pottery | Pincu Pottery

Throwing Pottery Basics

Posted on January 24, 2011 by pincupottery

I’m back from my fun holiday vacation and happy to be at Southwestern Community College teaching the Beginner/Intermediate Throwing class. This, I think, is my favorite class to teach because I can watch the students grow from knowing nothing to making a teapot in 16 weeks.

One of my students recently asked if there were any good sites online to help her learn to throw. Here is a short list of sites that can help anyone learn to make a pot on the wheel:

YouTube is a GREAT start! Search terms may be: centering pottery, centering clay, wedging clay, pottery wheel basics, etc. Expert Village has a vast number of videos on Youtube. I have to say, watch more than one! Everyone throws a bit different, and not everyone is a good teacher. The more you see, the better it will translate to you.

Another place to find videos is the Ceramic Arts Daily website. This site is brought to you by the publisher of several ceramic arts magazines, and so they are interested in selling. However, beside the selling points, this site offers great tips for the new and initiated potter! Videos, books, shortened articles from their magazines, etc.

Lakeside Pottery has a pretty extensive site for a small studio in Connecticut. They posted photos of each step of the throwing process, handbuilding techniques, surface decoration and more. They really do a GREAT job online, and I am sure they do a mighty fine job in person if you happen to live near them and take a class.

About.com does a great job with both photos and text to help any beginner potter. I particularly like their tutorial on wedging (preparing) clay for those with hand a wrist strains, called the Cut and Slap method.

These links should keep a beginner occupied online for several hours. Perhaps in the near future I will post a list of books I recommend for learning about throwing pots on a wheel.

Until then, if you are in Bryson City, North Carolina, check out the classes I offer at Pincu Pottery or consider taking a class at the Heritage Arts Institute!

HAPPY THROWING!

Anita learns to throw a pot

Potter in NYC

Posted on January 17, 2011 by pincupottery

Recently back from a trip to New York City and I wanted to share a bit of the trip with you.

So what does a potter from Western North Carolina do in NYC? EAT! …and tour museums.

For my birthday I booked the NY Nosh Tour with The Enthusiastic Gourmet and had a FABULOUS time touring the Lower East Side and eating yummy foods! Our guide was great, giving us both the history of the area and the food. I even had the birthday song sung to me by The Pickle Guy!

Pickle Guy and I

I also fed myself on: Telepan lunch (gourmet style but the food is left to its essence, not overpowered with flavor combinations), Momofuku Milk Bar cornmeal cookies (YUM!!!!), Eataly (Fun for foodies – grab a glass of wine and browse the overcrowded shelves of Italian specialty foods), Northern Spy (Good food at a decent price and nice, casual atmosphere), hot pretzels at a sidewalk cart and much, much more. All, I must say, would’ve tasted better on some handmade plates!

Which brings me to the wonderful museums I visited:

The Brooklyn Museum has a great collection of Asian ceramics and Islamic ceramics, among other fabulous works of art from around the globe. I was thoroughly impressed by their collection and exhibition space. I have used their website for images and info to teach the Ceramic History class, so it was great to see some pieces in real life.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art is obviously one of the world’s greatest collections of art from around the world and from every era of human creativity. It would take me days to go through the entire building and so I instead focused on what caught me first – Greek and Etruscan ceramics. WOW! Another online museum worth browsing and used for the Ceramic History course I teach at Southwestern Community College.

Look how big it is!

MOMA, or Museum of Modern Art, was also a wonderful place to pass some time looking at fabulously beautiful objects. They have a section on design which should not be missed if you are interested in ceramic art!

Other museums I visited included the Natural History Museum, where my nephew cannot get enough of the giant dinosaur exhibit and the Tenemaet Museum where I learned about an Irish family that came to American in the mid 1800’s and all the hardships they had to go through, including living in this very small apartment.

While I am listing places to visit in NYC, I must mention a few places I did not visit this last time, but are well worth the visit anytime in NYC:

Greenwich House Pottery – exhibitions and classes. Worth a look.

92nd Street Y ceramics program. – Check out the facilities and class schedule!

Dai Ichi Arts – make an appointment to see some incredible Asian ceramic art! In a gallery, you can touch as well as look, unlike at a museum where hands are off limits!

All told, it was a wonderful vacation and time spent with my sister and her family.

WNC Pottery Festival – Over and Out

Posted on November 11, 2010 by pincupottery

WOW!

I had a great time working the Western North Carolina Pottery Festival in Dillsboro, NC last Saturday!

But first, let me share my experience Friday during the Clay Olympics:

WHAT A BLAST! I competed in the sleet and cold and didn’t make a fool of myself, nor did I win.

5 pounds, 5 minutes to make the tallest cylinder. Then 5 pounds, 5 minutes for the widest bowl. Lastly, blindfolded cylinder of 2 pounds of clay. I must say, it was fantastic trying to throw while blindfolded. Clay is such a tactile medium – we could all do it blind. As for winning, I learned that the winners were those guys that took a risk – they pushed that clay to its limit and either failed miserably or won. I didn’t take a risk in throwing – I was too scared I would be the ‘chick that can’t throw’. SILLY ME! Watch out next year, boys! I won’t be silly again!

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Saturday morning started out not as cold as predicted – it was in the 30’s, not the 20’s. So…. Off the family went to pitch a tent and set up the wares…. Mom, Dad, husband Jeff and myself

Setting up the booth

The day warmed up a tad, but was cold all day, with the clouds fluttering in front of the warm sun about every 1/2 hour. Brrr…

Dad stayed the day and entertained passers by with chit chat. Jeff went back to the Library for an author talk and Mom relaxed at home for a few hours before returning to help close up shop.

As for the turnout, I think it was down from last year, but still bustling. Lots of folks came to talk, buy and browse. Leah Leitson, professor of ceramics at Warren Wilson College, stopped by with a few students. I am sure she was impressed with the show.

WCU had a really nice booth of student work for sale, but I have to say… I really did think SCC had a FANTASTIC showing of talent!!! Go SCC HERITAGE ARTS!!!

I am looking forward to this opportunity next year. The show is well organized and usually a pleasant fall day. Being so close to home, it is a no-brainer, as long as I get juried in. And of course, count me in on the Olympics next year…. I’ll keep practicing and work on my no-fear, risk-taking attitude to win!