Claywork

With instructor: Jess Shanti
(BFA Umass Amherst, Ma.)

Hand Building is the art of manipulating clay with your hands & a few simple tools. For thousands of years, people on nearly every continent have enjoyed this ancient tradition. Whether it’s something useful or purely aesthetic, it relieves stress & builds self confidence to create art using pure earth & fire!

In our Introduction to Clayworks classes, Jess Shanti will demonstrate basic techniques necessary to clay hand building. Through a series of small projects, students will

• gain experience in the fundamental concepts essential to clay work
• learn how to properly attach segments of clay
• build a structure using coils
• roll out slabs of clay to manipulate them into artwork
• experience the 5 phases of clay, from it’s workable state to a permanent piece of art

Students will spend 5 class periods building clay artworks, then one class period glazing them all.

Wheel Throwing is a technique employing a potter’s wheel to quickly create clay vessels which are usually more symmetrical than hand built items are. It’s almost like magic to experience the feeling of pulling up the wall of a cylinder which soon becomes a bowl, a cup, a teapot or a pitcher, a vase or one element of a more sculptural & sophisticated art piece!

In our Intermediate Clayworks classes, Jess Shanti will take students beyond the hand building tools & will incorporate wheel throwing into the répertoire of options students have available to them to make art. In Intermediate Clayworks, the student becomes more self-directed in their quest to create in three dimensions. Students may take this class again & again & never repeat an assignment! The curriculum is as open as a student’s mind, restricted only by the limitations of clay. By drawing inspiration from examples of artwork & ideas we bounce around the classroom, students will have a wide range of possibilities to pursue. Jess Shanti is an experienced teacher who can assist & guide you as you delve into the world of earthen art, all while you explore the creative ideas you envision.
*It is a prerequisite that all students first take the 6-week Introduction to Clayworks classes prior to enrolling in our Intermediate Clayworks program.
** Please note this is not a wheel throwing class, but a sculptural clay-working class. In this class, work created on the wheel will be embellished upon, added to, subtracted from, or otherwise altered so as to make unique artwork that stretches the imagination & challenges your creative intellect.
***This class can best be enjoyed if the students have internet access. I really encourage my students to visit Google Images for inspiration & ideas. Also, You Tube is a good way for students to watch other artists create work. I do not wish to spend class time presenting these images & videos, as I think it’s a better use of time if students pursue this kind of enrichment on their own.

We are currently forming classes. If you are interested in taking a clay class please contact Jess@forestandsky.com