Ceramics is wonderful for your soul and spirit, yet it can be a strain for your neck and back. It is easy to hurt your back while hunching over the potter’s wheel or bent over a table decorating your pot. Sometimes picking up a heavy bag of clay can put a strain on your body and cause soreness in the back and neck. To make sure everyone stays fit and healthy at the studio here are some general recommendations for warming up and stretching your body before you start your work

To keep the cost down when working at the studio we are always exploring ways to create unique and personal objects of expression from basic forms and simple shapes. Surface decoration is similar to glazes, as in it can change a ceramic object from boring to brilliant. We are talking about texture as a decoration technique different from texture as a quality of the clay body. The texture of a clay body is a feature of the clay itself describing what the clay is made of and th

When appreciating a ceramic object, most people will assess the form of the object, whether it is a functional clay pot or a sculptural ceramic piece. Form is one of the main characteristic of a ceramic object and can influence how we notice other characteristics like the glaze, the balance or the weight of the object. For example, a teapot in the form of a cylinder maybe better suited for its function than a pyramid shaped teapot. Also, a white cube maybe be perceived to be

Mold making opens endless potential for creative expression. For thousands of years, potters have used molds both for forming and decorating and often both have been accomplished at the same time. Whether you choose to try press molds with slabs of clay or slip-casting molds for slip-cast pieces, you’ll discover that making ceramic molds provide a way to create uniform pieces that can save you time and provide you with the means to concentrate on surface decorations. Plaster

There are many factors affecting how you throw on the potters wheel. Mainly the type of clay, amount of water as well as pressure and speed influence your wheel throwing. However, there are other important aspect that sometimes we overlook. Our posture and mood. Posture at the wheel is important. Sitting at the level of the wheel head (or slightly higher), as close to the wheel as you can get, with a straight back, and arms locked in your body is healthy, safe, and makes effi

At the studio we see objects warp and crack even before they have gone into the kiln. After hours of hard work making ceramic objects, members are disappointed when handles come off or cracks appear in the base of their bowls. Most of the time the problem is simply to do with how they dried their ceramic object. To solve problems of warping or cracking, consider two features of the drying stage, the shrinkage and rate of drying. When pottery is drying on the shelf, the evapo

The past few weeks a video of ceramic artist Kevin Kowalski has gone viral on social media. Kevin is the creator of mesmerizing pottery designs using a pottery painting technique called mocha diffusion. This technique is a chemical reaction between wet clay and a specially prepared acid liquid that creates stunning tree and feather-like patterns. What is Mocha Diffusion ? Mocha Diffusion is a pottery painting technique that involves a chemical reaction between an acid and a b

Science and art are uniquely related, and chemistry is the science that makes almost every artistic process possible. From photography, to paint mixing, to choosing what paper to use, chemistry permeates art and makes it possible. Ceramic art depends almost entirely on the science of chemistry. It is the reactions of chemical components that create the vivid colors on pots and give clay its durability. Nevertheless, a degree in chemistry is not a prerequisite to creating bea

Pottery glazes are complex mixtures that fuse to pottery when placed in a kiln at high temperatures. Glazes are responsible both for decorating the pottery and for creating an attractive glossy surface that protects the pottery from wear and water. While glazing can be a long and involved process, it is not too hard to learn, and results will improve with practice. If you're one of those people who has trouble with glaze chemistry for a start think of a glaze simply as a thin

The first time I went to a pottery studio on my own, I was excited and scared at the same time. I had so many ideas and I wanted to make 4 or 5 things for my kitchen. I was thinking about shapes and designs, looking through magazine and blogs. At the same time, I was unsure how to make all these things? Will they last? How will I fire them? It’s a real mixed feeling when you are totally independent in a studio. To calm myself down and to work efficiently at the studio I decid