Description
I made JT Baker on the potter’s wheel with an iron bearing stoneware clay that fires out toasty brown. First I throw the bowl portion of the baker/casserole, creating a galley where the lid will seat. Next I measure the diameter of the bowl with calipers and throw the lid to fit that diameter.
When the two parts of the baking dish are not quite leather hard, I trim each part and then make two small handles for the bowl and one chunky handle for the lid from twisted clay. For the final touch, I craved a sun motif in the top of the lid. And then I allow the piece to dry fully so it can be bisque fired. Now that the piece is bisqued and has become ceramic, I wax the galley and the rim of the lid which will resist glaze from sticking. I want to fire the lid and the bowl together and I don’t want glaze to fuse them together.
For this piece, I started the decoration by rubbing red iron oxide over the exterior of the piece. Next I dipped the lid into a red gold just over the sun design. The red gold breaks over carving and texture and this will make the sun pop! I also lined the interior of the bowl with the same red gold. For exterior of the bowl. I dipped just the upper 1/4 of the bowl in red glaze and then dipped 1/2 of that area again in a green glaze. I want the two to meld. This is a glaze technique I’ve been calling “Joshua Tree” or “JT” for short, mainly because the colors reference the Joshua Tree National Forest.
Finally I load JT Baker in the kiln and I fire to 2200 degrees.
Yes, you can bake in it! Use it to serve as well. It will help to keep food warm longer.
It has a trimmed foot. Bowl is 7.25″ Diameter x 3.5″ High
1-quart capacity
(Note: When reheating leftovers from the fridge, allow the casserole to come to room temperature before placing in a pre-heated oven. Or, place the cold casserole in a cold oven and warm the two up together.
