Laurelville’s makigama-style wood-fired kiln was built and is operated in partnership with the Union Project, a Pittsburgh-based non-profit arts organization.
The ash from the wood used to heat the kiln creates a very distinctive finish for pottery fired within. Temperatures must reach 2300 degrees Fahrenheit in order to effectively fire the pottery, and firings last several days.
If you are a potter who might be interested in an upcoming firing, contact the Union Project (clay@unionproject.org or 412.363.4550x22).
The kiln-building project was supported by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency, through its regional arts funding partnership, Pennsylvania Partners in the Arts (PPA). State government funding comes through an annual appropriation by Pennsylvania's General Assembly and from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. PPA is administered in this region by the Pennsylvania Rural Arts Alliance.