July 1st Celebrations with LMLCC
Preparing to make pinch pots!
Crowd gathering around the demo!
I spent July 1st with LMLCC (Last Mountain Lake Cultural Centre) at Regina Beach, for the Canada Day Celebrations. I helped them prepare for their upcoming “Pit Firing,” which will take place on July 12. In doing so, I invited people to come and make a pinch pot, which will then be fired in the pit firing. I also encouraged them to come participate in the LMLCC event and claim their pot.
The pit firing will begin around noon with the digging of ‘the hole’ at Regina Beach. Jay Kimball, LMLCC Artist in Residence, will facilitate this process. As he describes it, after the pit has been dug, he lays a bed of firewood in the pit, and covers that bed with the clay pots that have been made and bisqued in previous weeks. Other ‘elements’ are added (like iron, chrome, and copper) which create colour on the pottery, he says. Another layer of wood is added and then the fire is lit.
It takes about four hours for the fire to burn out. At that point, the clay pots are pulled from the ashes and laid in the sand to cool. Once that’s done people are then encouraged to find their piece and enjoy their creation.