Hobbema man offers traditional blessing of kiln

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On July 22 more than 60 people gathered at a farm north of Hythe to witness the first firing of the Bishogama, a one-of-a-kind Japanese-style wood-fired pottery kiln.

Francis Tootoosis of Hobbema was invited to offer a traditional Aboriginal blessing for the kiln, which was designed and built by fourth generation potter Yasuo Terada of Seto, Japan.

Bibi Clement, the potter on whose farm the kiln was built, and the organizer of the International Ceramic Workshop, asked Tootoosis to do the blessing because this land once belonged to the first people.

"I can never forget that it is their country. I'm a white person in awe of these spiritual people," she said.

Before the kiln firing, Tootoosis and the main instructor of the workshop, Steve Sauer of Washington in the United States, participated in a two-day sweat.

"It was an amazing process," said Sauer of his first sweat. "It brought a focus to what I was doing, gave me a sense of the land, where I was," he said.

At the conclusion of the ceremony that included the passing of the pipe among the observers, the 26-foot kiln was lit with the fire from the pipe. This fire was then stoked with 10 cords of wood, for six days and six nights, providing the heat and ash to glaze more than 1,000 pieces of pottery.

A traditional Japanese ceremony was conducted by Clement who scattered salt for purification and cleansing of bad thoughts on the ground around the kiln, then rice for good luck.

Willow branches tied with white Shinto papers for good luck were placed into the kiln by Tootoosis and a few others.

The 15-day workshop appealed to writer Diane Meili, who found she could tell stories in the medium of clay. A junior potter from Peace River and one of the nine students, she used symbols-horse, snake and thunderbird-that reflect her Aboriginal background. To her delight she found the four elements in the pottery process: earth-the clay; fire-the fire in the kiln; water-used to work the clay; and spirit-both fire and human.

"The workshop was really about a community of artists, about the process, the love and sharing. The pots are a bonus!" said Sauer.

"It was a new experience for me," said Tootoosis of his involvement with the kiln. "I was impressed with the energy put into this project, the work of so many people. It is so positive."

Several pieces from the Bishogama kiln firing are on display at the Prairie Art Gallery in Grande Prairie until August 25, 2002.