Dawn Whitehand: Visual Artist
pottery classes
Sunday Studio Visit – a little late
Well today is Tuesday, so I am running a little late with my Sunday Studio Visit.
I went to Melbourne on Thursday night after pottery class and didn’t come back till late Saturday afternoon, so on Sunday I was in rest and recover mode – so didn’t really do anything productive in the studio.
I did fire the kiln though – all student work.
The pic below features some of the student works that I unloaded from the kiln on Monday.
If you live in or near the Ballarat area in Victoria, Australia you can enrol in my pottery classes HERE. I offer classes for both adults and children, professional development workshops, corporate teambuilding and kids birthday parties.
See you next time 🙂
Sunday Studio Visit : a miscellanous day
I’m not working on anything specific this Sunday so today’s visit is a bit more general, looking at the day to day stuff that I do in the studio.
As some readers may know I also teach classes and workshops from my studio ( I also visit schools and businesses for workshops), so today I unloaded the kiln from a firing I did a couple of days ago and reloaded it with a bisque firing, which I then fired. A bisque firing is the first firing in the ceramic process, which hardens the clay body so that is able to be glazed – it is less porous and easier to handle without breaking.
Most of the work in the kiln was students, though I did put in some terracotta beads and marbled pendants I recently made, plus the “Made by Nature” series, which was the subject of a Sunday Studio Visit post a couple of weeks ago.
I also did a bit of marketing – Facebook, Twitter & Google+ – it can be so time consuming when you are self employed!
I also have a poetry and drawing blog …. so today I wrote a poem for that and began a drawing… the drawing began its life as a ‘join the dots’ from a previous drawing I did in my journal, which is made of handmade paper. The previous drawing was created using permanent ink pens, which are kind of like ‘posh’ textas which can bleed on unsized paper. So some of the marks from the previous drawing bled through to the next page, which I then used as a starting point for todays drawing….
Apart from that it has been a gorgeous weekend here in Dunnstown with the amount of birdlife being mindblowing…. Parrots, Kookaburras, New Holland Honeyeaters, Wattle Birds, Blue Wrens (& a koala) and the family of magpies currently living on our property – two parents and three babies!! They are so amazing to watch and come up really close without worrying about us at all, which I love that they don’t see us as a danger, not even Eddy (the rescue dog) …AND so cute to see that alot of the bird life is drinking from the water feature we installed in the garden two years ago – yes, handmade by me!!
Pit Firing Workshop in Ballarat
My last Sunday Studio Visit post gave readers the heads up that I was conducting a pit firing workshop on the weekend… and it was great! Living in Australia means that I have to co-ordinate my pit firings between fire ban seasons, and living in Ballarat -cold and rainy (it is pouring as I speak)- means that scheduling a pit firing in the ‘not’ fire ban season can be risky…. I could wake up and the ground could be frozen…. well, maybe very soggy! However, the weather was perfect!! Not raining, not freezing cold, not windy….ideal! Student works had been low bisque fired in the lead up to the workshop so we were all set to go…. Saturday involved preparing the pots with seaweed, gum leaves, lemon leaves, copper wire, string, chicken wire and anything else handy; preparing the pit; loading the pit; and throwing in a match (the best bit). After a few hours of stoking corrugated iron was placed over the pit to allow for a slow overnight simmer. Sunday afternoon we explored the results – hot work!! OH&S: wear gloves!! We then cleaned and polished the works and admired the results – lots of photos and Facebook uploading!! There will be more pit firing workshops to come and you can sign up to information about upcoming events by subscribing to this blog, or I can put you on a mailing list – just contact me (link at top right hand of website). Meanwhile here are some pics of the weekend 🙂
An Afternoon in the Studio
I spent this afternoon in the studio making some new work for the Pop-Up Shop Collective happening in Ballarat from the 29 November till 8th December at Backspace Gallery, Ballarat. I will, of course, be making more …
As well as new work I will also be selling my Japanese inspired tapas sets and ceramic jewellery, as well as taking customised orders, and letting everyone know about my ClayMotion classes and workshops (which includes gift certificates).
