Tessa Oates Ceramics


Raku fired Bird Pots

Tessa's 'Bird Pots' are hand built in T-Material and occasionally painted with red oxide or slip. They are then biscuit fired to 1000"C. Selected areas, defining the particular character of the bird, are painted with a resist slip of flint and china clay then a thin coat of transparent glaze. They are then fired in a Raku kiln, taken from the kiln when red hot and buried in sawdust for 15 minutes. Smoke blackens unglazed areas and seeps through crackle in the glaze.
On cooling the resist slip and glaze fall away revealing the crackle patterns on the clay surface, i.e. There is no glaze on the birds. Post firing treatments include, wax polishing and staining with shellac based colours.


Redstand Tufted duck DSC01390a
Snowy owl and babies

TuftedFlowers Tufted duck planted TwoPuffins2 Puffins Divers BW Divers Dodo DoDo DSC00011 Penguin and ChickGoosePlants Goose KingPenguine cutout King Penguin HeronRaku2 Heron DSC02636 Woodpecker

Raku fired ware is not waterproof (or frost proof) but those 'Bird Pots' that are designed as planters are ideal for outdoor use as they cannot become waterlogged. For indoor use they can be lined with a strong plastic bag before inserting plants or wet oasis for flower arranging.
tessa oates, ceramic birds, raku birds, stoneware birds, pottery birds