Pursuing Possibilities: Explorations in Glaze

Pursuing Possibilities: Explorations in Glaze features works from the Tang Museum collection that demonstrate how the chemical composition of glazes affects the visual outcome of ceramic works. Presenting a range of glazing effects in combination with various surface textures and firing techniques, the exhibition examines the relationship between scientific experimentation and artistic exploration in ceramics and how the chemistry of glazes can drive an artist’s vision.

Although the final result of a glazed work cannot be known entirely before firing, artists can use the chemical recipes of glazes to anticipate certain visual results. Glaze—a mixture of water and the powdered chemical compounds silica, flux, and alumina—contains different metal oxides in varying quantities that produce a wide range of colors. In addition to experimenting with color, artists may alter glaze compositions to achieve effects like mottling, lustered surfaces, and running streaks.