For people of a certain age their first memory of a pot spinning on a potter's wheel will be from the BBC programme Interlude (still to be seen these days on YouTube). A later generation will also remember the less successful attempts of contestants on the Generation Game. People find watching a potter miraculously turn a piece of sticky clay into an elegant pot absolutely fascinating and many have the urge to try it themselves. Pottery evening classes are very often over-subscribed and can sometimes be frustrating because of the short time available. This makes the opportunity offered on a specialised weekend or week-long course so attractive. A chance to see the process through from start to finish and immerse yourself in clay!
There are so many facets to the subject that a lifetime isn't long enough, so there's no chance to get bored with it. There are different clays to use from Terracotta through to Stoneware and Porcelain, each requiring varied skills and techniques, glazes and firing temperatures.
Most teachers will start beginners on making pinch or coiled pots. This is one of the most basic ways of forming clay and doesn't require any special equipment. You can find quite useful tools in your kitchen drawer: old spoons and forks, wooden spatulas for patting the clay into shape, a rolling pin perhaps to roll out a sheet of clay. Other stuff worth looking out for are those things that make interesting impressed marks and textures - e.g. corrugated wrappers from around paper coffee cups, rubber car mats, and off-cuts of embossed wallpaper. Also seashells, bits of cheap jewellery, screws and bolts - all make surprisingly interesting decoration. So you don't need to spend a fortune on equipment to get started at a class.
Throwing, i.e. working on the potter's wheel, is quite a different experience to the steady, relaxing process of hand-building. This requires a more controlled approach. Most people's response when they first try is to say 'But you made it look so easy!' Like any skill, throwing a pot takes patience and practice. I have taught over 4,000 people to throw and have found that it took most of them about one and a half days to get to grips with the basics. Pots are made along the way, but halfway through the second day, something clicks and suddenly they are controlling the clay and not having to think of every detail as they do it - rather like when you first learn to drive. The process doesn't just stop there though. There are other skills to master, like trimming and tidying the base of the pot (turning) or perhaps adding a handle made by pulling the clay into a strip and also making lids and spouts and different shapes.
When the pot is dry it has to be fired in a kiln to at least 1000 Centigrade. It is then dipped into glaze and fired again to a higher temperature to make the pot watertight and useable. The firing and glazing process is a whole different set of skills to be acquired. Luckily there are countless pottery instruction books on the market to be drooled over and put on your Christmas list and they will give you lots of great ideas, useful tips and inspiration.
Deborah Baynes runs pottery courses in Shotley, Suffolk - www.potterycourses.net
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