes a slow rise and fall in temperature in the kiln, a raku firing is short. The room is quickly rising to the temperature of maturation of the enamel (typically 900 to 1050 ° C) and removed  immediately from the oven. The heat shock induces contractions of the various enamels and the earth cracks appear in the glaze of  the piece, which is then  immersed in a container of organic matter to undergoe a post reduction. The lack of oxygen changes the color of the enamel, resulting in iridescent metallic oxides, and the carbon released from burning organic matter enters the cracks of the enamel and draws subtle black networks.

The Naked Raku is a variant of the previous technique. The room gets a polished layer of glaze that does not adhere to the shard, then a layer of enamel. This separates the ceramic enamel after the reduction, leaving an image on the part of its cracks.

The terra sigillata : The land polished sigillated and smoky are techniques that come from the depths of time and numerous fragments have been found in archaeological searches, and with Greek, Roman and Mayan pottery decor with their red and black surface slips ranging from a soft lustre to a brilliant glaze-like shine. These techniques survive in all current commercial productions from Africa, Latin America and Asia. It is an unglazed pottery bearing the traces of iron and fire.

 


 la porte du soleil workshop - Phillipe - French raku potter on the pottery wheel

Philippe Buraud on the wheel

 

 

Creating Raku at la porte du soleil - Essonne, FranceLa porte du soleil workshop

 

 

Raku production at la porte du soleil, Provence of Ile de France, Paris region

Raku firing – la porte du soleil

 

raku firing la porte du soleil workshop

La porte du soleil Raku workshop

 

 

removing raku pottery from kiln with tongs

Raku pottery kiln

 

 

raku pottery la porte du soleil

Raku reduction

 

 

Fired Raku - la porte du soleil at Provence of Ile de France, Paris region

Fired raku pottery – La porte du soleil

 

 

Raku Flambe

Raku creation – la porte du soleil, Paris region

 

 

Cleaning raku fired ceramic - la porte du soleil workshopCleaning Raku pottery

 

 

Smoking Raku pottery la porte du soleilRaku pottery

 

 

Lunch in the Provence of Ile de France at the la porte du soleil

La porte du soleil raku workshop lunch break

 

 

Philippe Buraud raku vessel

Philippe Buraud

 

Philippe Buraud raku vase

Philippe Buraud

 

 

Raku Vase by Philippe Buraud

Philippe Buraud

 

Sigillees

Philippe Buraud

 

Philippe-Buraud raku vessel

Philippe Buraud

 

French Pottery Class 2010 la porte du soleil - Provence of Ile de France Provence of Ile de France

 La porte du soleil Raku pottery workshop 2010

 

 

Raku emerald bowl by Philippe Buraud

Philippe Buraud raku vessel

 

 

Raku-blue-bust

Blue raku bust

 

 

Penguin-raku - Sun gate workshop, France

Raku ceramic penguin

 

 

Philippe-Buraud-raku

Philippe Buraud

 

 

French-raku-workshop

 La porte du soleil raku

 

 

Raku la-pièce-collective-from La porte du soleil

Abstract raku la pièce collective

 

 

French-Raku-vases -Philippe Buraud

Contemporary raku vases by Philippe Buraud

 

 

French-Raku vase La porte du soleil

Raku vase

 

 

Smoking-Raku-mask at La porte du soleil

Raku mask emerging from smoke

 

 

Raku-modernist-bust La porte du soleil

Modernist raku bust

 

 

Philippe-Buraud-French-Raku vessel

Philippe Buraud raku vessel

 

 

Philippe-Buraud-lidded raku bottle

Philippe Buraud raku lidded bottle

 

 

French-raku-workshop--

La porte du soleil ( Gate of the Sun) at Provence of  Ile de France, Paris region, Essonne

 

 

la-porte-du-soleil doorknocker

more info on la porte du soleil raku pottery

email –  contact@laportedusoleil