MARC LANCET
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Painting with Fire
Fire paintings begin with markings that can
range from precise hard-edged shapes to
spontaneous and gestural brush work. I
paint with slips, engobes, stains and
glazes. Each is formulated for their color,
texture and responsiveness to the ash
deposit and flame marking produced in a
wood-firing. By careful placement in the
kiln and a diligent attention to the firing, the
remarkable surfaces that only occur in
wood-fire atmospheres add dimension and
richness to the paintings. Informed human
intention collaborating with near
cataclysmic natural forces. These paintings
are what remain after seven days of
immersion in an environment that ranges
between molten volcanic and the voids of
deep space.
After several years of wood-firing I began to
make connection between the shapes and
movements of color that were possible in
the wood-kiln and the work of
contemporary painters. I write about this in
“Japanese Wood-fired Ceramics.”
Rothko, de Kooning, Kline and Irwin by Firelight
Wood-fired surfaces are equally rewarding to a modern
art sensibility. Natural ash glaze deposits often occur with
the subtle soft edged color shapes reminiscent of Mark
Rothko. Flame may leave a mark as serendipitous as a
gesture from William de Kooning or Franz Kline. A wood-
fired form may exhibit a minimal austerity worthy of Robert
Irwin. The integrity of the materials vital to wood-fired
ceramics is comparable with the work of Martin Pruyear,
David Nash, David Ireland or Andy Goldsworthy. These
connections are not unprecedented. The principles of wabi
and sabi that inform wood-fired ceramics have long
inspired Western artists.
Fire paintings grew from my years of wood-
firing. I became inspired by the beauty of
the wood-fired surfaces I was creating on
my tea bowls and vases. I wanted to
experience the beauty of the wood-fired
ceramic surfaces in a way that would allow
me ongoing appreciation and
contemplation, just as I experienced a good
painting. I began to paint with fire.
Wood turns to ash and vapors composed
of calcium, potassium, soda, iron and
manganese. These, at temperatures in
excess of 2300 degrees, undulating
through the kiln, carried by flame, combine
chemically with the silica of the clay
“canvases” to create marks, shapes, colors,
and textures of infinite variety and subtlety.
These are the surfaces I seek. My paintings
begin blind at room temperature. I work
with slips, stains, engobes and glazes
whose potential I understand. I remember
the range of colors and textures they are
capable of producing. And as I paint, I
must imagine them. For at room
temperature, what will be golden is dull
white, turquoise is grey, reds and browns
are pale tan. My best painting is done at
2300 degrees and above.
Fire paintings begin with markings that can
range from precise hard-edged shapes to
spontaneous and gestural brush work. I
paint with slips, engobes, stains and
glazes. Each is formulated for their color,
texture and responsiveness to the ash
deposit and flame marking produced in a
wood-firing. By careful placement in the
kiln and a diligent attention to the firing, the
remarkable surfaces that only occur in
wood-fire atmospheres add dimension and
richness to the paintings. Informed human
intention collaborating with near
cataclysmic natural forces. These paintings
are what remain after seven days of
immersion in an environment that ranges
between molten volcanic and the voids of
deep space.
After several years of wood-firing I began to
make connection between the shapes and
movements of color that were possible in
the wood-kiln and the work of
contemporary painters. I write about this in
“Japanese Wood-fired Ceramics.”
Rothko, de Kooning, Kline and Irwin by Firelight
Wood-fired surfaces are equally rewarding to a modern
art sensibility. Natural ash glaze deposits often occur with
the subtle soft edged color shapes reminiscent of Mark
Rothko. Flame may leave a mark as serendipitous as a
gesture from William de Kooning or Franz Kline. A wood-
fired form may exhibit a minimal austerity worthy of Robert
Irwin. The integrity of the materials vital to wood-fired
ceramics is comparable with the work of Martin Pruyear,
David Nash, David Ireland or Andy Goldsworthy. These
connections are not unprecedented. The principles of wabi
and sabi that inform wood-fired ceramics have long
inspired Western artists.
Fire paintings grew from my years of wood-
firing. I became inspired by the beauty of
the wood-fired surfaces I was creating on
my tea bowls and vases. I wanted to
experience the beauty of the wood-fired
ceramic surfaces in a way that would allow
me ongoing appreciation and
contemplation, just as I experienced a good
painting. I began to paint with fire.
Wood turns to ash and vapors composed
of calcium, potassium, soda, iron and
manganese. These, at temperatures in
excess of 2300 degrees, undulating
through the kiln, carried by flame, combine
chemically with the silica of the clay
“canvases” to create marks, shapes, colors,
and textures of infinite variety and subtlety.
These are the surfaces I seek. My paintings
begin blind at room temperature. I work
with slips, stains, engobes and glazes
whose potential I understand. I remember
the range of colors and textures they are
capable of producing. And as I paint, I
must imagine them. For at room
temperature, what will be golden is dull
white, turquoise is grey, reds and browns
are pale tan. My best painting is done at
2300 degrees and above.
