Harold Long Cherokee Artist Raku Pottery Vase

Harold Long Raku Pottery Vase. Created by Cherokee artist Harold Long. Truly unique, one of a kind, hand built with clay, not poured or thrown. Thick slab & coil method clay with surface textures & impressions. Matte black with black and teal blue green hues. Organic lines and textures. 7 3/4" H x 5 1/4 at the widest point. This vase has been raku fired. The Raku technique is essentially when glazed ceramics are taken from the kiln while they are still glowing red hot & are then placed in a material that would be able to catch fire, such as sawdust or newspaper. This technique is used to starve the piece of oxygen, which creates a myriad of colors within the glaze. Raku firing without glaze on them means that the oxygen is taken from the clay itself rather than a glaze, which results in some areas having a matte black coloring. Raku essentially creates a unique design every time, so there is less control on the outcome.

handmade clay vessel, native american, cherokee artist