Form and Function in Wood
Firing - March - April 2007
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Tri
Tran has effectively fused Asian’s aesthetics and Western influence. His imagery
is modernistic, minimalist, organic, understated, untraditional and executed in
wide variations of shape, line and color. He successfully blends ambiguous
imagery with functional purpose. His ultra-long wall vases and water gardens
both express sculptural form and functionality. Several trips to Japan also gave
him a greater appreciation and love for ceramics, especially for tea ware. Thus,
he has devoted significant energy toward this ever elusive form.
His ceramics are
mostly fired in an
Anagama kiln, an
ancient Japanese
firing technique
that uses wood as
the source of fuel
and the resulting
wood ash as glaze.
The rich colors and
dynamic textures
derive from the
merging of wood
ashes, the various
clays, stone
compositions, and
the 7 to 10 days of
firing for the
temperature to reach
2300 degrees. This
technique yields
unconventional,
earthy and
individualistic
qualities, giving
each work its own
uniqueness.
The scope of his work continues to evolve and expand into many exciting
forms and designs.
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Wood-fired Ceramic Art
 Wood-fired ceramics have been deeply rooted in Japan for hundreds of years. This
art form embraces the concept of subtle and unobvious beauty that expresses the
aesthetic principles known as wabi and sabi. There have been
hundreds of written pages attempting to explain this concept of beauty. Within
this context, wood-fired ceramics hope to capture textures and colors that are
warm, natural, organic, subdued, modest, minimal, tranquil, unpredictable,
simple yet rich in its essence and spirit.
There are many types of wood kilns. However, we focus on the
process of the Anagama kiln in which we fired the works exhibited at
Iwasawa Gallery.
An Anagama (a
Japanese term meaning "cave kiln") consists of a firing chamber with a
firebox at one end and a flue at the other. The term Anagama
describes single-chamber kilns built in a sloping tunnel shape. In fact,
ancient kilns were sometimes built by digging tunnels into banks of
clay.
The Anagama is fueled with firewood, in contrast to the
electric or gas-fueled kilns commonly used by most contemporary ceramic artists.
A continuous supply of fuel is needed for firing, as wood stoked into the hot
kiln is consumed very rapidly. Stoking occurs round-the-clock for approximately
7 to 10 days until an appropriate temperature is reached and maintained as high
as 2375 °F (1300 °C). Thus it is a highly labor intensive process making it
infrequent, and kiln space, being scarce, is a precious commodity.
Burning wood not only produces heat, it also produces fly ash. Wood ash
settles on the pieces during the firing, and the complex interaction
between flame, ash, and the minerals comprising the clay body forms a
natural ash glaze. This glaze may show great variation in color,
texture, and thickness ranging from smooth and glossy to rough and
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