THIS IS THE END, THE END IS NEAR, MY FRIEND

Well...
The correctional department has spoken and it seems that the prisoners being held in cellblock 361 are about to complete their mandatory sentence.  As the completion of the kiln comes to an end, an uplifting air of appreciative silence begins to form on those being released.  Detained against their will for what seems like years (more honestly weeks) the chimney has shown through the roof and the last of the soft brick nestles the behemoth arch in its final resting place.
With the kiln nearly completed there is a return to the foreign material of clay.  My hands have grown rigid in the frozen hell of the kiln pad, but my soul is still warmed to the notion of being able to sculpt full time once again.  I have overcome the adversity of working outside, laboring at a job that I once would have been paid prevailing wage.  (Which for masons is $33.00 an hour, and with ironwork coming, the average is $49.50 an hour).  However, this FREEdom of working at something I will leave for generations, makes me appreciative of the skills I gained in the past.
Peace be unto those that fire in the name of ceramics and leave no clay unmolded as those that mold before me, are reborn in the creations of the future.

Seasons of Change

Interior view of kiln and kiln shelves, Circa 2013.

Although a mighty storm loomed on the horizon,  a group of brave young ceramicists ascended on the daunting task of finishing the "Kiln."  More often then not, the kiln and its cave like structure had been seen as cursed and hexing all who touched it would immediately be transformed.  Finding that each time the person sat down to work, all creativity had been sucked from their souls, leaving shells of artists in the kilns path.

However, as the clouds aligned and the storm gathered, this brave group piled brick upon brick onto the bone like shell of the kilns interior.  Sealing in the fire dragon that slept inside.  Finally casting a sacred stone on the eternal resting place, ensured that any dark powers that resided inside would be vanquished and creativity could be restored once more.

Scarred and worn from laborious days of fighting the cursed kiln, the keystone would prove the final blow to a kiln that had gained monstrous powers since its origination.  Gaining power through morale and sacrificed souls, the ceramics class at Indiana University Southeast had regained its glory and lived to fight again another day.

Interior view of kiln with deceased kiln worker, Circa 2013.