Rachael McCallum's Unicorn Spew,

Rachael McCallum's UnicornSpew ~The online journal of Artness as-it-happens.


Friday 26 September 2014

I have a theory

Ok so I have a theory that clay is always moving,  twisting and absorbing. In my head its like a really stiff sponge. I imagine that the glaze and glass can tighten the outside surface- sealing and cementing the sponge.
When its a slab of clay canvas and I only glaze one side - I am pretty sure that a crack is going to happen where the clay is thinned and the tension is sharp with a tight and crazed glaze. This kind of crack is one that happens after firing when the clay is absorbing the water of the air and the day.... not one necessarily about the temperature! 
And so to counteract this potential weakness , I have started playing with resin - one that will absorb into the clays and be the room temperature glaze that balances the tension. By doing this I have a good feeling the piece is stronger and more resistant to knocks.... and it is yet another layer of chemistry to explore !

Although the synthetic nature of plastic does not bode well with my health.... I feel like synthetic works made of plastics are in a way cheating from the true and honest chemistry of ceramics.... but I have many more experiments to do before I start glazing both sides of the painting!

(It is an idea to play with for sure!)

On a more serious note

Ha so back to business, or is it fun ?  When  It comes to art I can never tell.

Either way- it has sparked ideas of demonstrations of pouring glass crucibles into paintings - to actually paint wuh the liquid glaze - but these dreams are limited only by my facilities available to me.
I am hungering for a gas kiln and stoneware temperatures, as well as lots of space, raku tools and equipment , as well as practice time and finally an audience!
The plan is thrilling -
To make a few ceramic cups. Fill them to the brim with glaze and found glass. Have a clay canvas made and put it all into the firing (some normal glazes partially covering the canvas to act as an anchor )... the firing is to go to just below stoneware temps- to activate the glazes and make sure it all got sticky... then when it has cooled at about 600 - open up that bad boy and pick up the cups of glaze and pour them onto the clay canvas - all sitting in the kiln - and let it all goo around and flow in a wierd and crazy unusual way.... who knows - depending on the temperature intervals I could pour the glaze like sugar and spin it into something that branches out of the surface....

Perhaps into a window of glass itself...

Buhm buhm bahhmmm

Friday 12 September 2014

Mud brick Dream...

http://www.johnnyrolfjanderooden.nl/firedmuho.htm

This weblink is all about a couple of architects and clayworkers in India who managed to experiment and complete a fired mud brick house. What a dream ! I love it, maybe one day I will be able to make one myself...

I dream of buying land in the Aussie Outback and designing a mad mud brick house. I would dig and dig and mix and mix the clays, the soil, the mystery quartz, all into the pieces of wall. I would do it gradually so that it would dry all the way through. I'll use only the materials on the land that I own. Kind of like early settlers houses, except then I want to glaze the walls and roof and everything and set it all on fire. Fire it for weeks, until I can see the glaze is shiny. It'd work better if I build the house like a HUGE Anagama kiln, up hill and with tunnels for heat to churn upward. With plenty of window holes for air. Who knows- maybe the experiment would leave a giant cocoon cave on the side of the hill - unusable and dangerous with glaze shards around, oozing out of the mass. Or maybe it'll be a real treasure trove hidden halfway in a hill, that only the few curious friends will know about.

Sure, I have dreamt about it plenty, but exact planning hasn't happened yet - because - lets be honest, I don't have enough money for a car or to move out of my parents house, let alone a chunk of aussie golden soil!

But one day, some day, I will, and it'll be a real landmark/museum/home/exhibition space/ safehouse/experiment/learning centre. Maybe I can try it enough times that it could become big enough to have people share it with me, like a residency program or a school!

Thursday 11 September 2014

SOmetimes everything is interesting, even the moments between moments


So yeah, its a picture of cloud, and - oh look - a lucky bird flew by and made it a bit more than a completely average image. But today it feels a testament to prove that things are never what you plan them to be, they are sometimes able to be better than you can strive for. Now that I have added that good feeling adage, I have changed how I look at the image entirely and perceive the trajectory is upward in a hopeful rise to the free flowing freedom birds have on - clearly- windy days.
So maybe if I want to feel good about a picture, next time I could write good happy things near it and then my feelings will blur the lines....

Or it wont and I'll continue to question everything.

I like both outcomes.





Tuesday 9 September 2014

Researching - Then this happened

So I was researching what I had gotten myself into when I entered an exhibition in the Botanical Gardens, and here I found my own work -  essentially I'm the poster girl of the event!

check it;  http://www.artandabout.com.au/festival-program/cultivate-new-artisans/

What a feeling.

My visual language used to promote and entice - what a thought!


Using my work is better than my face anyway, too many zits.

There is magic in Mittagong

And no, its not just because I was there today. 

The whole town exudes a flair for the handmade and the historical.  Antique shops are everywhere you look, attracting tourists and locals alike. Its not like a time warp, but its like ilder fashioned things are prioritised over the new, flash and brash. The only mention of popular mainstream media was a magazine cover postered outside a newsagents about Katy Perry, but without looking I'm sure that was old news, definitely compared to my Facebook Miley-themed feed.

if you ever feel like a journey, there is the Wombeyan Caves as a day trip destination -however, bring a packed lunch!

Here are some quirky things from today

Thursday 4 September 2014

SOmetimes everything is interesting, even the moments between moments



Sometimes looking at the smaller picture is enough to begin imagining the bigger one.

I sometimes even choose to cover my eyes so that I cam only see bits at a time, giving me a chance to realign all the fragments into something I like, just to see what else is possible.

Here are some fragments of a piece about to be exhibited in BUNKERED in Branch Gallery, Forest Lodge, Sydney. Opens on Saturday, but bookings are required.
http://branch3d.com.au/