Cracks

Why Pottery Sometimes Cracks (and What You Can Do About It)
Sooner or later, every potter opens a kiln or checks a drying piece and discovers a crack. It can be disappointing, especially after spending hours carefully shaping and decorating your work. The good news is that cracks are a normal part of learning, and even experienced potters still encounter them from time to time.
 
Most cracks happen long before a piece reaches the kiln. Clay shrinks as it dries, and if one part dries faster than another, stress begins to build. Handles, thick bases, or uneven walls are often where cracks first appear. That's why you'll often hear potters talk about drying slowly and evenly; it may not be the most exciting part of the process, but it's one of the most important.
 
When I see a cracked piece in the studio, I don't think of it as a failure. I see it as a lesson. Perhaps the clay was a little too dry before joining, the walls were uneven, or maybe the piece was placed right under the AC vent! where one side dried more quickly than the other. Once you understand what happened, you're far less likely to make the same mistake again.
One of the things I enjoy most about teaching is helping students understand why something happened rather than simply pointing out that it did. Pottery is a craft learned through experience, and every piece (even the imperfect ones) helps us become better makers.
 
A Thought from My Worktable
Some of my favourite pieces have taught me the most, and sadly not all of them survived. Clay has a gentle way of reminding us that learning is part of the process. Every crack brings a little more understanding, and every new piece is another opportunity to put that knowledge into practice.

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