Colorado Horse Hair Raku Pottery
The Art of Creating Horse Hair Raku Pottery
Using a specialized clay, a pot is ‘thrown’ on a traditional pottery wheel. The pot is allowed to slow dry for approximately 1 week, becoming leather hard. The pot is then trimmed (fine tune the shape), and burnished (smooth the surface), and the horse name is etched onto the bottom of the pot. The pot is allowed to dry further before being bisque fired in a traditional kiln. The pot is fired a second time in a Raku kiln. At approximately 1200 degrees Fahrenheit, the pot is removed from the kiln, hair is laid across the surface and the hair burns into the clay. The pot is allowed to cool and is then layered with a protective wax.
Horses and Pottery Come Together
Paula Brunner is a local Colorado artisan, with an interest in horses and pottery. After retiring, (from UC Health), Paula began volunteering at Colorado Springs Therapeutic Riding Center (CSTRC). Her talent for making pottery, along with her love for working with the children and the therapy horses at CSTRC magically combined, allowing her to create horse hair Raku pottery. Each piece is created using up-cycled horse hair, (collected during routine grooming), with the horse’s name engraved on the bottom. Email her at ColoradoRaku@gmail.com