FUSING, SLUMPING AND MOLD MAKING Four Day Workshop
This is a four day seminar covering all of the important aspects of kiln
work. This is one of Dan's most popular workshops and covers a huge amount of
territory in four days of intensive hands-on work. You don't have any kiln
working experience to take this class. If you've been doing kiln work for
some time, you will find Dan's unselfish sharing of information most helpful.
WORKSHOP OUTLINE
I. FUSING: Finding fusible glasses and compatibility testing. Design
and layout. Volume control. Control of bubbles and gaseous uprisings.
Devitrification prevention and removal. Use of frits and glass threads. Fusing
in copper wire and metal flakes. Decorative combing. Crucible pouring.
II. KILN FIRING PROCEDURE: Kiln shelf preparation and making kilnwash.
Types of kilns and other equipment. Physical properties of glass. Thermal shock
prevention. Critical temperatures during firing. Time and temperature
relationships in firing. Calculating the annealing, soak and high temperature
cooling rates. Finding the "annealing point". Calibrating the
pyrometer. Charting firings. Visual firing techniques. Firing with pyrometric
cones. Control of heat distribution inside the kiln. Expediting low temperature
cooling.
III. GLASS SLUMPING PROCEDURE: Drop slumping in an aperture mold.
Setting up and estimating slide and stretch for contact molds (lampshade pieces
Wire suspension slumps. Slumping without a mold. Fuse and slump combinations.
Open face casting. Pate de verre basics.
IV. MOLD MATERIALS AND MOLD MAKING TECHNIQUES: Using found materials
as molds. Selecting "store-bought" molds. Selecting mold-making
materials for thermal capabilities. Fabricating with ceramic fiber
(silica-alumina) insulations. Mixing and casting plaster combinations and
castable refractories. Pattern making and shape transfer. Mold frame
preparation. Mold release materials. Mold reinforcement. Mold curing and surface
preparation. Using ceramic fiber paper for relief compositions.
V, SLIDE PRESENTATIONS: Fused and slumped works in glass Glass
sculpture
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