The Art of Clay: Day 5

The Art of Clay wrapped up an excellent week with our final visit to the Community Clay Center! Michael and Candice had these reflections about our last day of clay.

We first met in the Memorial Classroom this morning to work on writing and sketching. After that we moved some equipment to the lower gym, all for tomorrow at the symposium. In the afternoon we went to the CCC to glaze everything we made in the past days. There were plenty of colors for us to choose from. We colored all of our works and made a chia pet. The chia pet will be used for plants to grow out of clay. -Michael '20

I had a very good project week and I have had a lot of good memories from this week. We visited many different artists, and we visited some great galleries. My favorite part of project week was making pottery at the CCC - it was the best time. I felt so excited and it was so pleasant. I also gained a lot of experience by making pottery. I loved this project week! -Candice '20

Tina finishes up her sketches and reflections.

All of our work is looking great after the bisque firing!

Max dips his tray into a glaze bucket.

Candice cleans off her tray bottom as she readies it for the kiln.

Adi gets her work glazed and ready to be fired.

Maggie puts the finishing touches on her unicorn chia pet.

The Art of Clay: Day 4

It was a big day out as the group ventured south to Massachusetts for some exciting visits! Max and Tina had this reflection to share about our adventures in the city!

Today we met Geoff Booras at Harvard University Ceramics Department, who was the technical director of the studio and teaches there too. Mr. Booras found it hard to concentrate on art when he was young, however eventually ceramics sucked him in. He first touched clay in his sophomore year in college; then he became obsessed about ceramics. He teaches at the studio and often experiments with clay, making fun sculptures in his spare time. The studio was opened for enriching Harvard's art program and an extra curricular for students and the community. Mr. Booras thought it's very nice to get in touch with more people in the studio. The studio helps art fit into the community as well. The studio was very big, with different rooms and sections for different functions. For example, there is a quiet workshop where artists can concentrate on their art without distraction. In the afternoon, we met Ellie Moore for tour of the Pucker Ceramics Gallery. The Gallery was amazing, we could touch all the pieces in the gallery and observe them closely, it was an experience we've never been through. The clay pieces came from a wide range of artists from Japan, India, Korea, UK, and local. Also, there were not only ceramic works in the gallery but also beautiful paintings and photographs too. -Tina '19 and Max '19

Harvard University Ceramics Studio Manager Geoff Booras talks about the ingredients used in clay and glaze mixing.

Mr. Booras gives the group a peek inside a gas kiln as it approaches 2300 degrees.

The group poses outside of the Harvard University Ceramics building.

Pucker Gallery Ceramics Specialist Ellie Moore discusses glazing techniques during our collection tour.

The colorful shelves of work by famous potter Brother Thomas Bezanson.

A beautiful piece on display at the Pucker Gallery.

The group poses with Pucker Gallery Ceramics Specialist Ellie Moore next to work by artist Mark Hewitt.

The Art of Clay: Day 3

The students enjoyed another busy day of ceramic adventures in The Art of Clay. Our travels today brought us to nearby Rumney and Meredith, followed by an afternoon of slab projects back at the Community Clay Center in Plymouth! Adi and Kelly had these reflections on our day.

Today for Project Week we first went to Richard Wetterer’s studio and gallery at Shanware Pottery. He showed us all of his work and demonstrated to us how he throws off the hump. This terms refers to a technique that involves throwing multiple pieces from one large piece of clay. We were also able to see Mr. Wetterer’s kiln building before we moved on to see the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen Gallery in Meredith. After finishing up at the gallery and having lunch in Plymouth, we went to the Community Clay Center to do mask and architectural handbuilding projects. -Adi '18

Today in The Art of Clay we visited potter Richard Wetterer from Shanware Pottery. We got the chance to look around at all of his work and tour his studio. He showed us how he threw clay off the hump, meaning he made many pieces out of a single lump of clay. We also learned about his personal glazes and techniques. After seeing his studio we went to a gallery and looked around at the ceramic work. Here we saw a few pieces that had been made by artists we had met previously in the week. In the afternoon we got the chance to hand build pieces. Some made masks while others made architectural buildings, including a chicken church, bird house, underwater castle, and a tall house. -Kelly '19

The glaze room of potter Richard Wetterer at Shanware Pottery.

Mr. Wetterer demonstrates the technique of throwing off the hump.

A set of recently finished mugs from Mr. Wetterer's studio.

Work on display in the gallery at Shanware Pottery

The Art of Clay squad and Mr. Wetterer in the Shanware Pottery gallery.

Michael works on his slab mask at the Community Clay Center

Maggie, Evelyn, Tina, and Adi work on their architecturally inspired slab pieces at the Community Clay Center.

Eva details her slab mask during our afternoon studio time at the Community Clay Center.

