Well it’s early morning and I’m watching the sun rise over the freshly fallen snow in my yard, waiting for it to warm up a bit before venturing out to the studio to check out the results of the latest firing and contemplating the various aspects of Global Craft which are still plaguing my mind. I’m off tomorrow though for Halifax and the Neocraft conference and beyond the conference am quite excited to check out the new facilities at NSCAD (Nova Scotia College of Art and Design),particularly the new ceramics department and specifically the new kilns installed by Gerard Blaauw, kiln designer extraordinaire.
“Blaauw kilns represent the most sophisticated combination of refractories, software engineering, and exquisite design – only recently accessible to artists. These kilns, which industry terms “green” kilns, are designed to economize on fuel and provide students with industrial-style control over their processes. Insulators, made possible by NASA research, are the basis for heat retention, while super-efficient burners quickly propel the kiln to high temperatures. These kilns recoup much of the excess heat from firing.”
NSCAD is the first facility in Canada to have these kilns so should be exciting, well at least for geeks like me! I’ll do my best to get some more pics of the facilities for a later post. In the meantime check out their website for more info on the facility.
