Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Stoneware lid, glazed on upper surface. BrownChinese pattern on lid.chinese, ginger, jar, glaze, stoneware, lid

Small glazed wash set comprising basin and ewer (jug). Used indoors, generally in a bedroom to wash face and hands, when no running water available.Ceramic ewer (jug) and basin set, pink and white glaze with floral transfer decorationNo makers markstoilet sets, jugs, basins, ewer and basin sets

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Stoneware lid, glazed on upper surface. Light green.chinese, ginger, jar, glaze, stoneware, lid

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Stoneware lid, glazed on upper surface. Grey/ whitechinese, ginger, jar, glaze, stoneware, lid

The Process of Making Pottery Decorating, Firing, Glazing, Making, Technical There is a rhythm and flow to clay. It can’t be done all at once! Even the making process! It can take weeks to get everything done, especially if you can only work on your pottery once a week! Even though we have three hour classes, it’s often just not enough time! Here is an overview of some of the processes so you have a bit more grasp on some of the technical stuff! Step One – Design There are SO many ideas out there for making stuff in clay! From delicate porcelain jewellery, through to heavy sculptural work and everything in between. Deciding your direction is sometimes not that easy – when you first start, try everything, you will naturally gravitate to the style that you enjoy! The options and variations are endless and can get a wee bit overwhelming too! Check in with me before you start to ensure your ideas will work, what order you might do things, how you could achieve the look you are seeking and any other technical data required! Step Two – Making Clay is thixotropic. This means that as you work with it, the clay first gets sloppier and wetter, before is begins to dry in the atmosphere. For most things, you simply can’t do all parts of the project at once. An example of work order might look like: Get last weeks work out from the shelves Prepare clay for today’s work – roll your clay, prepare balls for throwing, make the first stage of a pinch pot) Clean up last week’s work and put it on the shelf for bisque firing Check that you have any glazing to do – and do enough of it that you will have time to finish your main project Do the next step of your next project – there might be a further step that can’t be complete immediately, in that case, wrap your work well and put onto the shelves. Letting your work rest for a while can really help keep your work clean and professional looking. Many things require bagging under plastic to keep it ready for work the next week – put your name on the outside of the bag so you can find your work easily. We have stickers and markers. Consider how you want to decorate your work – coloured slip can be applied at a fairly wet stage (remembering that it will make your work even wetter!). Trying to apply slip to dry clay won’t work! If you want to do sgraffito – you will need to keep the work leather hard (a state of dryness where you can still work the clay with a little effort and a little water and care). Step Three – Drying Most of the time your work can go into the rack uncovered to let it dry out for the following week. If you want to continue forming or shaping you will need to double bag your work – put your work on a suitable sized bat and put the bat in a bag so the base of the bag is under the bat, then put another bag over the top of the work and tuck the top of the bag under the bat. If you want to trim (or turn) your thrown work the following week, it should also be double bagged. If your work is large, delicate, or of uneven thicknesses, you should lightly cover your work for drying. When considering the drying process, bare in mind the weather, humidity and wind! The hotter and dryer, the faster things dry and work can dry unevenly in the shelves – this can lead to cracking – another time to lightly cover your work for drying. Step Four – Trimming and Cleaning Up Your work is dry! It is called greenware now and it is at it’s most fragile! Handle everything with two hands. I often refer to soft hands – keep everything gentle and with your fingers spread as much as possible. Try to not pick up things like plates too much, and always with both hands! Before your work can be bisque fired it should be “cleaned up”. You work won’t go into the kiln if it has sharp edges – when glazed, sharp edges turn into razor blades! Use a piece of fly wire to rub the work all over – this will scratch a little so be light handed. Use a knife or metal kidney to scrape any areas that require a bit more dynamic treatment than the fly wire offers! Finally, a very light wipe over with a slightly damp sponge can help soften and soothe all of your edges and dags! Trimming thrown work: If you are planning to trim (or turn) your thrown work (and you should be), make sure you bag it well – your work should be leather hard to almost dry for easiest trimming. Use this step to finish the work completely – use a metal kidney to polish the surface, or a slightly damp sponge to give a freshly thrown look. Wipe the sponge around the rim after trimming, and check the inside of the pot for dags! Trimming slip cast work: Usually I will trim the rims of your work on the wheel the following day to make that stage easier, however you will still need to check your work for lumps and bumps. Last but not least – check that your name is still clearly on