Kim Birchall

RAKU - the most immediate and satisfyingly tactile of all the ceramic processes. Love the fire, drama and crackled smoke effects.

Ceramics at the Chapel opens tomorrow for Somerset Arts Weeks. We will be there tomorrow from 10am till 4pm (at At the Chapel) https://www.instagram.com/p/B2oguPxgyHn/?igshid=lmis388io2wl

Ceramics at the Chapel opens tomorrow for #somersetartsweek Stunning venue and beautifully curated show with works by Walter Keeler, Sam Chatto, Philip Wood, Richard Pomeroy, Ali Herbert, Jonathan Garrett, Chris Taylor, Stephan Mhya and myself. @atthechapel does the best coffee and amazing pizza too. Show runs for two weeks and private view is 10am - 4pm tomorrow #ceramics #porcelain #terracotta #art #saltglazed #stoneware #crystallineglaze #bruton #somerset (at At the Chapel) https://www.instagram.com/p/B2ogTFIgBK7/?igshid=hr7qve88tofg

Exquisitely subtle crystals on this bowl from the last firing. Copper carbonate giving green tones with rutile casting the background a creamy pink colour. #crystals #crystalline #crystallineglaze #ceramics #porcelain #colourchemistry (at Nunney Pottery) https://www.instagram.com/p/B2eUgpugQ2H/?igshid=102ha84dqpakh

A week before a show when you have no work to actually show isn’t the best time to try fiddling with new glaze recipes and firing programs, but the blue colour on this is pretty electric...cobalt carbonate with vanadium pentoxide 💎 #ceramics #crystallineglaze #crystals #blue #azure #colourchemistry (at Nunney Pottery) https://www.instagram.com/p/B2WSUFZge01/?igshid=spzsm0k8htya

My favourite lavender blue glaze with my favourite flower #passifloracaerulea 💙 (at Nunney Pottery) https://www.instagram.com/p/ByXlDQQgkeT/?igshid=evhr76lizn14

Sometimes I find the process of centring the clay on the wheel somehow centres me...the simple action on having my hands shaping and forming the wet, earthy clay is so grounding. One thing my lovely students often tell me is that they come to class and are able to just drop everything...all the stress and worries of life are forgotten for the two or so hours while they focus on the clay...it’s somehow impossible to think about much else when working with this primal material. If you fancy coming to create with this muddy stuff there are some new courses on the website (link in bio or www.nunneypottery.co.uk) including a 5 week course starting later this month, it’s £75 for 5 weeks and also can be paid in instalments hopefully making it pretty affordable 🔥 if that’s not affordable for you or you are a full time student please message me to discuss a bursary place. Let’s get muddy! ✋🏽🍶🤚🏽 #pottery #ceramics #potteryclass #satisfying #clay #create #craft #potterywheel #raku #glaze (at Nunney Pottery) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv4muVTgcmk/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1ke2gc6r8ef2d

New course up on the website: Introduction to Glazes 🌈🌈🌈 This course will teach you the basics of creating your own coloured glazes and slips for ceramics. We will explore the various different glazes from stoneware to earthenware and Raku, looking at ways of creating colour in glazes and slips using oxides, carbonates and stains. We will also cover how to create special effects such as metallics, speckles, crackle and matt finishes in glazes. We will study what makes up a glaze and deconstruct the glaze making process and chemistry with focus on understanding recipes, firing temperatures and kiln programs. During the course there will be opportunity to try out third firing processes such as decals, ceramic transfers and metallic lustres such as gold and platinum. The course aims to demystify and simplify glaze making, and give you the confidence to start making up your own glazes from scratch and to give you a repertoire of easy and quick way to make lots of different coloured glazes and slips without spending a fortune on materials. Glazing is a vast subject and this one-day course is a foundation on which to build a more in-depth knowledge in your own practice. This course is for any potter, beginner, hobby or professional who wants to understand the basics about glazes and start making their own. DATE AND TIME: Saturday 29th June 2019 - 10am till 4pm🔥 £90 including all materials and firings. (at Nunney Pottery) https://www.instagram.com/p/BvzNNNrAsRp/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=gs9i6twasqid

#mugshotmonday Far too nice to be inside throwing, so took my trusty Shimpo wheel and pot plant babies out for some sunshine. Making #porcelain #teabowls for practicing some #crystallineglazes on. Time lapse of bowl which was about 1 and a half minutes. #pottery #ceramics #nunney #somerset (at Nunney Pottery) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bvt65xBA9xo/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1r90l91hevhdd

#segradafamilia #mosaic #glass #gaudi #barcelona This building made me cry today when I walked into it, breathtakingly beautiful and moving, everywhere the mathematics of nature. . . . . “To do things right first you need love, then you need technique” Antoni Gaudí ❤️ (at Basílica de la Sagrada Família) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu4TvhmAXDi/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=smv3lwjxpw61

Gaudí knew some things about mosaic or ‘Trencadis’ Spent this afternoon basking in the stunning masterpiece that is Park Güell...the whole place somehow feels as though it spontaneously manifested from the rocks and covered itself in broken up tiles and plates. #gaudi #barcelona #mosaic #espana🇪🇸 #pottersheaven (at Park Güell) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu1nqhIAN5Z/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=12ndcm6itkqm9