Courses for Improver & Intermediate Level Throwers
Here at the studio we offer classes and courses for students wishing to take their wheel-throwing practice further. As always our classes have a maximum of 4 students in order to give you as much tutor-help as you need. This page shows special courses as well as information on our Freewheel Sessions, which you can book in order to simply practice throwing at the studio independently.
When am I ‘improver’ or ‘intermediate’ level? What this means in practice is quite broad. We don’t expect you to be perfect or to be fully confident when showing up for a class at the Teaching Studio but if you have thrown before and are able to work with at least a little independence then you can see yourself as intermediate/improver level and you are certainly welcome on one of the below courses. It’s important to remember that we are not testing you, or setting an exam for you to pass, all we’re really interested in is helping you to improve in whichever way suits your journey. All are welcome on our courses so if you have any concerns about which course is appropriate for you or if you have any special requirements then please do get in touch - studio@jo-davies.com
Improvers’ Mini Courses
Our mini courses are designed to concentrate on a very specific area of wheel-throwing during a one or two session course. They have been designed to really unpack in detail the area of throwing that the course is concentrating on. Doing this will deepen your knowledge of how to approach the making of a single design or troubleshoot a recurring issue in your throwing. These sessions have been designed for students who have wheel-thrown before and are looking to learn more and really drill down into how to create a certain shape, resolve a problem or more deeply understand the throwing process. All of these mini courses will give you greater proficiency and confidence in your throwing. Courses are designed by Jo Davies in collaboration with her senior tutors. Taught by senior tutors, all materials, kiln firings, equipment and tuition are included in the price of the course. See below for currently available Mini Courses:
Throwing Tall Pots
2 x sessions, 4 spaces, Intermediate Level, £185 inclusive of all materials, equipment, firings and tuition.
13 & 14 April, Saturday 2:30-6:30pm. Sunday 3:30-6pm
The idea of ‘tall’ is relative but, depending on your skill level, in pottery it can mean anything from making a pot that’s a few cm’s to making a tall vessel. During this course we aim to help you to understand some deeper principals which will give you the skills to feel more in control of this aspect of throwing so that you can do so much more. If you’re struggling to make your pots taller then this course is for you and will help you to progress through this common sticking-point amongst fledgling throwers.
Centering Surgeries
1 session, 4 spaces, Intermediate Level, £135 inclusive of all materials, equipment, firings and tuition.
Saturday 8 June, 1:30-4:30pm
Tuesday 6 August, 9:30-12:30
Many people who have done some throwing arrive at a point when they struggle with centering the clay or at least keeping it centered. Students are no longer happy with the accidental nature of the early days and want to make sure they understand this element of the process and its knock-on effect to the final results. Through observations of this problem over many years we have designed this quick-fire course to help you past this completely normal part of the learning-process. This intensive class will help you to troubleshoot issues with centering clay and really drill down into how this part of the process works enabling you to improve your throwing overall and achieve your goals. During this class you will concentrate on centering through practice, demonstrations and theoretical explanations. You'll work your way up from small amounts of clay to larger amounts at a pace that you're comfortable with in order to progress through observation of your technique in order to improve through feedback when necessary. Taught by a senior tutor.
Making Mugs
2 sessions, 4 spaces, Intermediate Level, £185 inclusive of all materials, equipment, firings and tuition
22 & 23 June
Saturday 1:30-4:30 Sunday 3:30-6:30
During this 2 session course you will learn how to wheel-throw mugs. On the first session you will throw the body of your mugs, taking into account clay shrinkage and paying attention to important design elements like weight and scale. On the second day you will be shown how to make handles, considering their design and ergonomics, and how to attach them. During this mini course you will really learn how to take the time over your designs, unpack the pros and cons of different approaches and create items that you’ll hopefully feel proud of. Taught by a senior tutor.
At the end of your course leave your items with us for firing and glazing.
