Tyler Krenzin
Lantern Staff
The Butler Art Department has recently welcomed a new addition to its inventory. The addition comes in the form of a new kiln to be of use for ceramics classes.
This new kiln is one of the several new additions that the art department has had over the last couple of years with smaller electric kilns coming before the gas kiln was purchased. The new kiln uses gas, which makes it much more reliable as far as a timetable is concerned. The 2,000 pound kiln is a behemoth compared to the normal electric kilns, and even includes a giant smoke stack.
Lecturer of Art Trisha Coates said that the old kilns were not cutting it anymore.
“They kept breaking down,” Coates said, “I would have to completely change my course schedule without it (the gas kiln).”
The kiln changes everything for the ceramics class. With two classes each semester totaling about 30 students, the old kilns took longer to fire the projects than the new kiln. Singular is an important factor.
As far as costs go, according to Coates, the kiln cost about $10,000. The new equipment not only allows for a quicker turn around but also offers several different types of variations on firing. According to Coates, students planning to go into ceramics later on in life need to know these techniques especially if they want to stay par for the course with real-life expectations. Lead Instructor of Art Valerie Haring applied for a $10,000 grant to purchase the kiln.
“[The kiln] is about the same students would expect anywhere else,” Coates said.
Freshman art student Amanda Gusse was impressed by the new kiln when she came to Butler.
“It’s like the one (kiln) I had at my high school had,” Gusse said. “It’s [pretty] impressive, and it will definitely helpful when it came to deadlines.”
Another ceramics student Klanci Wiggens talked about how the kilns here are better than she was used to.
“The ones (kilns) at my old high school were way older than the ones we have here [at Butler],” said Wiggins.
The kiln will begin to be a real reason for art students to come to Butler seeking to extend their knowledge of pottery, according to Coates.
While most students in her classes are not art majors, Coates still thinks it is important to show students exactly what to expect in the real art world. The kiln shows them how to run similar equipment that they might see at future departments.