the bottom of your work. Step Five – Bisque Firing When the work is completely dry it can go into the bisque kiln. The bisque kiln is fired to 1000°C. This process burns off the water in the clay as well as some of the chemically bound water. The structure of the clay is not altered that much at this temperature. Inside the bisque kiln, the work is stacked a little, small bowl inside a larger bowl and onto a heavy plate. Smaller items like decorations or drink coasters might get stacked several high. Consideration is paid to the weight of the stack and shape of the work. A bisque kiln can fire about one and a half times the amount of work that the glaze kiln can fire. The firing takes about 10 hours to complete the cycle and about two days to cool down. Once it has been emptied the work is placed in the glaze room ready for you to decorate! Step Six – Glazing Decorating your work with colour can be a lot of fun – and time consuming! There are three main options for surface treatment at this stage: Oxide Washes Underglazes Glazes Washes and underglazes do not “glaze” the work – It will still need a layer of glaze to fully seal the clay (washes don’t need glaze on surfaces not designed for food or liquid as they can gloss up a little on their own). Underglazes are stable colourants that turn out pretty much how they look in the jar. They can be mixed with each other to form other colours and can be used like water colours to paint onto your work. Mostly they should have a clear glaze on top to seal them. Oxides are a different species – the pink oxide (cobalt) wash turns out bright blue for instance. They don’t always need a glaze on top, and some glazes can change the colour of the wash! The glazes need no other “glaze” on top! Be careful of unknown glaze interactions – you can put any combination of glaze in a bowl or on a plate, but only a single glaze on the outside of any vertical surface! Glazes are a chemical reaction under heat. We don’t know the exact chemicals in the Mayco glazes we use. I can guess by the way they interact with each other, however, on the whole, you need to test every idea you have, and not run the test on a vertical surface! Simply put, glaze is a layer of glass like substance that bonds with the clay underneath. Clay is made of silica, alumina and water. Glaze is made of mostly silica. Silica has a melting point of 1700°C and we fire to 1240°C. The silica requires a “flux” to help it melt at the lower temperature. Fluxes can be all sorts of chemicals – a common one is calcium – calcium has a melting point of 2500°C, however, together they both melt at a much lower temperature! Colourants are metal oxides like cobalt (blue), chrome (green through black), copper (green, blue, even red!), manganese (black, purple and pink) iron (red brown), etc. Different chemicals in the glaze can have dramatic effects. for example, barium carbonate (which we don’t use) turns manganese bright pink! Other elements can turn manganese dioxide brown, blue, purple and reddish brown. Manganese dioxide is a flux in and of itself as well. So, glazes that get their black and purple colours, often interact with other glazes and RUN! Our mirror black is a good example – it mixes really well with many glazes because it fluxes them – causes them to melt faster. It will also bring out many beautiful colours in the glazes because it’s black colouring most definitely comes from manganese dioxide! Glaze chemistry is a whole subject on it’s own! We use commercial Mayco glazes on purpose – for their huge range of colour possibilities, stability, cool interactions, artistic freedom with the ability to easily brush the glazes on and ease of use. We currently have almost 50 glazes on hand! A major project is to test the interactions of all glazes with each other. That is 2,500 test tiles!!!! I’m going to make the wall behind the wheels the feature wall of pretty colours! Step Seven – Glaze (Gloss or sometimes called “Glost”) Firing Most of the time this is the final stage of making your creation (but not always!) The glaze kiln goes to 1240°C. This is called cone 6, or midrange. It is the low end of stoneware temperatures. Stoneware clays and glazes are typically fired at cone 8 – 10, that is 1260 – 1290°C. The energy requirement to go from 1240°C to 1280°C is almost a 30% more! Our clay is formulated to vitrify (mature, turn “glass-like”) at 1240°, as are our glazes. A glaze kiln take around 12 hours to reach temperature and two to three days to cool down. Sometimes a third firing process is required – this is for decoration that is added to work after the glaze firing. For example – adding precious metals and lustres. this firing temperature is usually around 600 – 800°C depending upon the techniques being used. There are many students interested in gold and silver trims – we will be doing this third type of firing soon! After firing your work will be in the student finished work shelves. Remember to pay for it before you head out the door! There is a small extra charge for using porcelain clay (it’s more than twice the price of regular clay), and for any third firing process! Once your work has been fired it can not turn back into clay for millennia – so don’t fire it if you don’t like it! Put it in the bucket for recycling. https://firebirdstudios.com.au/the-process-of-making-pottery/The form of the jug has been in use for many centuries.Stoneware jug. Two tone brown glaze with pierced lip behind spout. Spout chipped.None.flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, jug, ceramic jug

