ON BEHALF OF SOCIETY FOR THE PRESERVATION OF THE POTTERY TRADITION IN KLIKOV, CZECH REPUBLIC I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE YOU TO:
INTERNATIONAL MEETING OF WOODFIRING POTTERS
25th April - 5th May 2004
Only three traditional workshops out of the initial 12 are in use to this day in Klikov - a small village in southern Bohemia. The almost forgotten method of woodfiring ceramics in Kassels kiln is being kept alive here.
The reason for this Meeting to open the workshop to everyone who is interested in woodfiring ceramics and pottery and to create a platform for meeting those with interest or experience in this area. You will have the opportunity to participate in the firing of the Kassels kiln and have some of your own work fired. During the event we would also like to do a firing in our smaller "experimental" high firing kiln and also in the gas Raku kiln.
The organizers will introduce the participants to the whole firing cycle - stoking, warming, the actual firing, cooling of the kiln and opening and unloading of the kiln. The participants will take an active part in the whole process.
This event will be centred around the firing. There will be an opportunity to talk to other woodfiring experts, exchange ideas, tips and technologies. You can bring photographs or slides of your work to present it to others.
Sunday 25th April 19.00 - Opening Party.
Monday 26th April - Glazing of work, making small pieces.
Tuesday 27th April - Loading the kiln, making small pieces.
Wednesday 28th April - Closing of the kiln, firing starts.
Thursday 29th April - Warming of the kiln. Visit to local workshops.
Friday 30th April - Firing.
Saturday 1st May - Cooling of the Kiln. Trip to Český Krumlov.
Sunday 2nd May - Cooling of the Kiln. Firing the small wood kiln.
Monday 3rd May - Cooling of the kilns, Raku firing.
Tuesday 4th May - Unloading of the kilns, End.
Society for the preservation of the Pottery Tradition in Klikov
Martin Hadrava 378 05 Klikov 27 Czech republic
You can reserve a place by calling Martin Hadrava on
00420 384 786 015 or by e-mail
Please, don't hesitate to contact me with any queries you might have.
I look forward to hearing from you. Martin Hadrava
Organizational notes:
This international meeting of potters will take place In the premises of the original ceramic manufacture in Klikov 27 (Klikov is about 2km away from a small town Suchdol nad Lužnicí, the train station is there.
The event will last for 10 days, you can join us or leave anytime. Please, let us know of your intentions - either by telephone or e-mail.
Due to time limits we recommend that you bring your own work to Klikov. The work has to be made from stoneware clay or porcelain, it should be either green or bisque fired. You can glaze the work here. We offer the opportunity to arrive before the event and to use the time to make and dry larger works. The highest temperature in the kiln behind the furnace is approx. 1280 - 1300°C. The number of works fired to this temperature is limited, because the temperature in the kiln declines rapidly. A large part of the kiln can be used for firing larger works to temperature approx. 1180 - 1200°C (ceramic sculptures). The maximum height is 130cm, the width of the kiln entry is 60cm.
Participants will be responsible for their own food arrangements. There are a few restaurants near Klikov or you can make use of the small kitchen in the workshop. You can also organize cooking together and share the work in the kitchen and costs.
Contribution to the event is 100Kc (about L2) per day. This doesn't include the cost of clay, glazes, food.
Accommodation:
If you are not demanding, there is a possibility to sleep on mattresses in your own sleeping bag on the loft of the workshop. If it's too cold you can sleep in the workshop.
There is an option of accommodation in Autocamp, which is approx. 1km from the workshop. It's a hostel type accommodation in single or double rooms with bedding, shared showers and toilets. The cost is 180Kc (L4 per night). There are limited spaces available, so please contact me as soon as possible to arrange the booking.
For Saturday 1st May we have planned a trip to a beautiful historical town Český Krumlov. As a part of the trip we will see an exhibition of ceramics.
Society for the preservation of the Pottery Tradition in Klikov will welcome one of your works as a contribution to our archive collection of ceramics.