Student teacher Corban Brauer shows off Ridgeland High School students'
ceramics projects that were fired Thursday night in the school's brand new
kiln.
Erika Couey stayed until 10 p.m. Thursday at Ridgeland High School in Rossville to make sure her classroom's new kiln stopped firing once it hit 2,000 degrees.
Staying late didn't bother Couey, a visual arts instructor, because she got the kiln just in time to finish students' ceramics projects, which will be on display at today's Artrageous Antics fine arts exhibit in Chickamauga, Ga.
"It just worked out great," said Couey, who made headlines when she raised $2,600 to buy the kiln by auctioning off a 14-karat white gold ring with 2.5 carats' worth of diamonds that she won in a February raffle.
Couey bought $100 worth of raffle tickets, intending to buy a kiln if she won, because Walker County Schools didn't have the money to buy a replacement for Ridgeland High's malfunctioning kiln.
Couey received another $1,400 from donors, who wish to remain anonymous, after they heard about her selling the ring.
"They just called up and said, 'Hey, I'd like to help you,'" Couey said. "It's heartwarming to know that so many in the community are willing to give."
Couey said the new kiln, which has digital controls, cost about $2,300. She spent the rest of the money on glazes -- coatings that give ceramics their color, gloss and strength.
One batch of students' ceramics projects was fired Thursday night, soon after the kiln was installed, and another batch was loaded into the kiln Friday afternoon so the art would be ready today. The heating cycle takes about 13 hours.
"Everyone's going to have something fired," said Corban Brauer, a Covenant College master's degree student who's assisting in Couey's class.