TriCity Potters – Gillian McMillan — Rara Avis

Tri-City Potters: Ceramics from Atmospheric Firings and more

Gillian McMillan — Wed, 06 May 2026 04:22:47 +0000

TriCity Potters’ show opened at Place des Arts in early April but you can still see the work of members until May 21st. Of course I took photos and have shown them to members in our facebook page, but for the record I’ll post them here too. I think I found all the selected work. They’re displayed in acrylic cases on plinths which will have protected them from all the PdA attendees bustling by for classes.

I was at PdA on a quiet afternoon to be interviewed by their photographer Hao Duong. His video of our conversation can be seen in this link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5tg0F8yh_c&t=5s

Although I recognise many of the pieces on show I can’t be sure who made all of them. So I will omit names on captions altogether and leave you to see if you can guess who made what. You’ll see examples of various atmospheric techniques and just a few electric-fired pieces.

During the opening Kay spoke about TriCity Potters and explained the theme of our show. Eliza took the silly photo of me with my one soda-fired vase and a carved earthenware bowl.

Well done fellow TriCity Potters, and thank you to Place des Arts for hosting our local pottery group once again. Check out the show before it closes, and make a note to join us for our next monthly meeting on May 20th, at PoMoArts. Come prepared to learn more about applying images to clay.

Monoprinting on Clay

Gillian McMillan — Sat, 18 Apr 2026 18:33:18 +0000

Last Wednesday’s meeting of TriCity Potters was just exactly what a gathering of potters should be! Board member Pene Hollingworth volunteered to show us all how to go about making monoprints on clay forms. She had the two-hour session carefully planned so that we could all try the process and be finished in time.

Everything we needed for the evening was ready for the twenty or so members attending. Nicole had made 6″+ tiles which were not quite leather-hard. Pene provided a bucket of white slip, squares of newsprint paper, lots of underglazes and some finished samples of monoprinted pots. She expained in detail exactly how to make a design and transfer it to the tile. Of course the technique can be used on 3D shapes but they must be smooth and even to accept the print.

Briefly, she had us make a pencil drawing, outline it with black or dark underglaze and let it dry. Then we painted the image with more underglazes, remembering as we worked that the design would be reversed when printed. When all was dry she demonstrated painting the tile and then the paper images with white slip. When those were no longer shiny she carefully applied the print to the tile and pressed it on with a soft rubber rib.

The comfortable silence as we worked on our projects was rather special.

Then came the big reveal. The now fragile paper had to be carefully lifted from the tile to leave the reversed image. Pene stressed that this technique isn’t about producing a perfect copy but a way of creating a one-of-a-kind surface, with random, interesting variations. Our resulting tiles are good examples of mono- printing and we were all delighted with the experience. I, for one, wound up trying out the technique on a stoneware beaker the next day.

Thank you Pene for organizing and presenting a very useful and engaging evening, and thanks to the volunteer board members and more who cooperated to make sure the events ran smoothly and we completed the exercise.

Next month we will be learning how to transfer prints and photographs to clay, presented by Elizabeth Claridge. Do join us on May 20th at PoMoArts.

Meanwhile you still have time to see the best work of TriCity Potters at Place des Arts in Coquitlam.

Markian Kyba

Gillian McMillan — Mon, 20 Oct 2025 00:29:41 +0000

TriCity Potters meet once a month, from September to May, in the Appleyard Room at PoMoArts. Last Wednesday, after a very brief AGM, we settled down for an interesting and well-planned talk by Vancouver potter and teacher, Markian Kyba.

Do check this link to learn more about Markian.

https://www.markiankybaceramics.com/about

A raku firing at the Shadbolt Centre has been booked for TriCity Potters in early December so it was a good idea to have Markian spend some time explaining the process. He clearly enjoys teaching and practicing raku firing.

Considering the whole process of setting up a raku kiln and the special glazes required, he now books the same Shadbolt kiln and technicians to provide a raku experience for his students.

Displayed here are several raku-fired pots as well as reduction and wood-fired pieces.

It’s difficult to move a wheel etc into our meeting room for a two-hour presentation but Markian and his school’s ceramics technician, our own Max Yang, took some videos this week. Short videos of throwing and applying decoration were a perfect way to get around the demonstration hurdle. As he worked on his wheel Markian discussed ways of applying ferns and then spraying slip over them with an atomizer. Members asked about suitable clays for raku.. basically any clay will work, but add grog, said he.

After we’d watched the videos Markian discussed the pots he’d brought along. He’s most interested in atmospheric firings, especially wood firing. He also recommended local potters take advantage of the Potters Guild of BC gas kiln (to be found in the Mergatroid Building in East Vancouver) for cone 10R firing experience.

Some members were happy to purchase a pot or two from our presenter at the end of the evening. Thank you Markian.

All are welcome to attend TCP meetings on the third Wednesday of each month.

Two more sleeps until I help to unload the latest soda firing at Shadbolt!