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese porcelain spoon, design in glazed celadon.Celadon with green and pink flower decorations.chinese, spoon, gios, tableware, glaze, porcelain, celadon

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Stoneware lid, glazed on upper surface. Mottled blue and white.chinese, ginger, jar, glaze, stoneware, lid

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Stoneware food jar, glazed except base. Dark brown.chinese, food, jar, goldfields, glaze, stoneware

.3) Hand written on the card, “CUP and SAUCER (HARRODS 1915)/SISTER MARGARET CUMMING/Q.A.N.S (M.I.D)/ GENERALS DRANK FROM THIS CUP AT AFTERNOON TEA WHEN INSPECTING FIELD HOSITALS IN FRANCE/SUE McCASKER”.1) & .2) Glazed white china cup and saucer decorated with violet and green flowers. The flowers are arranged in a garland near the rim of the cup and saucer, further flowers dotted around on both. Identification marks on the bases in the glaze. .3) cardboard piece with a hand written note..1) On base of cup hand written “052” in the glaze. .2) Red ink stamp with the words “MANUFACTURED for/HARRODSBURG/ LTD BROMPTON Rd./S.W.” Within an oak leaf garland “Reg.No. 479676”cup and saucer, harrods

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most of the pieces in this collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios also give more detail. This detail is rare, as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location they came from. Part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese stoneware ginger jar (00232.1) with lid (00232.2), Mainly green glaze, base of jar and inside of lid not glazed.chinese, ginger, jar, goldfields, gios, tableware, glaze, stoneware, harrietville

Viola Annie McVicars (1911–1990) was born in Korumburra on 29 April 1911. At the age of 21, she married William John Ayling (1909–1995). After their marriage in 1932, they moved to Kew, initially to 81 Tennyson Street, and later to 180 Pakington Street. A professional tailoress, Viola Ayling was also a talented amateur potter, creating her ceramics at her home in Pakington Street, where she had an internal studio and a handmade, wood-fired brick kiln in her backyard. Following her death in 1990, her studio pottery passed to her daughter, and following the daughter’s death, to her granddaughter. This piece of glazed earthenware is part of a collection of 15 functional and decorative ceramic items donated by Viola’s granddaughter to the collection in 2024.A handmade ceramic container, expertly potted and glazed in a style that is representative of Australian ceramic design of the period.Wheel-thrown ceramic container, the interior and exterior fully glazed. Three glazes have ben used to decorate the object. The exterior had an initial glaze in chocolate brown with a second glaze of orange. The interior and the base are glazed in a pale cream colour. The artist's signature is on the base. Signature to base: "V. Ayling"ceramics, containers, pakington street -- kew (vic.), viola annie mcvicars, viola annie ayling

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Stoneware ginger jar, half glazed, (bottom and inside unglazed) Green Chinese writing on base.chinese, ginger, jar, goldfields, glaze, stoneware

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese porcelain spoon, design in glazed celadon.Chinese writing or maker’s stamp on base.chinese, spoon, gios, tableware, glaze, porcelain, harrietville, celadon

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese porcelain spoon, design in glazed celadon.Blue Chinese writing or maker’s stamp on base.chinese, spoon, gios, tableware, glaze, porcelain, buckland, celadon

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese porcelain spoon, design in glazed celadon.Blue Chinese writing or maker’s stamp on base.chinese, spoon, gios, tableware, glaze, porcelain, harrietville, celadon

