Байкал-КераМистика

Dear friends! We are glad to show you the results of the sixth International Art Symposium «Baikal-CeraMystica» in this catalogue.
In 2018 we had more of Baikal, of its my stics, more help of  its spirits, and of course, we had more of ceramics.
Love for ceramics is the main engine of the project. Creation of ceramic objects is a hard, inspiring, diverse and always unique mystical action. Our team members this year: Sergey Purtyan, Tatiana Eroshenko, Elena Nosova, Dmitriy Khokhlovkin, Irina Trusova (interpreter), Alexey Krivel (photo and video).
Baikal-CeraMystica project is like a drug. We can’t imagine our life with out real communication with our colleagues, with out these exhausting crazy weeks of preparation, then two weeks of work with no sleep in our white tents, without joy of sharing the experience, without morning, day and night firings, without the songs in different languages, then the series of reporting exhibitions, then emptiness and only – understanding that your ceramic family became larger again and you became richer in your heart.
Baikal-CeraMystica project is constantly developing and becoming larger in geography, and gets more technical equipment. Various educational projects for the students of art colleges are held in this art space, and the art school for amateurs.
The project became even more interesting with participation of the artists from other fields – like sculpture and painting, from different countries, who combine their profession with ceramic art. Thischangesthewaytheytreattheclay, itchangesthewayofworkwithshapeandcolor, etc. andshowsthenewsidesof the well-known material and its huge diversity. Our fund now owns the which combine various materials – chamotte with rust metal found on the works island, porcelain and stone mass with copper, black clay with bronze.
The workings pace was equipped with electrical and gas kilns as before, and the participants had achance to try “American raku” (further on) – “raku” firing, reduction firing in gas kilns, low-temp wood burning in a barrel with usage of metal salts (barrel-pit-raku), and regular oxidizing burning.
Raku firing comes from Japan of 16th century. With the help of British artist Bernard Leach Europe got acquainted with it in the beginning of 20 century. American artist Paul Soldner changed the technology. He took a hot pot out of the kiln and wrapped it in the wet leaves, thus creating a reductive environment during the process of cooling down. This process is now called the «smoking» of ceramic sand it completely differs from traditional Japanese way of cooling down the ceramic items in the oxidizing environment. And this method was the first “American raku” which then became popular in many countries. To 1960s American ceramists already had several ideas about raku: it was either burning with smoking in smoke-filled chambers, or the items were fired and cooled down in the chambers with smoldering fuel or in the water. At first Steven Branfman called “raku” ceramics as burned in the hot kiln and taken out at the maximum temperature, and then cooled in the water or in a box with some fuel or just on the open air. Freedom and spontaneity of this process, cooperation of the master and the material, special aesthetics and unpredictable result make raku ceramics attractive to all artists. [1]
During the symposium we experiment with raku firing all the time. For today we know more than 10 ways of this firing method. The symposium participants come from different countries and have different experience of working with this technology. The most precious is the possibility and desire to exchange and share this experience, the ability to learn from each other.
This year besides our usual gas kiln sand raku firings we had the new high-temperature ovens, which let us work with porcelain and stone masses. Some artists managed to create small porcelain items and combine rough chamotte and thin porcelain.
I’m sure that the usage of this or that technology is not the main factor for the art ceramics symposium. There are special raku symposiums in the world and symposiums devoted to wooden burnings or fire sculpture burnings, or ovenware symposiums. Of course, such special symposiums as oven ware one need to have special high-temperature burnings otherwise the items quality will be low. But if talking about art pieces – we can use any technology. And the professional artists should know well all the possibilities of various firings and should have skill of correct use of these methods for their purposes. They should also be able to plan the particular type of the art object which will be suitable exactly for this or that burning. This concerns any symposium. And every year the participants of Baikal-CeraMystica cope with this difficult task: in the short period of time they produce great works which can decorate and collection or museum exhibition.
Ceramics is a new field of modern art with huge possibilities. And we are happy to acquaint people with this fantastic world and with the artists from different countries who live and create their master pieces.
I thank you all for your talent and friendship, for your wonderful works which you left for our Fund.

1. Raku ceramics: Japanese tradition in the interpretation of the western artists of XX century / YegorovaА.А.[online]:- URL:htpp://teahouse-nsk.livejournal.com

Tatyana Eroshenko, art director of the project