Pottery Classes

Winter/Spring 2012 Classes

Learn to Pot - 3 weeks

An introduction to hand building and glazing, this course is designed for those who have always wanted to take pottery. There will be an opportunity to learn about wheel throwing as well. This class opened up to non-members and is priced at a special rate of $40 to celebrate our 40th Anniversary! Ask about our membership incentives!

Instructor: Sue Rayner
Time: 1pm - 3pm
Date: Sat. Jan. 21 - Feb 4
Cost: $30 members/ $40 non-members
Material Fee: clay & firing extra

Food Vessels - 4 weeks

Explore pottery and its relationship with food, and make vessels that have a specific purpose in either the rituals around food or for the presentation of specific foods. Both wheel-thrown and hand built vessels will be the focus. Participants can sign up for both or either of the course segments.

Instructor: Ashley Beecraft
Dates: Part 1 - Tues. Jan. 10 - 31
Time: 12:30 - 3:30
Fee: $60 members

           Part 2 - Feb. 7 - Feb 28
Fee: $60 members
Material Fee: clay & firing extra

Ashley Beecraft - bio
In our fast paced and convenience oriented lives, I am most interested in the objects that weave into our daily lives through use. Hand made pots can elevate a mundane ritual, they slow things down, they tell you a story and they create a real connection between you and the maker. I am mostly a utilitariarian potter working in Burgessville. I have a BFA form NSCADU and have worked as a studio assistant to Shirley Clifford and Shane Norrie.

Adult Beginner Wheel - 6 weeks

Come and get your fingers mucky in clay. You will be shown how to throw simple shapes on the potter's wheel. Make basic forms such as a cylinder (cup, mug, and vase) and bowl shapes. Then add textures and hand built parts to your thrown work to create individual pieces. Learn several different methods of decorating and glazing, and complete your clay creations.

Instructor: Monika Burell
Dates: Feb. 16, 23 March 8, 22, 29 & April 5
Time: Thurs. 6:30 - 9pm
Fee: $95 members
Material Fee: clay & firing extra

Breaking all the Rules!

Creating new textural ceramic 'glaze' surfaces for the adventurous ceramic artists. (This course is for potters with experience and familiarity with glazes.) In this course, we will use very simple, and non-traditional methods to experiment with creating interesting 'glaze' surfaces and decorative textures. (Not intended for functional pottery).
Students will produce numerous simple test 'glazes', and will have their test pieces fired to both cone 6 and cone 04. By the end of the class, we will have dozens and dozens of tests, which will help with further experimentation and development of unique ceramic surfaces.

Dates: Fri. Jan 20th, 6pm-9pm: making test 'boats' and tubes.
Sun. Jan 29th, 10am - 3pm: Unloading of kilns and looking at experimental tests/results. Choose 2 or 3 favourite tests and try different options, and prepare vertical tests to fire again. Bring respirator if you have one, and various stains, underglazes etc. that you have around your studio.
(A complete material list will be provided upon registration.)
Instructor: Shane Norrie
Fee: $75 members
Material Fee: clay & firing extra

Throwing Camp - 1 day

Throwing Camp is designed to enable the student to make repeatable shapes such as mugs or bowls with a degree of consistency and fluidity. The participants will leave with the confidence to make a set of pottery pieces. Sign up for either or both.

Instructor: Don Ross
Time: 9:00am - 4:00pm
Date: Sun. April 22 or 29
Fee: $55 members each session
Material Fee: clay & firing extra

Don Ross - bio
Don first discovered clay some fifty years ago and he has been happily 'playing in the mud since'. In 1981 Don, with his wife Maureen established D & M Ross Handcrafts Inc. for the wholesale production of functional dinnerware and serving pieces. Initially all the production ware was 'handthrown' and 'jiggered'. Later a 'Ram Press' was acquired to facilitate the efficient production of dinner plates and platters. The 'in house' designs were sold to retailers across the country (Patina's/Ingersoll was long-time customer until our recent retirement). The business also produced serving pieces for a number of restaurants with customer exclusive glazes. Don's designs have been shipped to customers across North America, Great Britain and Korea. A second aspect of the business was the design and production of exclusive designs for other potters. These designs were produced on the Ram Press, often bisque fired, and shipped to the customer for glazing. These designs included everything from mugs to sculptural forms. Now fully retired, Don's current ambition after years of dinnerware, is to "make pots"- none of which will be functionally suitable for food or drink!

Hand Building - 5 weeks

An opportunity to expand your hand building skills; this course will explore the use of molds, and decorating surfaces. This course is for anyone wishing to explore decorating surfaces on hand built and thrown pottery, using molds and making your own decorative tools.

Instructor: Keith Lewis
Dates: Apr. 16 - May. 14
Time: Mon. 6:30 - 9:30
Fee: $75 members
Material Fee: clay & firing extra