Throwing Clay

“Yay! We get to throw clay at the wheels!”

Very funny. Ten year olds think they’re hilarious. This past Saturday Art School ceramics class we tried out the pottery wheel. Everyone looked excited… little did they know, what frustration and disappointment lay in wait. Fortunately for them, I was experienced in the difficulties and disappointment of the pottery wheel, and not a whole lot else. I have years of experience when it comes to using the wheel, but I have never really enjoyed it enough to pursue it and perfect my technique. I was nervous I wouldn’t be able to give a good example. As it turned out, my inability to make it look easy set my students up to feel better about how difficult this technique was. By the end of the class each student had made at least one, and no-one had gotten upset about their one or two or three failed attempts.