Janet MANSFIELD (1934-2013 ) Born Sydney, New South Wales Janet Mansfield studied Ceramics at the National School of Art, East Sydney Technical College in 1964 to 1965. She received a Crafts Board Grants in 1974 to study in the United States of America; to research salt glaze technique in 1975; to exhibit in Japan in 1985; to travel to Hungary fir a symposium, and an Australia-Japan Foundation Grant in 1977 to study in Japan. She was a visiting lecturer to the Gippsland Centre for Art and Design in 1980 and a Spotkanie guest in 1984. Her work was fired to wood kilns and taken to stoneware temperatures. She used salt for shorter firings, or in the anagama kiln depended on the ash and flame for glaze effects. Janet Mansfield has been editor of 'Pottery in Australia' and 'Ceramics: Art and Perception'. In 1987 she was awarded an Order Of Australia Medal for services to art and ceramics. In 1980 Janet Mansfield was a visiting lecturer at the Gippsland Institute of Advanced Education. She was a guest at Spotkanie in 1984.Wheel thrown wood fired and salt-glazed stoneware.jan feder memorial ceramics collection, ceramics, janet mansfield, gippsland campus, visiting lecturer, spotkanie

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most of the pieces in this collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios also give more detail. This detail is rare, as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location they came from. Part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese porcelain food bowl, celadon glaze.Blue Chinese writing or maker’s stamp on base.chinese, bowl, goldfields, gios, tableware, glaze, porcelain, harrietville, celadon

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most of the pieces in this collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios also give more detail. This detail is rare, as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location they came from. Part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese porcelain food bowl, celadon glaze.Blue Chinese writing or maker’s stamp on base. chinese, bowl, goldfields, gios, tableware, glaze, porcelain, harrietville, celadon

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Stoneware lid, no glaze, slightly blackened - possibly been exposed to fire.Pattern on top of lid.chinese, ginger, jar, glaze, stoneware, lid, harrietville

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Stoneware lid, clear glaze on upper surface. Light brown. Rough upper surface.chinese, ginger, jar, glaze, stoneware, lid

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most of the pieces in this collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios also give more detail. This detail is rare, as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location they came from. Part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese porcelain square box, glazed, blue and white, tableware.chinese, box, goldfields, gios, tableware, glaze, porcelain, buckland

Displayed in History House (cabinet, North wall). Owned by Mrs. C. Keiller? (from scrap of paper in pot).Ornamental tea-set in cream and green glaze with pattern of flowers in red, white, black and green glaze. Red chinese charcters down side. 4193.1 - Sugar bowl. H: 5.0 x DIA: 6.3 (8.5 with handle) 4193.2 - Tea-cup. 2.9 x 4.2 x 5.3 (with handle 4193.3 - Lid to sugar bowl 4.0 x 1.0 4193.4 - Tea-pot 7.0 x 9.6 4193.5 - Saucer 1.2 x DIA: 8.0 4193.6 - Milk jug 6.5 x DIA: 6.7 4193.7 - Lid to teapot 3.7 x 1.0Front: Base of saucer (4193.5): Gift from/China 1884 (blue pen on sticker) Back: 1884 (blue pen scratched into glaze)

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most pieces in his collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios, also give more detail. This detail is rare as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location where they were found. This object is part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese porcelain spoon, design in glazed celadon, with dark blue pattern.Dark blue pattern, swirls and dashes.chinese, spoon, gios, tableware, glaze, porcelain, buckland, celadon

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most of the pieces in this collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios also give more detail. This detail is rare, as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location they came from. Part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese porcelain food dish, glazed. White colour with flower pattern.chinese, goldfields, gios, tableware, glaze, porcelain, dish, harrietville

This item is part of the Federation University Art Collection. The Art Collection features over 1000 works and was listed as a 'Ballarat Treasure' in 2007.Small decorated wheel thrown bowl.Glazed and decorated with leaf motifs. art, artwork, ceramic, bowl

Brought to the Ovens Goldfields by Chinese men working in the area in the 19th century. Most likely made in China.Aldo Gios recorded the location of where most of the pieces in this collection were found. Some maps drawn by Aldo Gios also give more detail. This detail is rare, as most pieces of broken crockery were discarded and complete items were usually collected with no thought to recording the location they came from. Part of one of the largest collections of Chinese ware found in the Upper Ovens area and the only one recording the location where found.Chinese stoneware ginger jar, grey with blue pattern. Glazed.chinese, ginger, jar, goldfields, gios, tableware, glaze, stoneware, buckland