"Life is Full"

Many ancient cultures in The Americas, Africa, and the Middle East used this method of making clay vessels and sculptures. Many still do. The clay is coiled and shaped by hand, and left to dry until “leather hard”. It is then burnished with a smooth, flat stone to condense the surface molecules of the clay. This is a time consuming process which provides a smooth surface for the magic and mystery of the pit-firing. The piece is low fired to bisque and then fired again in a pit in the sand or in the earth which is filled with wood, salt, copper carbonate, iron oxide, sometimes seaweed, and other natural materials. This firing transforms the piece in spontaneous and uncontrollable ways to create washes of colors and shapes on the surface of the piece. Transformation by fire! This vessel was made by clay artist, Phyllis Kirson of Fairfax. It will sit nicely on a hearth, a mantle, a surface in your home.