Beginning Ceramics

Course Syllabus

Beginning Ceramics

Instructor:  Steve Schiefelbein

  Beginning Ceramics is an introductory course designed to give students a hands-on educational and artistic experience using the medium of clay.  You will learn to shape clay in a variety of ways-including hand building, and wheel throwing.  You will also gain experience with various decorating, glazing, and firing techniques. 

  Course Goals:

  During this course, you will be expected to work towards these goals:

  *  Make a variety of ceramic forms using hand building and wheel throwing techniques.

*  Successfully employ creative decorative techniques to ceramic forms.

*  Skillfully apply glazes through pouring, dipping and painting techniques.

*  Develop appreciation for the art of ceramics through personal rewards and the difficulty of the medium.

*  Analyze and discuss ceramic forms through group critiques and individual reflections according to ceramic concepts as well as the elements and principles of design.

*  Interpret work done in class by comparison to historic and contemporary models.

*  Discover your limits and strive to create beyond them!

  Grades:

  I use a point system to figure grades in my classes.  The system is as follows:

A = 5, B =4, C =3, D =2, F =1, 0 = 0.  All projects, tests, papers, etc. will be assigned a letter grade based on specific criteria covered at the time the assignment is given.  Letter grades will be converted to numbers, which will be averaged to find the grade earned for the grading period.  In borderline cases, subjective things like daily participation, courtesy and cooperation, work habits, and clean up efforts will be taken into consideration.

  Bottom Line:

  In order to be successful in this class, you must do the following:

  *  Complete work to the best of your ability.

*  Get all work completed and presented on time.

*  Engage in classroom discussions, activities, and critiques.

*  Be here on time, all the time, and working.

*  Pay attention, clean up properly, and be enthusiastic about what you’re doing.

Project List

Beginning Ceramics

Projects List

  Beginning Ceramics is a course designed to help you develop the skills and techniques necessary to make successful pottery and ceramics.  The projects outlined below will allow you to learn the three hand building techniques of working with clay as well as the 5 steps involved in creating successful wheel thrown pottery.  The projects are sequential, starting with the simplest techniques and moving into more difficult and challenging processes as your skills develop.

  1. Combination pinch pot.  Utilizing 5 to 7 well constructed pinch pots to create one central piece that shows unity, repetition, and harmony.

  2.  Pinch pot animal bank.  Utilizes pinch pot techniques to create an animal form that can be used as a bank.  Examples include piggy banks, elephants, hippos, penguins, etc.

  3.  Slab box project.  Learn to use the slab roller and create a six-sided slab storage box.  The box will have a removable lid, and incised and raised textural effects will be developed to create added interest.

  4.  Introduction to the pottery wheel.  Learn the 5 steps of throwing a basic pot shape on the wheel.  Wedge to prepare the clay, center on the spinning wheel head, use your thumbs to open up a hole, pull up the clay wall to create a cylinder, and shape your final form.

  5.  Large coil pot.  Utilize rope like coils of clay to create a large pot similar to the style of the Southwestern Native American Indian tribes of Arizona and New Mexico.

  6.  Throw a functional bowl form on the pottery wheel.

7.  Slab or thrown ceramic lantern with cutouts. 

  8.  Throw a functional mug or cup with a pulled handle on the pottery wheel.

  9.  Time permitting, free projects either wheel or hand built.

  All of our projects will either be glazed or painted with acrylics.  Our glazes are lead free and food and dishwasher safe.  Painting can be utilized, but should only be done on projects that are created as decorative pieces.  All functional work must be glazed.

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