Ozark Serenity A limited series of pots by Ken George All of the images on this page were taken of one of these pots representing the Pottery the art!	Earth, water, air and fire combine to make our pottery.  Raw clay transformed on a potter's wheel then set aside to dry.  Soon the leather dried piece has artistic impressions and glazes for colors and then fired with wood to complete the pot.  This is the evolution of the pots found at Brushy Creek Pottery.  Our pots are all hand crafted and wheel thrown by Ken George.  Ken is a native Missourian who has been to many places around the globe and yet has kept the inspiring beauty of the Ozarks close to his heart.  This is apparent in his work and artistic impressions.   Each piece Ken creates is a work of art, functional and fine art alike.  Ken is also inspired by the history and timeless beauty that pottery represents.
	Ken's profound interest in the ancient history of the art is what inspires him to wood fire his pieces.  All of the glaze affects he creates can only be achieved in a wood firing environment, much like the firings of ancient times.  Many of the glaze colors he chooses are also representative of ancient pottery such as celadon and various chuns.   Ken fires approximately 8 kiln loads a year.  He is not a production potter but an artist, therefore he only produces a limited number of original pieces annually.  Each piece is one in a collection originating at Brushy Creek.
	There are a complex amount of variables during each firing that are different and because of this difference, each piece is unique and can never be duplicated.   Each wood firing contains approximately 100 pots of various styles and shapes.   Each piece is a visional work of art before the artist ever sits down at his potters wheel.  In this respect, a potter is to his clay, as a painter is to his canvas.  The clay becomes his canvas and the glazes become his paints.  A wood firing potter's paints are not completed until they are fired and allowed to melt down on to the pots.
	Melting the glazes is not the only variable in the final color and texture the glaze will become.  Other reactions going on inside the kiln affect the glaze colors and designs as well, these reactions are called oxidation and reduction.  This means firing with air inside the kiln or taking the air out, both will change a glaze color. Another aspect of the final glaze color is also the amount of oxygen that is released during the firing.  Formulating wood firing glazes requires the potter to know enough about chemical reactions to foresee how the oxygen will affect a particular glaze and to determine how that color will react in a particular glaze recipe.  See the image below for an example of an oxidation to reduction process in the kiln.
	Our pottery is a fine collection of Fine Art and functional fine art pottery.  Many of Ken's Fine art pots have been on display throughout the United States.  He has sold pieces worldwide.  Each piece is a signed, dated and numbered collector's item. The functional pots at Brushy Creek are not only Fine Art, but you can use them everyday in the kitchen.   We use stoneware clay for most of our kitchenware.  Stoneware clay is perfect for baking beautiful crusts and cleans up easily.  It is also very durable and the glaze colors never fade.   Our pottery is oven proof, dishwasher and microwave safe.
In the image to the right you can clearly see by the color changes how the flames swept across this set of bowls.  You can also see how the oxygen was pulled from the flame and began it's reduction across these bowls.  Notice the more green bowl with blue trim on the upper far left corner.  Notice the piece below has changed the green to red on most of the piece except for the very top where it is still green.  The next bowl is now red with blue on the top, the next bowl in the set is red with more pronounced blue on the rim and finally ending with a red with wood hues.  The flame swept from left to right and the oxygen was gradually depleted by the time the flame reached the last bowl.