The making of a work of clay, from its humble beginnings to the finished product, is a fascinating yet complex story.

Pottery making is one of our oldest human inventions. The earliest artifacts related to man made clay and pottery pieces date back to the Neolithic period some 30,000 years ago. Early man originally used native clay found in river banks to fashion permanent pieces of art and utility for everyday use. It was the beginning of the manufacturing age, and has come such a long way since then.

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Today, clay sources are still mined from the ground, but are further refined to produce a safe, uniform, and reliable product for everyday use. Clays are blended and selected for the properties related to elasticity, texture, color and temperature range for each artist’s project.

Make It
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The clay piece may be hand built or thrown on the wheel to produce the desired product. Both techniques are difficult to master and takes many months and years of practice to produce a piece of art or functional ware.

Make It
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Greenware pieces are dried to the leather hard stage to allow for trimming, carving and modifications, like adding handles (or pumpkin stems and leaves). At this point, the clay can be manipulated but is easy to damage. The clay is then left to dry slowly under plastic so that all parts of the piece shrink at the same rate to avoid cracking.

Make It
throw.jpg

The clay piece may be hand built or thrown on the wheel to produce the desired product. Both techniques are difficult to master and takes many months and years of practice to produce a piece of art or functional ware.

Make It