Can You Raku?

Last night was my last ceramics class. We did raku. Raku is a very dramatic process involving white-hot clay, shooting flames, and quick plunges into water. It's lots of fun to watch. And the results are dramatic, too, with beautiful metallic colors up against charred black clay.
This pot met an unfortunate fate in the kiln, due to the clay being too thin in some places. I'm going to pretend that, like that blue dish, it's an archeological artifact, perhaps discovered in the ashes of some ancient firepit.

This pot fared better. I wish my photography could do justice to the colors of the glaze. I only used 2 different glazes on this piece, but it ended up in many colors which change as different lights hit it. I'm actually fairly pleased with the shape of this pot, too. Still kinda lumpy, but not too bad.

And here's my third raku creation. I especially like the coppery green .

I'm absolutely going to try to sign up for ceramics again in the fall. I haven't even learned to use the wheel yet, and this class has been the highlight of my week.