A 6 week Wheel Throwing Course with Sam
Want to know what we cover in a 6-week throwing course at mango in a pot? Keep reading for an insight on what you could learn if you commit to 6 lessons with Sam!
It’s gonna get personal…
As with every private lesson taught at the studio, the material in the course will depend entirely on your skill level. That being said, for the sake of this blog post, we will pretend that you are starting from scratch with no wheel experience whatsoever. Maybe you’ve been wanting to start wheel throwing for a while now but never knew where to begin, maybe you’re in the market for a new hobby and think working with clay can be your new thing, whatever it is, you will have the opportunity to master the basics in this 6-lesson course.
Lesson 1
Day 1 is all about getting introduced to the wheel and all her quirks, but there’s one concept that steals the show: centering. Centering is the process of getting the clay in the absolute center of the wheel. It’s the building block for any wheel thrown creation and by far one of the trickiest things to master. You definitely don’t have to worry if you don’t get it on the first try, it took me ages to fully master centering. The most important thing to remember is that we do everything one step at a time and after a bunch of baby steps, you’re going to look back and see how far you’ve come!
Apart from focusing on centering, I will also be giving you a full demonstration from start to finish on the wheel. I think live demonstrations are super important because a lot of people are visual learners (including myself). We will also practice wedging to make sure all of the clay we are putting on the wheel is free of air bubbles.
Lesson 2
The second lesson we will be focusing heavily on opening up and pulling up the walls. If you have no idea what this means, don’t worry, but the second lesson you will. It will be an excellent time to dive deeper into various concepts as you’ve already have a basic knowledge of how wheel throwing works. The pieces you make in the second lesson will be covered and put aside so you can (spoiler alert) learn trimming in the next lesson!
Lesson 3
I guess I already gave this one away, but lesson 3 is all about trimming! Trimming is really what turns a wheel thrown piece into a beautiful finished vessel. It’s basically the process of refining the details at the base of your piece by removing excess clay.
The pieces you made in the last lesson will be at a perfect leather-hard consistency. You will learn how to properly center a piece before trimming and my no-frills trimming technique. Once everything has been trimmed, if we still have time we will dive back into wheel technique.
Lesson 4
In lesson 4 we will….level up! That means working with bigger pieces and more challenging shapes. Up until this point, you will most likely be sticking to simple shapes on the wheel (small bowls, dishes, mugs, etc.). Once you’ve got the basics under your belt, its time to really have fun with it and get creative. That being said, everyone moves at their own pace and this is my no means a one-size-fits-all approach. We will level up when and if YOU are ready for it.
Lesson 5
I know I’m not supposed to have favorites, but lesson 5 has a special place in my heart. After 4 lessons of hard work, its time for you to freestyle. Don’t worry, I won’t leave you totally on your own, but you will definitely have a lot more freedom when you arrive at the 5th lesson. I fully believe that learning the wheel goes deeper than just knowing the motions, it’s about forming your own relationship with the medium, and really feeling into what feels good for your body. This lesson will be just that, an opportunity for you to get to know the wheel on a deeper level.
Lesson 6
Lesson 6 is a time for celebration! You’ve really committed to learning something new and now it’s time for your talent to shine. We will have a final run down of all of the concepts you’ve learned in the past weeks, so you can walk away confident that you have mastered the basics of wheel throwing. I will also be leaving you a bit of space to decide what you want to focus on, if you are feeling called to tighten up any loose ends.
What happens if I become addicted to the wheel after my 6 lessons?
I must admit, there is a big risk of you becoming addicted to the pottery wheel, I’ve fallen victim to it myself. There’s something so meditative and transcendent about making art on the wheel and I can totally see how it might be difficult for you to part ways after just 6 lessons. I am more than happy to have you come back for more lessons, but if you feel confident that you can create on your own, you are also invited to become a studio member! Mango members have access to the studio during open hours to do their thing and create as they like.
