Designed with the beginner in mind, but also appropriate for the more experienced, learn to work with clay using handbuilding and wheel throwing techniques. Students work closely with instructors to learn the entire process of making, glazing and firing. Have fun creating unique handmade pots, vessels and sculpture.

Check clay out in this one-day three-hour clay class for adults who are interested in experimenting with clay for the first time. This is a great opportunity to have fun and experience the transformational qualities of clay before you commit to a weekly class. Participants will create a clay project that they can come and pick up after it is fired. Invite a friend or relative to join you – this class is a wonderful relaxing way to spend a weekend afternoon

What makes a handmade pot enjoyable to use? Learn about the careful balance between aesthetic and utilitarian considerations that can determine the difference between a pot you like to use and a pot you love to use. With an emphasis on an attention to details, explore basic wheel throwing and altering techniques while developing a rich surface through the use of colored slips and glazes.

GEORGIA TENORE has been making pots and teaching for over 25 years. She has studied at Haystack and apprenticed and worked at Scargo Pottery, Dennis, MA, and was a porcelain consultant for Dansk.

Form and decoration are an integral part of the history of pottery. In this class we will continue to work on technical throwing and construction skills and move beyond on the act of creating a vessel to discover the potential of the surface. Techniques in addition, subtraction and how the gestures we make with our hands and tools will inform the pot. We will give a new life to our pots and work together to understand why.

Pursue your passions and learn new techniques along the way through a Japanese approach. Express your personal creative vision using a diverse range of wheel throwing techniques. All manners of expression will be encouraged, whether functional or sculptural, to create a variety of forms. Students are nurtured to work in individual directions. Taught in Japanese and English.

KEIKO ASHIDA studied pottery in Mashiko, Japan and received her BFA at the Musashino Art University in Tokyo. She has had numerous solo exhibits in Japan.

Are you a wheel aficionado? Is throwing your thing? Join other potters passionate about pushing their throwing skills to the next level by mastering the fine points of throwing. Learn to spiral wedge with ease, get the weight up and off the bottom of your pots, throw large and unusual forms, use Japanese throwing sticks and ribs, and trim effectively with Japanese tools. Approach the glaze room with confidence and a plan. Taught in Japanese and English.

Express your personal creative vision using a diverse range of handbuilding techniques. Using low fire clay and glazes for texture and color, create a variety of forms using pinching, slab and coiling methods. All manners of expression will be encouraged, whether functional or sculptural. Students are nurtured to work in individual directions. Explore and discover yourself through clay and give into your creative impulse

MARI OGIHARA is a ceramic sculptor. She graduated with a MFA from Temple University in 2006. Mari was the Tech at the Ceramics Lab at Temple and also taught classes with the ClayMobile program at the Clay Studio in Philadelphia.

Challenge your imagination and create creatures that combine both animal and human features. Learn about the history of the relationships between animals and humans in this class, and discover how it relates to you. Technical instruction will focus on how to assemble small thrown parts, pinched forms, slabs and at least one found object in order to create a larger, more complex sculpture. Figure modeling demonstrations will also be integral to the course and will enable the student to express oneself through the potential of the human body.

Consider the possibilities of drawing and painting on clay as a mode of communication. Learn about how to convey your unique story through the potential of the drawn image, the power of color and low-relief techniques on a variety of forms. Collecting found images and constructing meaning out of them will motivate the compositions you will experiment with and expand your vocabulary of imagery. From ancient Sumerian tablets to contemporary graffiti, this class will also review the history of story-telling on clay.

SHANNA FLIEGEL received her MFA in Ceramics from Southern Illinois University in 2008. Since her BFA from James Madison University in 2001, she has exhibited her work widely, had her work featured in several publications and has received several awards. She is one of the resident artists at Clay Art Center for 2008 - 09.

How can you grow and improve your work? How can you tell which work is good and why? These monthly sessions for advanced hand and wheel students will attempt to help you answer these questions. Ruth and Marilyn will discuss form, color and standards for judging your own and other artist's work. Each class will feature a “show and tell” with constructive critiquing and slide discussions. Students will be asked to bring finished work to each session for discussion.

Pursue your passions and learn new techniques along the way through a Japanese approach. Express your personal creative vision using a diverse range of handbuilding techniques and traditional cone 6 glazes. All manners of expression will be encouraged, whether functional or sculptural, create a variety of forms. Students are nurtured to work in individual directions. Taught in English and Japanese.

Struggling to finish your pieces? Demonstrations in this class will focus on the limitless possibilities of low fire surface treatments. While working on your own functional or sculptural pieces and creative vision, you will learn the benefits of layering textures, slips, and glazes to get rich inviting surfaces. Or you could try some surface approaches such as photo silkscreen, decals, paper transfers, stencil and mono printing. Liz will also explore post-firing surface treatments using mixed media such as encaustic, sliver and gold leaf, pastels, found objects and more. Ongoing individual assistance and weekly demos by Liz or visiting artists will be included.

Both classrooms will be available for independent study for the month of January. This is a time when advanced students can have access to the classroom to work without instruction. Students must have taken classes at CAC for at least one year to be eligible and must be willing to sign a detailed agreement. Students will have access to the classroom Mon – Sat, 9:30am – 4pm, and access to the glaze room Mon – Sat, 9:30am -1pm. To sign up for independent study, please come to the office during office hours.

Make a zoo full of animals while learning basic handbuilding techniques, such as pinching, coiling and how to build with slabs. Each day, students will talk about different animals and their habitats, and then create fun clay projects in response! Students will make and glaze an animal-scape, an animal mug, and will even have fun making a new creature to add to the animal kingdom!

All materials and firing included.

Each day of this week-long camp, students will explore different countries, creating works of art inspired by the country's culture and history. Students will have the opportunity to use various handbuilding and throwing techniques while they create projects such as King Arthur's court goblets, Appalachian Face Jugs, Egyptian pyramid boxes, double-spouted Myan pots, South American mud-huts, Australian Boomerangs or Peruvian Stirrup Cups.

All materials and firing included.

Learn the basics of working on the potter's wheel in a supportive environment with other teens. Discover how to make forms such as bowls and mugs from start to finish. Wedging, centering, and glazing will be covered. Students will be encouraged to explore their own ideas while learning about the exciting possibilities of clay.

All materials and firing included

In a supportive environment, students will spend this fun-filled week doing clay handbuilding projects that explore their individuality. While learning basic handbuilding techniques, such as pinching, coiling and how to build with slabs, students will make beads and medallions to create chokers and bracelets.They will create identity boxes, personal pots, self portraits and clay masks. Students will be encouraged to explore their own ideas while learning about the exciting possibilities of clay.

All materials and firing included.

Bring classic stories to life in this special week-long clay adventure. Each day will start with story-time: the teacher will read and discuss an age-appropriate classic story books, such as Where the Wild Things Are , with the students. The students will then have the opportunity to respond to the story with a specific clay project, all the while learning basic handbuilding techniques, such as pinching, coiling and how to build with slabs.

All materials and firing included.