Pit firing is the oldest known method of firing ceramics and is still widely practiced around the globe. It employs aspects of the natural environment in the process of making and cultivates sensations of experimentation and play. Hot Talks is a recurring community gathering and ceramic pit fire event. The goal of Hot Talks was to create a space to practice gratitude, foster community and engage participants in a deliberately informal learning experience. We begin by loading a pit with various organic materials and colorants. Coffee grounds and salt soaked corn husks. Seaweed and copper carbonate. Sawdust and wood scraps fuel the flames. Everyone gets a chance to add something to benefit the firing. Before we ignite the first flame, I ask everyone to join around the pit with some seaweed in their hands. We all take a moment of reflection and express gratitude for an element in our lives as we toss the seaweed into the pit. We watch the flames as they engulf our blend of gathered materials. I close the lid and turn on an air mattress pump I have fixed to a long steel tube punched with holes. The pump keeps a steady flow of oxygen to the fire and we reorient ourselves for a discussion.
The first time we spoke of the land. I told the story of King Philip’s War - a story of genocide and displacement. We spoke of street names and colonial powers. Land acknowledgements and institutional change. Everyone listened and everyone shared. The next time John told us about the many ecological benefits of biochar. He read us a story and brought out a stove he fashioned from coffee cans to show us how biochar was made. We spoke of carbon emissions and climate change, of afforestation and governmental oversight. Everyone listened and everyone shared. At the third Hot Talks, I asked the group to reflect on the idea of ceremony. What makes a ceremony and what kinds of homemade ceremonies punctuated their lives. We spoke of intention and personal growth, of religion and past lives. Everyone listened and everyone shared.
Hot Talks itself is a ceremony unbound by time and place. Like the trees in the forest, linked through complex subterranean networks, Hot Talks weaves a potent web of reciprocity and connection not visible from the surface. It invites you to visit a space less precious than the studio. Somewhere where there are no mistakes and we can learn collectively. I hope others who have participated continue to talk, make and work collectively and cultivate ceremonies of their own. It’s about making space for gratitude to flow in and let it fill the gaps between us. Hot Talks is to be continued.
Select photos by P.J. Couture https://pjcouture.com/
Select photos by Anna Dawson https://annaxdawson.com/