Firing the Soda Kiln at Washington Street Studios

Welcome to The Potter’s Round Table, in this episode we discuss Firing the Soda Kiln at Washington Street Studios.
Phil Berneburg passed away on July 21st, 2021. This is the last recording session we held for the Potters’ Round Table. In this episode Phil discusses one of his greatest passions, firing a newly constructed kiln. Unfortunately, some of the video has audio issues, and normally we would have recorded the episode again. Remember Phil fondly and please, enjoy the show.
The Potters’ Round Table is brought to you by Washington Street Studios, a community pottery studio, gallery, and pottery school located in Harpers Ferry / Bolivar, WV. We exist to provide ceramic artists an affordable, fully equipped studio space for aspiring, emerging and established artists to share their creative energy and knowledge in an environment designed to support the ceramic artist. If you want to learn more about Washington Street Studios, visit our website at www.hfclay.com/.
At Washington Street Studios, we believe the sharing of creative energy and knowledge will improve the quality of our art and increase the appreciation of art within our community. We are striving to create an environment where the arts are shared and appreciated. We want to grow as a family of artists and contribute to our community.
This video is one of our steps to share our passion for the ceramic arts, creative energy and knowledge with other artists and art lovers. We also created an audio version to expand our audience. If you are looking for the podcast of our show search for the ‘The Potters Round Table’ on your podcast platform of choice or go to anchor.fm/thep....

[@kevinh5024]

Its truly a gift that we got to see Phil one more time. Thanks for posting. Great info, as always.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Thanks Kevin! We've always appreciated your support and encouragement.

[@jilltramontano]

Thank You, Wonderful !

[@JeffThacker]

It’s great to see one more video by Phill, this channel has passed on so much valuable information, and he explained things so well. Phill will be missed for sure. Please carry on sharing the knowledge and helping us improve our craft.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Thank you Jeff Thacker! We will continue the channel and you are correct, Phil will be missed! I really appreciate your encouragement.

[@ReGGiE1287]

How brilliant this man was. I watched every video and I keep coming back. It is a great loss for the ceramics community.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Much appreciated, thank you for your support.

[@justinpollard9706]

He was such a talented artist and teacher. A wonderful legacy of thankful students follows close behind him. ^^ It's great to see another video.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Agreed.

[@Selamg1]

Great presentation! It was a great loss for the potters / ceramic art community.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Yes it was!

[@jeangarry3285]

I am so sorry to hear that we have lost a man who was happy to share his knowledge and experience to help us improve our own. In the short time I watched his videos, I learned an amazing amount about all aspects of the ceramic process. We have lost a superior resource. My condolences to his family and friends. Even though we never met, I am feeling so much sadness.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Thanks Jean Garry, we are happy that we recorded these videos to keep Phil's legacy alive.

[@ASMRkismet]

Oh no :(

[@ASMRkismet]

Thank you so much for making these. I’m newly enrolled in college ceramics classes but I like to broaden my knowledge with a well rounded education from many different sources. This can get expensive, and your videos are perfect for my needs.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Jen S., Best of luck on your ceramics classes! The videos were created by Phil before he passed away and serve as his legacy to the ceramics world! He was involved in ceramics for over 40 years and taught ceramics at Hood College in the BFA/MFA ceramics programs. The Understanding Pottery series covers every topic taught in a BFA program and works well as a preparation for your college level classes. Keep watching!

[@katekaniff5987]

Phil!! Wow… this is so sad to me… so thankful for all his/these videos… the amazing font of knowledge is gone?!? Due to this channel we will be able to continue to tap in… ✨Phil”s contribution is & always will be a gift💫 CHEERS to The guy who has taught & will continue to teach me (due to this channel)the things I had no idea I NEEDED to know!💓 You spur me on! Along with the cast of past & present potters on KZbin… Pot ON Potters!

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Thanks Kate, I hope we can continue to provide value beyond our saved resources from Phil! Pot On Potters!

[@stevebrown1856]

Its great to have come across your youtube channel.. Im finding them so helpful and Im now inspired to build a gas/wood kiln! Look forward to watching the rest

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Thank you for the encouragement and please share the channel with your friends and fellow potters to help us grow our community. Enjoy the rest of the videos.

[@freddiemoretti8456]

Although not using a gas kiln this was another really good educational video which I watched with little tugs at my heart. So glad to see his last video, unless you find some hidden gems you have not yet published. Thanks for sharing!! Cheers...Freddie

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Thanks Freddie, and I saw your sponge holders on another video on KZbin, from Little Street Pottery. Nice pots!

[@freddiemoretti8456]

​@@WashingtonStreetStudios Thanks!

[@RootedIn.ceramics]

Thank you, Sir, for your videos. They are a source of daily learning for me. I am from India and have a background in chemistry. Presently, I am exploring the world of ceramics.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

You are most welcome

[@ginko9690]

thx so much ... you are the best...

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Gin Ko, Thank you for watching, please share the channel with your friends and fellow artists to help us grow our community.

[@abrahamgarcia-w4o]

Do you only spray soda into your bag wall side ports or do you also spray into your kiln side ports/ spy holes directly on to wares?

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

We recently started adding soda paste on a slab of wood. We do not spray from the side. We like the look of the soda coming from just one side.

[@pooiabeik3042]

Really informative! Thank you so much~

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

You are most welcome, thank you for watching!

[@tokiidokiie]

RIP

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Thank you tokiidokiie.

[@Fareed_sound_system]

Composition of ceramic filter ???

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

I assume you mean fiber, not filter. And you can search for ceramic fiber blanket on the internet. They are commercially available. Most are some type of aluminosilicate, basically kiln wash spun into a fiber.

[@ginko9690]

oh, no...Phil passed away... :( he'll be missed...god bless him ...what a great guy :(

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Yes, but he will live on in his legacy at Washington Street Studios and here on this channel.

[@justintrapp6271]

Nnnnoooooooo!!!!! So sorry to hear of his passing. Since I found Phil and these video series, I have been watching and passing them along to others. He will be missed. 💐 #RIP

[@rOHRshackartpottery]

I thought that Phil passed away a few weeks ago. Was this video made before his passing?

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Yes, Phil passed away in late July. We had recorded this video in early July, then I was away for a couple weeks. Phil passed while I was away and it's taken a while to get this edited. I finally found some time and tada, we have one more treasure from Phil!

[@rOHRshackartpottery]

@@WashingtonStreetStudios I was so surprised to see him once more. A most wonderful teacher and ceramic artist. May his memory be a blessing to us all. He will be missed by us all I am sure.😢

[@justintrapp6271]

Great videos. I wish I could get our soda kiln to fire that fast.....with forced air burners!!!

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Thanks Justin, how big is your soda kiln?

[@GeraldBlack1]

At least he got to bite the dust doing what he loved.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

Indeed Gerald Black, up until the day he died!

[@joesbarbecue1]

I watched this whole building series, I learned a lot. But I hate your cameraman. I wanted to see your diagrams as you were explaining them, they kept zooming out to you, and it was impossible to see what you were pointing out as you were describing it.

[@WashingtonStreetStudios]

I couldn’t agree with you more, and I’m the cameraman! Sorry, I’m a potter, and have not been trained. Hopefully you can find some value in the videos as presented.