ce – ram – ics:
The art and science of making and using solid articles which have as their essential component inorganic, non-metallic materials. The word ceramic can be traced back to the Greek term keramos, meaning "a potter" or "pottery." Keramos in turn is related to an older Sanskrit root meaning "to burn." Thus the early Greeks used the term to mean "burned stuff" or "burned earth" when referring to products obtained through the action of fire upon earthy materials. Ceramics can be defined as inorganic, nonmetallic materials. They are typically crystalline in nature and are compounds formed between metallic and nonmetallic elements such as aluminum and oxygen (alumina-Al2O3), calcium and oxygen (calcia - CaO), and silicon and nitrogen (silicon nitride-Si3N4).
Ceramic materials are all around you in automobiles, human bodies, computers, buildings, telephones, televisions, and even in spaceships because they have extraordinary electrical, mechanical, thermal, optical and magnetic properties.
As an artist, I wanted to preserve this Web site solely for the ceramic or pottery enthusiast that creates artwork exclusively from clay. My art will never reach the moon, hopefully will not be inserted into human bodies, will be incompatible with computers, will not be able to support buildings or technology. In fact, some of you may find my ceramic and pottery pieces boring compared to the extent that ceramics is used in industry. Oh, well, I won't take it personal!
The The American Ceramic Society (ACerS) is the leading international organization dedicated to the dissemination of technical, scientific, commerical and educational information about ceramic and pottery materials and industries. Since 1898, the ACerS has served a diverse and growing membership, including ceramic engineers, scientists, researchers and manufacturers. The ACerS has more than 10,000 members worldwide.
The ACerS Web site also has many other ceramic and pottery links on a variety of topics including: glazes and glazing, Raku, high fire, low fire, kilns, kiln equipment, kiln firings, pit firing, brushes, slips, molds, ceramic molds, pottery wheels, and sculpture.
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