Old School Clay and Ceramics

Learn to Throw - Spring
2022-04-02 10:00 - 12:00 (America/Halifax) | Old School Clay and Ceramics, 145 Main St, Groton, Ma, 01450
Learn to throw on a potter’s wheel. Group lessons limited to 4 students. This class is specifically for adults. Price is for 8 two hour classes and includes materials. The class will cover centering, throwing techniques, trimming and glazing . Techniques to decorate a pot, including adding clay, carving, sgraffito, and use of underglazes and washes will be covered.
This is primarily focusing on beginner techniques. Click here for a course outline . 8 week class outline. If you have taken this class before, I have suggested a modified version of this class for you. Sign up for this class, and we can work on the projects detailed in this post. This Adult class will take place Saturday mornings from 10 am to noon. It will run 8 weeks: April 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 and May 7, 14, and 21.
Please be sure to familiarize yourself with the studio rules prior to signing up.
To reserve a seat in this class, please click here – Learn to throw – spring

Intro to Pottery - April
2022-04-03 16:00 - 18:00
This is a 4 week class, specifically for adults, in which you will be introduced to the basics of throwing and pottery. The class will meet Sunday afternoons , 4 – 6 pm, April 3, 10, 17, and 24. The class is limited to 4 people. The outline of the class is as follows:

Week 1:

You will be throw 5 balls of clay, of which you will keep 3 that you like. Focus is on centering
We will make a slab bowl and use texture to decorate
Review of different ways to finish or decorate your pots.

Week 2:

You will trim the pots you made from the previous week. How to trim a pot
You will make 1 slab plate
You will throw 4 balls of clay, time permitting, of which you can keep 2 of your finished pots. Focus is on shaping.
Review pots that you have made. Discuss ways that they could be finished /decorated/glazed.

Week 3:

You will learn about different techniques to finish your pots. The plate you made in the previous week will be finished with a method called sgraffito.

You will throw 3 balls of clay, time permitting, of which you can keep 1.

Week 4:

You will glaze all your pots made previously. You should potentially have as many as 8 pots that will need glazing – pending no disasters along the way.
You will trim your pot from the previous week. Underglazes will be used to decorate your pot.

Your pots will be available for pick up within 3 weeks of your last class.
Please review my studio rules prior to signing up for a class or workshop.
To reserve your seat, click here: Intro to Pottery – April

Intro to Ceramics
2022-04-06 19:00 - 21:00
This will be a combination class, in that we will do hand building and throwing. The first 4 classes you will make a new slab item, or item that is extruded, as well as have time to try your hand at throwing. The class will meet Wednesday evenings April 6, 13, 20, 27 and May 4 and 10 from 7 – 9.
Week One – make a vase . We will cover basic ways to decorate a handmade ceramic pot. Topics include applique, sgraffito, underglaze design, slip trailing, among others…Students will make a vase using an extruded tube. Decoration will focus on clay applique, but students are encouraged to explore their own designs. Students will throw 2 balls of clay, of which they can keep one.
Week Two – make a leaf platter – students will make a slab serving platter, using flora to decorate. The method is much like creating a fossil of leaves and flowers that may be out at the time. Students will throw 2 balls of clay, of which they can keep one, as well as trim pots made from the previous week.
An example of sgraffito
week three – make a bowl – Students will make a bowl that uses texture as the decoration. The bowl is made on a mold that is finished on the wheel, giving it a wheel thrown appearance. They will trim their pots from the previous week. If there is time, half the class will throw on the wheel.
week four – make a plate – students will make a plate that uses sgraffito to decorate the plate. Sgraffito is Italian for “scratch” and the technique involves scratching a design on the surface of the plate. Trim pots made from previous week. The half of the class that did not get a chance to throw the previous week will throw on the wheel.
week five – get all pots ready for glazing – finish sgraffito plates.
week 6 – glaze your pots – finish all pots in process
Assuming all pots survive the firing process, which is not always a given, students should have 7 pots to glaze, and potentially take home. The objective of the class is to introduce students to several aspects of pottery and give students an appreciation for the art form.
Adults only please. Please also familiarize yourself with my studio rules.
To reserve a seat, click here

Intro to Pottery - Teens
2022-04-07 15:00 - 17:00
This is a 4 week class, specifically for teens, that will introduce them to the basics of throwing and pottery. The class will meet Thursday afternoons , 3 – 5 pm, April 7, 14, 21 and 28. The class is limited to 4 people. The outline of the class is as follows:

Week 1:

You will be throw 5 balls of clay, of which you will keep 3 that you like. Focus is on centering
We will make a slab bowl and use texture to decorate
Review of different ways to finish or decorate your pots.

Week 2:

You will trim the pots you made from the previous week.
You will make 1 slab plate
You will throw 4 balls of clay, time permitting, of which you can keep 2 of your finished pots. Focus is on shaping.
Review pots that you have made. Discuss ways that they could be finished /decorated/glazed.

Week 3:

You will learn about different techniques to finish your pots. The plate you made in the previous week will be finished with a method called sgraffito.

You will throw 3 balls of clay, time permitting, of which you can keep 1.

Week 4:

You will glaze all your pots made previously. You should potentially have as many as 8 pots that will need glazing – pending no disasters along the way.
You will trim your pot from the previous week. Underglazes will be used to decorate your pot.

This class includes more hand building, working with slabs, than other classes I have offered for younger folks, because I have found children do not have the upper body strength required to be successful at throwing on the wheel. This class still gives them a chance to work on the wheel, but other opportunities to be successful while working with clay.
Your pots will be available for pick up within 3 weeks of your last class.
Please review my studio rules prior to signing up for a class or workshop.
To reserve your seat for this class, click here: Intro to Pottery -Teens

Make a Spaghetti Bowl - April
2022-04-15 18:00 - 20:00
Join us on April 15 and 22 from 6- 8 pm to make the plate shown, or one very similar, that reflects your very own creativity! This plate, which is about 9 inches wide, and is oven and dishwasher safe, microwavable and food safe. It is deep, bowl like, making it a good spaghetti bowl.
During this 2 day workshop you will be led through the steps to make your very own plate. The first day, which will take about 2 hours, we will make the plate, and cover different ways to decorate it. The plate is made from a slab of clay, molded, and then finished on the wheel. Once the plate is made, you can finish it any way you want. A number of different methods of decorating will be covered, including use of texture, use of underglazes and stencils, and sgraffito, a popular Italian method of decorating pottery (as shown on the plate pictured). The focus will be on using the sgraffito method, you can finish it as you like, but the class focus will be on creating a concentric sgraffito design of black, white, and a minimal amount of red as accent. The second scheduled day, we will finish the plate. Depending on how much is done the first class, the second class could take an hour to 2 hours. Your plate will be ready for you to take home within 2 weeks of you finishing it.
The workshop will take place April 15 and 22 from 6 -8 pm. The first class will be very short – probably an hour at most. The second class will likely take the full 2 hours.
The class is limited to 6 people. Grab a friend and make an afternoon of it.
Previous student work:

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I have been teaching pottery and ceramics in a variety of situations, for all age groups, for more than 30 years. I absolutely love teaching and sharing my love of clay with others.
Please review my studio rules before committing to this class.
To reserve you seat – click here = Spaghetti Bowl April
