September 25-29, 2026 Welcome Dinner Thursday, September 24, 6:00 PM Daily 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM Limited to 6 participants · Intermediate to Advanced
Clayworking Your Own Alphabet
This workshop will be five activated days of learning new techniques to build your ‘voice’ using clay and lots of it! You will bring your own levels of skill in art-making and together we will construct a ‘scaffolding’ that is more clearly defined as uniquely yours. This workshop will help you develop a wide range of possibilities through heaps of exercises in drawing, drallaging, hand-building, and even wheel-throwing if that’s where your jam is. We will work in several scales, from intuitive maquette to more considered large scale where important structures like armatures are explored. Surface preparation, like slips, underglazes, and glazing will be discussed. Historical and contemporary approaches to form, surface, and concepts will be covered and will help you place your all-important ‘voice’ in the context it richly deserves. If you envision working in figure, minimalism, abstraction, installation, functional vessel, etc. this workshop is intended for you. Come join us at the beautiful Potters Creek Studio and turn play into innovation! There will be a firing of the maquettes and surface experiments.
What’s Included — $2,250 CAD + GST
· Five night single room accommodation with partner hosts · Full breakfast daily at the Union Hotel · Welcome dinner September 24 · Shared garden lunches · One 22 kg box of clay, fired maquette and all other materials · Air-conditioned studio with WiFi and 24-hour access · Garden talk with Kevin Kavanaugh of South Coast Gardens
