(b)

Water may transport some of this clay down by river or it

could be moved by wind or glaciers. These are called
secondary clays. The action of the moving water grinds some
of the clay into finer and finer particles. Along the way the
clay particles pick up impuritics such as iron and alkali
materials, etc. and organic matter. "Ball" clays are relatively
free from impurities, are fine-particled and plastic. They will
fire to 1300°C and above. These are usually the base for high-
fire, stoneware bodies, Clays that have been moved by glaciers
are usually uneven in particles size. The ordinary red, low-
fire clays could have been moved by either water or glaciers.
They have many impurities, the iron making them red, the
alkali fluxes giving them a low-temperature range and the
organic matter making them plastic.

Clay particles are flat and plate-like. When wet they will stick
together rather like two plates of wet glass. They will slide
horizontally though. This, of course, is the property of clay
which makes it possible to build up hollow shapes without them

collapsing.

What are the properties and qualities of clay? When dry, clay
can casily be shattered and when put into water it breaks down.
The water then becomes liquid clay. If this is then dricd some-
what until it could be handled like dough, you then have the
usual consistency for working. In this state it is plastic and
can be thrown on the wheel, rolled out flat and then constructed
into a shape. It can be built from pinching up small pieces.
There are numerous ways of building things with clay. These
are the qualities which should be explored and exploited for
their own sake. The way you put your clay together is as
important as the things you are making. Be honest to the
material and let it show how it was made and/or handled.

It would be a mistake to always consider clay as a material to
be made into something else - a pot. If it always has outside
considerations imposed on it, it will never show its nature.
This is somewhat a matter of perception and sensitivity.