2. Lesson 1: The Basics of Clay
● Ceramics – anything made from clay
● Greenware – clay that hasn't been fired/heated
● Clay is formed naturally. The movement of ice,
water, wind, and tree roots break down rock into the
minerals that form clay.
● A key ingredient of clay comes from granite -
feldspar.
3. Clay Structure
● Clay is made of microscopic platelets. When clay is
moist, these platelets easily slide back and forth.
Moisture also helps these platelets stick together.
● The ability to hold together while being shaped is
called plasticity.
4. The Effect of Heat
● Fire or heat stops the platelets from moving. The
clay shape returns to its rock-like state, becoming
permanent.
● When clay is heated quickly, the water expands as it
turns into steam. This rapid expansion is so
powerful, that the clay will explode. Trapped air can
also explode.
● Therefore, when working with clay, you must allow
it to become completely dry (bone dry) before
heating it.
5. Ancient Clay
● Clay has been used since ancient times.
● Nomads (wandering people) began to settle down
when they learned to make storage containers out of
clay. They also learned to make some foods easier to
eat by cooking them in ceramic dishes.
● Ceramics weren't only functional (objects with a
purpose). Excavations of ancient tombs revealed that
early people also made ceramic figures & animals as
companions for the dead.
6. Clay Preparation
● Early potters dug clay out of the ground. This clay
had a lot of impurities, like rocks and plant matter.
● In order to get rid of these impurities, they would
dry the clay, smash it up, and pick out the impurities
by hand.
● Once they removed the impurities, they rehydrated
or slaked the clay to return it to a workable state.
7. Clay Preparation
● Eventually, potters found an easier way to purify
their clay. They would add water to the clay, turning
it into slip (liquid clay).
● They would pour the slip from one container to
another.
● This process, called decanting, causes the coarser
materials to settle to the bottom, while the desired
clay is poured off.
8. Clay Preparation
● Another traditional way of purifying clay is
levigation. In this process, clay is prepared as a slip
and allowed to flow down a gradual slope.
● At the end of the slope, there is a lip. This blocks
larger particles, but allows the clay to pass through.
9. Lesson 2: Clay Properties
● Plasticity – clay is able to be formed into shapes; clay can
be made stronger by adding sand, straw, grog (crushed fired
ceramics) or paper pulp.
● Moisture – if clay is too moist, it becomes weak and cannot
hold its shape. Clay dries when exposed to air. However,
only when it is fired has all the moisture been forced out of
the clay.
● Texture – clay can be rough or smooth, depending on what
ingredients were added (grog, for example)
● Shrinkage – clay shrinks as it dries
10. Clay Properties
● Aging improves the plasticity of clay.
● Early potters passed down their supply of clay onto
their children.
● If the clay had been stored for a long time, it had to
be wedged (by kneading it until it has a uniform
consistency).
11. Clay Properties:
The Pros & Cons of Drying
● Clay shrinks as it dries. If it shrinks too quickly, it
will crack. Therefore, we control the drying rate by
wrapping the clay in plastic.
● As clay dries, it becomes more able to hold its form.
When clay is leather-hard, pressure can be applied
to the clay and it will not easily collapse.
12. Elements of Design
● Shape – a two-dimensional image, like the typing
on this screen/page. It has height & width, but no
depth.
● Form – is three-dimensional, like a chair. It was
height, width, and depth.
● Ceramic objects can display both form and shape.
For example, a potter can create a 3D vase, and add
2D patterns on its surface.
13. Principle of Design
● Unity – when parts of a design combine to create a
sense of harmony and oneness.
● For example, a potter can achieve a unified design
by repeating a colour or a shape.
● Movement – when a design creates a sense of
moving towards something
● For example, you can carve flowing lines into the
surface.
14. Lesson 3: Relief
● A relief is an image that has been carved or
modelled onto a fixed background.
● Types of Relief:
– High relief – projects from the surface; almost 3D
– Low/Bas relief – is elevated, but remains part of the
surface
– Intaglio – the image is incised or carved into the
surface
15. Examples of Relief
A Persian mid-relief located in Iran.
May also be called 2 layers of low relief.
"Gates of Paradise" by Ghiberti
Located in Florence, Italy.
Combination of low and high relief
16. Examples of Relief
Sunk relief – restricted to Ancient Egyptian art.
A depiction of Pharaoh Akhenaten
with his wife Nefertiti and daughters.
High relief from the Classical Greek
Elgin Marbles.
Located in the British Museum
17. Lesson 4: Traditional Ceramics
● ANCIENT AFRICAN CERAMICS
– Making of pottery in Africa began around 6,000B.C.
– In ancient times, women were responsible for
making pots, as part of food preparation.
– All pots were made by hand, using pinching and coil-
building and basic tools (like corn husks and
rocks).
18. Ancient African Ceramics
● Pots were often polished, or burnished.
● Ancient potters also decorated their work with
carved geometric designs.
