Pottery Masterclass: Coil building - sculpture & vessels

What You Will Learn

In this workshop you will learn how to make coil built forms, that can become sculptures, vases or vessels. You will learn how to prepare the stoneware clay and use coils of clay to build a form than can be shaped into a sculpture or vessel.

On the day, Jean will show you how to roll out and extrude coils and build them up to form your piece. You will be able to choose from a range of sizes and make a set of one or two pieces depending on complexity of your chosen form. You can leave your vessels simple and plain, or experiment with a neutral colour palette of underglazes for colour. Jean will also provide a variety of found objects for imprinting and mark making in the clay, and you are welcome to bring anything you would like to experiment with! Examples of things that work particularly well are seed heads, fine foliage, lace, mesh and fabrics etc.

At the end of the workshop, you will have one or two sculptures or vessels that will be left with us to dry out, be glazed and fired. These will be available for collection a few weeks later. We can arrange postage for a small fee.

To see photos and films of our past workshops, click here. 

What to bring

Everything you need for the workshop will be provided including aprons but please wear something you don’t mind getting dirty. Please be aware that pottery involves the use of sharp tools.

Skill Level

Beginners and improvers.

Number of places available

6

Your tutor for the day: Jean Crosbie

Jean Crosbie is a potter and textile artist based in Kent, UK. She has been a potter for over 20 years and has exhibited and sold her work at numerous locations across the south-east. With a focus on hand building, each piece is unique and incorporates abstract patterns in sgraffito and oxides using found objects for mark making.

A key theme in Jean’s work is botanical imprints and forms, such as poppy seed heads. She also sculpts and slab builds pots of varying scales for plants, where the plants become part of the piece themselves. Larger scale planters are filled with succulents and alpines with the textures of the plants and the clay forming a symbiotic relationship.

@jeancrosbiepottery

Schedule on the day

Please arrive at the studio at 12.45pm ready for the workshop to begin promptly at 1pm.

We will have a tea break in the afternoon and we will provide hot drinks and biscuits - let us know if you have any allergies/requirements. 

Travel

High Brooms railway station is approx. 15 minutes walk from the studio and provides direct train links to London and the South East. There is a metered car park (Yew Tree road) located 5 minutes walk from the studio, and on street parking is available.

Accessibility

The studio is on the ground floor with one threshold step to the front door. There is one step internally to access the WC. Please get in touch if you have any questions about access and we will be happy to chat about it in more detail and do what we can to accommodate you.

Cancellations & Covid Policy

Bookings for our workshops and studio sessions are non-refundable. Please check the dates and details above carefully before you confirm your booking.

If government restrictions dictate that we need to cancel the workshop for any reason due to Covid-19 will refund the total cost of the workshop. When we are able to reschedule, we will offer first refusal to those who previously signed up.

Read Event Terms and Conditions here.