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昨日は薪窯を焚きました。
窯はCalleと近所に住む友人が作ったもの。試験的に一度焚いたことがあるそうで、昨日はそれ以来二度目の窯焚きとなりました。
早朝に窯詰めをし、9時頃から火入れ開始。ここのところ続いた雨のせいか、薪が少し湿っていて、始めはなかなか火おこしに手こずりました。試行錯誤の末、何とか着火するとそこからはいい勢いでどんどん窯の温度が上がっていきました。
今回は窯を作った方ともう一人ご近所の方も交えて、4人での窯焚きです。1時間ずつ交代での窯番。
気温は0度前後…寒さに凍え、窯のそばで温まり、煙も浴びながら炎の加減をみて薪を投入。
薪も自分たちの家での工事から出た木材や、近所の林から集めたものを使用しました。松や白樺がおそらく多いかな、とのことでした。
薪の燃える匂いを嗅ぎながら、中で焼かれている陶器の様子を想像して、火加減がちょうどいいものであるように祈りながらの作業です。今回はCalleも私が入れさせていただけた分もテストピースばかりなので、その点今回は少しリラックスして結果を待つことができます。
最後は1280度くらいまで温度を上げます。結果がある程度予測できる焼成と違い、薪窯はあらゆる要素が器に影響を与えることがあり特に結果が予想しにくいものなので、窯開けがとても楽しみです。
We fired wood kiln yesterday. The kiln was built by Calle and his friend who lives in neighborhood. They have fired once as a test firing, and this time was the second firing.
Early in the morning, we started loading the kiln, and put fire on around 9 o'klock. Probably because of the bad weather in last days, the firewoods were damp, and it took us a while to start the fire.
But once it has started, the fire burned stable, and the temperature increased in a good rate.
We were 4 persons, and we watched the kiln in turn,
The outside temperature was about 0℃...When we got freezing, we went close to the warm kiln ,being a little bit smoked ofcourse, and stoked when we thought it's needed. The woods were recycled from scrap woods from their house's construction, or had been collected from the woods nearby, and they are pines and birches etc.
I was smelling the smoky aroma which I love, and trying to image how the pots inside would going to be. And we continued watching and putting woods, wishing that the process is adequate for them.
The temperature would goes up to approx.1280℃. Pots are tend to be influenced by several elements during wood firing compared to other more predictable firing methods.
So, I am very very excited and looking forward to the result.
