“Horse Hair Pottery”
by
Bob Fuller

Origins

Origins of Horse Hair Pottery are traced back many, many years to Native American Peoples. As an art form it is said it was discovered by accident when an Acoma Pueblo Potter was removing a hot piece of pottery from her kiln and her hair brushed against the pot. When her hair brushed up against the hot pot it burned, leaving a carbon trail on the clay pot surface. Fascinated with the look she begin experimenting with other materials such as feathers, pine needles, and horse hair. Horsetail and mane hair, being much more coarse, were found to have the best results leaving thick prominent impressions, more so than human hair.

How it's made

Once the piece is formed on the potters wheel with earthenware clay, it is air dried completely, several coats of Terra Sigillata are applied, and then bisque fired in an electric kiln. Later the piece is placed in a Raku kiln and heated to about 1300 degrees. The very hot pot is carefully removed with long tongs and put on a work table. Individual strands of horse hair from the tail or mane are placed on the hot pot. If the temperature on the surface of the piece is just right the hair will attach to the pot, sizzle, shrivel up, and burn, leaving behind a small deposit of carbon and smoke. When cool, the piece is washed, dried, and waxed to a soft satin finish. Because horse hair pottery is porous and not glazed, it should not be used as a water vessel for fresh flowers. Its use is solely as a piece of art to enhance your home or office decor. Each piece is a very unique “one-of- a-kind” handmade original – couple that with the unpredictability of the hair firing process and no two are ever alike.

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SPECIAL ORDERS

We do special orders for Horse Hair Pottery using the hair from a beloved horse. It makes a great memorial to last more than a lifetime. If you would like to order drop by the shop, call and/or email for details.

Direct email - shopkeeper@therustybucket.biz

(919) 290-2575 (store)   (919) 290-2576 (FAX)   www.therustybucket.biz