We set up the Raku Garden in Croatia to provide a relaxing and inspiring environment to share our knowledge and love of Raku’s exciting way of creating with clay.
Raku is a form of glaze firing developed in Japan 400 years ago. It became closely associated with the tea ceremony and Zen due to its finished properties and the close contact with all four elements.
The Raku pot is removed from the hot kiln when the glaze is molten and glowing red hot. It is then placed into a sealed bin of sawdust, this starves the glaze of oxygen during cooling, creating metallic effects in the glaze and affecting its colour. The rapid cooling also cracks and ‘crazes’ the glaze creating a maze of lines. Raku firing has a drama that reflects the extreme conditions a pot must go through on its journey from earth to fired ceramic.
At the heart of Raku lays the enjoyment and beauty of the element of surprise.
Click on the above images to enlarge
Who will be teaching your Raku course?
We are Tim Betts and Julie Montgomery and we have been teaching ceramics and Raku for over 10 years, running workshops and community projects across the UK, and teaching in a variety of schools and colleges.
We exhibit our art works within both the UK and Croatia, and examples can be seen throughout the website.
To book a pottery holiday or make an enquiry, Call us on: 01780 783 073 or 07909 813 215
or Email: info@therakugarden.com