Maggie puts the finishing touches on her "chicken church" inspired piece.

Candice, Michael, and Max work on their mask designs.

The Art of Clay crew with Tamara and Michelle, two of our fantastic instructors this week at the Community Clay Center.

The Art of Clay: Day 2

It was another busy day in The Art of Clay with stops in Chichester and Concord before our return to the studio in Plymouth! Eva and Evelyn had these reflections to share about our second day of adventures!

We visited a ceramic artist called Andy Hampton, visited the League of NH Craftsman Gallery, and made a cup and a tray in the Community Clay Center on the second day. I really enjoyed the visit with Andy Hampton and I like his work which is mainly inspired by Japanese ceramics. I like the simple pattern of his work and his passion for ceramics. He also showed us some techniques in making pottery, such as using measuring sticks and dipping the glaze. The work we did in the clay center was hard since the clay was kind of dry and easy to break, but the experience was fun. -Evelyn '18

Today we visited New Hampshire potter/ceramicist Andy Hampton of Hampton Pottery. He has been doing pottery for 47 years, starting out as an apprentice for his first two years. His work mainly consists of dinner ware, and practical items, such as butter dishes, cups, mugs and vases, in addition to decorative pieces. After, we went to visit the NH Craftsman Gallery. There, we viewed pieces from artists around New Hampshire. While at the Community Clay Center, we built trays for our chia pets that we will be building later this week and cups from a self made template. For the cups, we used a technique called beveling in order for the pieces to fit together better. -Eva '20

Potter Andy Hampton explains one of his custom tools used for measuring depth and width.

Andy Hampton at work on his wheel.

Work by Andy Hampton on display at his studio.

A piece by ceramic artist Lars Turin at the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen Gallery in Concord.

Penny introduces our handbuilding projects for the afternoon at the Community Clay Center in Plymouth.

Evelyn cuts out her slab for her handbuilt cup project.

Maggie displays her finished textured tray.

Adi puts the finishing touches on her handbuilt slab cup.

The Art of Clay: Day 1

 
It was a fun and busy first day in The Art of Clay! After a planning and brainstorming session on campus, we were off for our first gallery visit. Following a fascinating trip to Contoocook, we headed back up 93 for an afternoon working in the studio at the Community Clay Center in Plymouth. Emily '20 and Maggie '17 had these reflections to share on their experiences from day one.

Today, our group began our project talking about our plans for the upcoming week, full of gallery visits and studio time where we will get to experience clay with our own hands. Then we departed for Contoocook, where we visited Boyan Moskov, a Bulgarian artist who told us his inspirations and answered several of our questions that we had. For example, he talked about how he's not always satisfied with a lot of his pieces, and said at one point he disliked 90% of his fired work! Moskov let us see his own little gallery in the loft of his studio where we saw much more variety than we had expected from what we saw on his website. After that enlightening visit, we headed north again and stopped for lunch in Plymouth. Finally, we went to the Community Clay Center, and everyone was excited to learn how to throw pottery on the wheel. Michelle explained the basics of the process, and we all watched in awe as she demonstrated very quickly and easily how a bowl was formed by being centered on a spinning wheel. Then, for an exhilarating, educational, fun-filled 3 hours, we dirtied our hands, and turned lumps of dry clay into beautiful, round bowls. Now, we all can’t wait to see what knowledge tomorrow will bring! -Emily '20

Going into the pottery studio today, I wasn't expecting it to be as hard as it was. Seeing the scale at which many ceramicists work, I assumed that throwing a small pot would be easy. I quickly found that it was much more difficult than it seemed, and I have a renewed appreciation for potters in general. I'm very excited to visit more galleries tomorrow and to get back to work in the pottery studio. -Maggie '17

Visiting the studio of artist Boyan Moskov

Work from the studio of Boyan Moskov.

Getting to know the wheel at the Community Clay Center in Plymouth.

Eva, Adi, Michael, and Mr. Benjamin try their hand on the wheel.

Evelyn and Candice get some pointers on the wheel.

 

Work from day one at the Community Clay Center

 

The Art of Clay

Students in the Art of Clay are excited to...

...learn how to throw on the wheel.
...visit artists in their studios.
...go to an art gallery in Boston.
...tour the Harvard University ceramics department.
...make functional works out of clay.

We are gearing up for a busy week in our project that will see us spending time with ceramic artists in Rumney, Boston, Chichester, Mont Vernon, and Plymouth. The group will spend time every day working at the nearby Community Clay Center where they will learn techniques in wheel throwing and hand building from practicing artists.

In our preparations today, we looked and discussed work from The Studio Potter magazine, touching on different construction methods, glazing and firing techniques, and design aesthetics. Each student chose a work to share with the group and give a short critique of, just as we will be doing throughout our week in clay!