FHR EXTERNAL SCULPTURE COMMISSION

PHASE 1 CERAMIC PIECE PRODUCTION:

The clay pieces will be extruded using a vacuum sealed pug mill and custom created die, ensuring consistent mixing and compression of clay. Shown below is the final die for the commission, which has been 3D printed and mounted on the primary outlet of the pugmill. This is the third iteration of the ceramic piece cross section, having adjusted small edging elements and infill density experiments to achieve best possible results and consistency.

The pugmill compresses and pushes the clay out the custom shaped outlet to whatever preferred length. Each tile will be cut to size and laid on drying racks that are designed to maintain the underside curve of each piece. Once cut to size and laying on these drying racks, each ceramic piece will be impressed by hand with the texture of swamp manna and river red gum tree bark using custom made press moulds. The pieces will be carefully dried and bisque fired when ready.

These images are from preliminary testing, giving us a clear indication of how to adjust, what to custom build and the steps for moving toward scaled production. This page will be updated with more comprehensive documentation and explanation of this process.