I seem to have overcome my initial problem with my second mould. The one I cast from it last week was a bit of a flop... literally; the sides got warped by me trying to get the damn thing off the hump of the mould. To rectify this I have decided to use talc as a release agent, therefore before I cast from my second mould I lightly brush on some talc to the inner part. However I found this wasn't quite enough.
The best way I have now found to get it off, along with the talc, is to use a slight bit of compressed air, very gently, once I have removed the other mould sections. This process needs two people, one to ease the piece upwards while one uses the air to help it release. Although not an ideal way to remove it (as me holding it could distort the shape), this methods seems to be working, although I need to be very careful in the release not to totally squash the piece.
Anyway enough of that, on Thursday I had quite a productive little day, I managed to get a successful piece out of mould 2 (after figuring the above out) and get quite a few bits and bobs done, including a tutorial with Jane about glazing. As you can see below, this is the shape of the second piece of my interlocking form brief.
This has a hollow inside that the fist shape perfectly fits into. I'm really happy with how this has turned out and the fluid like quality of the casts and shapes I have created. I am starting to get some ideas of glazing possibilities (and will put up some sketchbook pages soon).
On Thursday I also managed to make some test tiles for testing various glazes on. To ensure the test tiles show me how the glaze will look on these slip cast pieces, I used casting slip and poured little amounts onto a flat plaster bat. This means both the material (semi-porcelain casting slip) and the surface quality (smooth) are the same as my casts.
I love this swirled effect on the surface due to drizzling the slip on, however this unfortunately is lost in firing as the whole thing turns white. This has though given me a couple of ideas. One is to use two different coloured slips and drizzle the independently to give a marbled effect. The other is to do this with glazes, however this could be quite hard to accomplish due to the rapid drying time of glazes. I think I am going to do some tests with dyed slips to see if I can get some nice effects onto a plaster bat.
I managed to get into the casting studio today too (Friday) and get two more of my base unit done. I also managed to get another three of the inner piece made. I decided to shorten the casting times today. This meant that the base unit it would cast thinner and the two walls wouldn't meet at various points, pulling them together and distorting the sides.
Because of making the clay walls thinner, this meant that the hollow was now bigger than the wall thickness. This meant I needed to put a little pin hole in the bottom of each piece to ensure it doesn't explode in the kiln. I also decreased the casting time on the inner pieces, making them look thinner and more refined. This did mean that I had to be extra careful taking them out to make sure they didn't distort.
Overall another productive day. meaning I now have about 12 inner pieces and 4 base pieces.
Next week I am going to have a go at making some porcelain slip and casting some thin porcelain versions. I think this will look good as the light will be able to penetrate the thin walls of the ceramic, adding a different element to the work.
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