A Raku Pot, 1976 Mint Museum of Art

Cynthia’s Pots at the Mint Museum
Cynthia has work in the collections of both the Mint Museum of Art and the Mint Museum of Craft+Design. One pot in the Mint Museum of Art was finished using a process called Raku. Raku is a style of firing a pot that comes from Japan. Raku pots are taken from a hot kiln when the glaze begins to melt. The red-hot pot is placed in a pile of wood chips or other material that catches on fire. Then a can or bucket is placed over the fire to put it out. The smoke created by this process makes the unusual dark areas that are unique to Raku pottery.

A two foot tall vase, 1997 Mint Museum of Craft + Design

The tall vase in the Mint Museum of Craft+Design’s collection was made in two sections. No potter can throw a pot that is longer than the distance from her finger tips to her elbow. In order to make a taller pot, two or more pieces need to be joined together. Cynthia used her wood kiln to fire this vase. Cynthia asks her friends to help when she fires up the wood kiln. Someone needs to keep feeding wood into the fire from early in the morning until midnight. The final step is to add lots of salt to the fire. This creates a special, shiny finish called a salt glaze.