View Larger Image "India Blue Peacock," 48 inches in height. To create the raku wall mural shown here and detailed below, the author and artist turned to her own environment and love of Art Nouveau stained glass.

November 19, 2007

Art on the Wall: Making a Raku Mural

by Barbara VanSickle | Read Comments (0)

The idea of creating raku murals happened quite naturally. A few years ago I was fortunate enough to be asked to create a retirement gift for a dear friend and former colleague. I needed to design something very special. I knew that he was partial to raku surfaces. During visits to his home, I was struck by its impressive open-concept architecture with the tall, wide wall spaces. The more I thought about what to make, the clearer it became: a raku mural.

Getting Started
The problem was I had no idea on how to proceed. My experience with raku was limited and, although I had previously created some murals for a school installation with children, I’d never attempted anything like this. The school project gave me some of the technical knowledge and experience of creating, drying and mounting the clay tiles but I needed inspiration for the subject matter.

Inspiration
I turned to my own environment and my love of Art Nouveau stained glass to come up with the design for “India Blue Peacock.” Two doors down the road from me lives a family that raises India Blues. I hear the peacock calls all through the days from early spring to late fall. Linking the peacock with the Art Nouveau stained-glass look was quite natural. Since making this first mural, I have continued to look to my own experiences and environment for inspiration.

Prepare Paper Template
Begin a mural by making a series of small drawings. Whatever your inspiration, remember that simplified edges work best (as in stained glass) and that some areas naturally lend themselves to being cut into sections. If you have areas that would be too large for one tile, plan how you’ll adapt your work by adding divisions in the tiles that add to the overall design. Enlarge the drawing to actual size, then use a marker to highlight the lines. On larger projects, you’ll need to cut your plan into smaller pieces. If so, number each piece on the back to make it easier to reassemble later (figure 1).

Prepare the Slab
Roll out a slab to a thickness of approximately 3/8 inch on a textured material, such as rubber shelf liner or placemats. The textured rubber material provides a perfect backing for the tile, which helps prevent warping during drying and firing. It also makes the slabs easy to carry without distorting (figure 2).



Remove any unwanted marks with a rib and rolling pin, being sure to roll the slab no thinner than 1/3 inch. Thinner tiles are more likely to warp during drying and firing (figure 3). Peel off the rubber backing, then join slabs together as needed (figure 4). Place the slabs on a flat surface, and cover it with plastic for about a day.


On Wednesday
We'll continue our step-by-step guide for creating a raku wall mural by taking a look at transferring the design, the drying process, and glazing the individual pieces.




For More Information
To see more of Barbara's work, visit www.galacticglass.ca/barbara.html. Barbara VanSickle's article, "Art on the Wall: Making a Raku Mural" from which today's feature is excerpted, can be found in its entirety in the handbook, Raku, Pit and Barrel: Firing Techniques, available in the Ceramic Arts Daily Bookstore.