● After drying, the pots were put in a pile and covered
with wood, bark, or dried cow dung and baked in an
open fire.
19. Ancient African Ceramics
What do you notice about the shape of these vessels?
How would you describe the surface designs?
20. Japanese Tea Ceramics
● The tea plant is native to southern China, where tea
drinking originated nearly 5,000 years ago.
● Tea drinking was spread by Buddhist monks, who
used it as part of spiritual ceremonies.
● It was adopted by the aristocracy in China and
Japan, and soon became a social custom worldwide.
21. Japanese Tea Ceramics
● The Japanese aristocracy developed a very elaborate
tea ceremony.
● Their goal was to achieve spiritual enlightenment
and transformation, demonstrated by harmony,
respect, purity, and tranquillity.
● This custom led to a special style for tea ceramics.
22. Japanese Tea Ceramics
● Physical – variety of textures
● Visual – looks should match
physical traits (if it looks heavy,
it should feel heavy)
● Outside form – should fit
comfortably in the hand, and the
foot should provide secure
balance
● Rim – should suggest natural
movement over stones, hills, or
mountains
● Drinking point – there should be
one place for the lip to touch
opposite the decorated front of
the bowl
● Interior form – a faint spiral
relief should let the tea gently
flow into your mouth
● Glaze application – should vary,
but should be harmonious with
the form
These are some of the standards that Japanese tea masters
used to measure the beauty of a tea bowl:
25. First Nations Ceramics
Ceramics has been around in North and South America for at
least 7500 years.
Clay has been used to create cooking vessels, pipes, funerary
objects (urns, sculptures), ceremonial items, masks, toys, and
sculptures.
Pinch pots and other small objects would be made by hand,
without any tools.
Coil-building was also a common technique (Unit 2).
No pottery wheels before European contact.
26. First Nations Ceramics
● Paddle-and-anvil technique: the inside of the clay wall was
supported by a mold, and the outside was paddled smooth.
● Rope, fabric, baskets, corncobs, and carved wood were rolled
over wet clay to add decoration.
● Indigenous ceramics were seldom glazed. Instead they were
burnished/ polished with a stone. Grease can also be rubbed
onto the fired pot to add shine.
● Ceramics were usually open-air fired or pit-fired.
27. Examples of First Nations Ceramics
IroquoianCarl Beam (born Carl Migwans) –
Canadian Ojibwe
28. Pinch Pot Project
You will create a series of 3 pinch pots.
Since you are creating a series, your 3 pinch
pots must have a unifying theme. In other
words, they need to look like they go together.
Minimum size for each pinch pot: 4 inches in
diameter.
Make them as thin as you can.
Add surface decoration using the techniques
mentioned in Lesson 5.
29. Lesson 5: Decorating Clay
1) Incising – carving designs into the surface
2) Impressing – using an object (like a stamp) to press
a design into the clay
3) Combing – marks the surface with uniform lines;
imagine dragging a comb across the clay
4) Burnishing – rubbing and polishing the clay with a
smooth object, like a stone or spoon
5) Piercing – poking holes in the clay
6) Sprigging – attaching a decorative piece of clay
onto the surface of a piece; ex. - adding small flowers
to a teacup
30. Colouring Clay
1) Oxides - natural minerals found in the earth.
Iron produces red; cobalt produces blue;
copper produces green; rutile produces tan.
These can be applied before or after firing, but must
be fired again to become permanent.
Oxides produce a satin surface.
31. Colouring Clay
2) Underglazes – a combination of oxides, clay, and
a flux (ingredient that causes melting).
These can be applied before or after firing, but must
be fired to fuse to the clay.
Underglazes create a matte surface.
32. Colouring Clay
3) Glazes – composed of silica ( forms glass when
heated), flux (a melting agent), and alumina
(stabilizes the glaze so it doesn't run off the object).
Only glaze seals the clay and makes it food-safe.
Glaze is best applied after clay has been fired, but
must be fired again to fuse to the object.
Glaze produces a glossy surface.
33. CAUTION
● Since oxides, underglazes, and glazes have melting
properties, they will fuse to anything they are
touching when hot.
● When applying oxides, underglazes, or glazes to
your work, keep the bottom clean!
● Wipe the bottom and 1cm up the walls of your piece
with a damp sponge before firing.
34. Lesson 6: Methods of Applying Colour
1) sponging – using a
sponge to apply the media
2) brushing – using a brush
to apply media
3) sgraffito – scratching
designs into a layer of
colour
4) mishima – placing
colour into incised lines
5) masking – using stencils
made of paper or masking
tape to apply designs onto
the clay
35. Reflection: Unit 1
1) Evaluate your Relief Project:
a) Do you think it is a successful artwork? Explain.
b) Were you able to create a sense of
movement? Explain.
c) What would you change if you could?
2) Evaluate your Pinch Pots:
a) Do they look like a series? Why or why
not?
b) Were you able to control the clay
successfully? Explain.
c) What would you change if you could?
