Each profession has its own vocabulary!
Slip, biscuit, chamotte, stamping, … a lexicon specific to ceramists. Discover 15 words that our artisans use every day in our workshop.
Clay
Clay is worked earth, made clean so that there are no impurities.
There are several qualities and different colors: jasmine, red, etc. The one we use at Maison Pichon is gray at first then becomes white or “eggshell” after the first cooking. There is a multitude of soil, with and without grains too. For example, sculptors take chamotte clay: this is clay that contains grains to be more resistant.
The clay that we work comes from Limoges, it is of the same quality as that of the porcelain makers. Only, for us, it's a paste clay and the porcelain makers, it's a liquid clay.
Slush
Clay and water are mixed to produce a liquid paste called slip.
Biscuit
The biscuit is a once baked terracotta. The resulting piece is matte, porous and eggshell color.
“Bis”, “cooked” means “twice cooked”. In the manufacturing process, the piece is modeled, fired, glazed and fired again.
Ceramic
Ceramic is a fine, qualitative earthenware.
Chamotte
Chamotte is the land of sculptors. It contains grains for better support. So the product does not sag.
Casting
Pouring is a technique. The ceramist pours liquid earth into a hollow mold.
Enamelling
Enamel is a mixture of water and powder (the color). The higher the quantity of water, the lighter the color will be.
Enameling is the technique which consists of depositing enamel on the part. The biscuit is dipped using tongs into the enamel tray. Large pieces like the Giant Basket are soaked with hands directly being too heavy.
There is also spray enamelling.
At Maison Pichon Uzès, we prefer hand enamelling for artisanal product quality.
Stamping
Stamping is a ceramic technique for making objects using plaster molds. The ceramic fits the shape of the mold.
Sandstone
Sandstone is another type of soil. Products made from stoneware do not fear cold or heat. They are very solid. However, sandstone is not a light earth and leaves less color range.
Foot
The foot of a ceramic piece is its base. It is used to ensure that the part is not unbalanced.
Terracotta
Terracotta is the “biscuit”, once cooked.
Earthen
Raw earth is the earth before the first cooking.
Mixed earth
Mixed earth is a mixture of two earths to which the ceramist has added colorings. Each earth therefore has its color (we can also have a natural colored earth and a colored earth). The ceramist works these two clays and we obtain a marbled rendering.
Shard
Shards are broken pieces of products, debris.
Turning
Turning allows excess clay to be removed using a tool.
Ceramics is a complex skill!
Know-how passed down from generation to generation in our House since 1802 .
