Pit Fire
May 11, 2002
Thanks to the organization and leadership of Vicky Moore, Judy Barkhoff and Joe Battiato, and the hard work of many members, friends, and family, our first guild pitfire was a tremendous success! We had splendid weather, great company, good food, and beautiful pots - a truly unforgetable day.
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1: 9:00 am - Members arrive and begin to haul pots, wood, and equipment down to the beach.
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2: After setting up the staging areas, we begin to lay out the pit.
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3: Even in soft sand, digging the pit is hard work.
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4: Once the pit is dug, we relay sacks of sawdust and spread it across the bottom of the pit. The sawdust produces carbon to blacken the pots.
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5: Joe spreads an even layer of salt over the sawdust, followed by copper carbonate. The salt and copper produce the colors on the pots.
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6: Members carefully place their pots in the pit.
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7: The pots are in place.
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8: Dried cow patties are placed over the pots to provide insulation against thermal shock, and to produce additional carbon during the firing.
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9: Next, wood is stacked around and over the pots. We used well over a cord of wood.
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10: 11:30 am - Joe and Harry douse the wood with lighter fluid to make it easier to get the fire started.
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11: The fire is lit at one end. We rely on the steady breeze to move the flames down the length of the pit. |
12: As the fire slowly spreads down the pit, we take a break for lunch. Whenever potters gather, there's lots of great food!
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13: While the fire burns, Eduardo provides an impromptu demo of making plaster molds in the sand.
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14: By the time the fire has reached the far end of the pit, the near end is starting to cool.
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15: We cautiously approach the still-hot pots, anxious to see the results of the firing.
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16: 3:30 pm - Once the pots are cool enough to touch, we start to unload the pit. Everyone is impatient to see their pots uncovered!
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17: The pots start to accumulate on the sand beside the pit, and we can all examine one another's results.
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18: The excitement mounts as more and more beautiful pots emerge from the pit!
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19: All too soon, the pit is empty. After packing up their pots, members fill in the pit and clean up the area.
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20: 6:30 pm - the day draw to a close as we haul the last remaining pots and equipment back to our cars.
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