Making Narrow Neck Vases
A focus on collaring your wheel-thrown pots
2 sessions, 4 spaces, Intermediate Level, £185 inclusive of all materials, equipment, firings and tuition
Saturday 27 & Sunday 28 July
Sat 1:30-5:30 Sun 3:30-5:30
During this 2 session course you will learn how to wheel-throw narrow neck vases and bottle shapes. The focus will be very much on taking the top of your pots from a wide shape to a narrow shape. This skill is incredibly useful in order to make vases, bottles, jugs or to correct a pot that has become too wide. On the first session you will concentrate on throwing, paying attention to important design elements for these types of shape, and on the second session you will trim your pots in order to really finish them off and refine the shapes started on the previous day. During this mini course you will hone in on collaring, an essential tool in throwing, and take time to consider design by increasing the time you take over a single object. By doing this you will unpack how to approach throwing these shapes well and set the foundations for better throwing in the future.
Taught by a senior tutor. At the end of your course leave your items with us for firing and glazing.
Concentrate on Bowls
A focus on how to approach wheel-throwing bowls of all varieties.
2 Days, 4 spaces, Intermediate Level, £360 inclusive of all materials, equipment, firings and tuition
Friday 5 July & Friday 12 July. 9:30-4:30
During this 2 day course you will learn how to wheel-throw bowls of various shapes and sizes. This beautiful, utilitarian form is often only achieved accidentally in the early stages of learning to throw but really beautiful bowls come from considering the details, the structure required by the throwing process and how to approach these two factors in unison. Often beginner classes for throwing teach you how to make a bowl using only one way but the truth is that professional potters have many more ways to create these shapes.
On the first full day you will concentrate on a variety of types of bowl, having been shown demonstrations and allowing time for practice, your tutor will observe and help with technique. On the second day you will trim the bowls you threw in the first session - a vital part of the process for many styles of bowl, thereby revealing the shape we intended them to be.
During this course we will consider design in the round through the appropriateness of certain elements that will make an object more or less functional for different foods or even types of cutlery. By taking the time to consider the design of a deceptively simple object we will unpack how to approach throwing these shapes well and set the foundations for better throwing in the future.
Taught by a senior tutor. At the end of your course leave your items with us for firing and glazing.
Concentrate on Lids
A focus on wheel-throwing lids.
2 Days, 4 spaces, Intermediate Level, £360 inclusive of all materials, equipment, firings and tuition
Friday 26 July & Friday 2 August. 9:30-4:30
During this 2 day course you will learn various approaches to wheel-throwing lids. You will learn how to create a lid from a closed form as well as how to throw a gallery, flange and cap in order to create the lid and its housing for your lidded-vessels. By allocating this time to concentrate on this specific form you will learn how to approach this design problem which, from the outside, may appear complicated. Through demonstrations and the methodical unpacking of the process under the guidance of your tutor you will come away feeling confident of your ability to create lids in the future.
On the first full day you will concentrate on a variety of approaches to throwing lids, having been shown demonstrations and allowing time for practice, your tutor will observe and help with technique. On the second day you will trim, and possibly do more throwing depending on your specific project.
During this course we will consider the design of our lids and their vessels by taking the time to consider them more deeply, which will also set the foundations for better throwing in the future.
Taught by a senior tutor. At the end of your course leave your items with us for firing and glazing.
Freewheel Sessions - a place to practice
Untaught wheel-throwing practice sessions to gain skill, supplement your course or complete projects begun during courses at the Teaching Studio.
3-hour sessions, 4 spaces, adult
Sundays 9am-noon
£47 per person
Fee Includes: all materials, kiln-firing, glaze. All tools supplied at the studio but attendees are welcome to bring their own tools if preferred.
These 3 hour sessions are an opportunity to practice your wheel-throwing in our fully equipped studio and are for people with a little experience in wheel-throwing - with us or elsewhere. They are untaught but a technician will be in attendance.
Please note that we are a specialist wheel-throwing studio and Free-Wheel sessions should only be booked by people wishing to throw or trim on the wheel as well as glazing the items you make at our studio. You are welcome to book sessions for glazing items that have been made and fired at the studio. Clay, glaze and kiln firings are included in the cost but if you would like to use your own glaze then it must be a stoneware glaze that will fit in with our firings (our glaze-firing temperature range is 1240-60). Unfortunately we cannot offer storage for equipment but will store items made at the studio if they are continuing to be worked on or are awaiting firing. However, if you plan to trim your items after a throwing session then we can only keep items wrapped and damp for 2 weeks. If you intend to turn items then ideally a second session should be booked within two weeks of the first. Both sessions can be booked at the same time or shortly after your first session. Please let the attending technician know your intentions for your work so we can wrap them for you.