So mark it in your diaries and happy Christmas shopping 🙂
Adults and Children’s Pottery Classes with ClayMotion: Term One 2013
Was you New Years Resolution to find a new hobby or to relax more or learn a new skill or get more “arty”? Enrolling in a ceramics/pottery course could be the perfect solution! And if that wasn’t your New Years Resolution, it would be fun to do anyway!
Clay is a highly tactile medium, so it is a great way to express feelings, de-stress and be creative – it also has far reaching therapeutic outcomes both psychologically and physically. Classes are available for adults and children which run with the school terms – dates and times can be found on the ClayMotion website.
Classes are suitable for beginners through to advanced, and wheelthrowing, handbuilding and sculptural techniques are taught. Outcomes include set projects and self initiated.
Student works: wheelthrown bowls
Student work: handbuilt vase
Student work: sculpture
TERM ONE is only one weeks away and I have had lots of enquiries over the summer break, so don’t miss out!
BOOK ONLINE NOW to secure your place in classes or workshops.
Workshops, corporate teambuilding, mothers group sessions and family workshops are also available at the ClayMotion studios – see all the information on the website.
Children’s Class
Mums and Bubs Pottery Workshop
These mums and bubs had a great time last Monday at the ClayMotion studio… do you know any mums groups that would like to do something different? Feel free to share this with them….
ClayMotion offers two hour ceramic sessions to Mothers Groups, where mums and babies can relax in a creative environment. Mums makes a bowl, plate or cup for baby, and baby decorates with his/her handprints or footprints, creating a unique keepsake to treasure into the future.
Afternoon tea or morning tea is provided.
$25.00 per mum and baby. Maximum of 12 pairs, minimum of 6 pairs.
Price includes materials (clay, glaze, etc), kiln firing, and morning or afternoon tea.
Visit the website for details on how to book your session.
Online Ceramic Supplies
Since the closing of the local ceramic supplies I have had to order materials from Melbourne – the closest large city to me which is 100kms away. Subsequently this involves postage and transport costs – a real doozy when it comes to ordering clay by the ton! I also constantly have people asking me where they can buy clay, glaze, tools – and I refer them to the companies in Melbourne, or Ebay.
Then it struck me – why don’t I start selling some tools, and build up a variety of different stock over time. So I began researching costs and products, and ordered some tools in bulk. I already have clay as I buy it by the ton for myself and classes. I am trying to keep the prices competitive to those of the Melbourne companies and Ebay.
So I have opened an online shop via my Facebook ClayMotion page. Currently I have come clay and tools available. The clay must be picked up from my studio, but the tools can be shipped, and postage is free Australia wide. I also ship internationally with a flat $8.00 shipping fee.
You can check out my shop here, and the products I have for sale are pictured below. Happy shopping 🙂
UPCOMING CLAYMOTION WORKSHOP
Plate & Bowl Creating Workshop
Saturday 9th June 2-4pm $50.00 all inclusive
Participants will learn a range of handbuilding methods, including slabs, moulds and tearing, to make plates and bowls. Greenware decoration methods will then be explored, using a variety of methods, including imprinting, carving, scraffito, slip decoration and underglazing.
Cost is $50.00 per person and includes all materials and firing.
Numbers are limited, so book early!!
**Remember if you would like to give this workshop as a gift you can purchase a gift certificate**
Visit the ClayMotion website for enrolment information and payment options.
Student Works
Great results from today’s student stoneware firing unloading.
Ceramic works include children and adult’s creations, wheelthrown and handbuilt works, functional and sculptural, underglazed and glaze – all displaying a great variety of skills, techniques and inspirations!!
Ceramic Classes – Term 2, 2012
Term 2 is fast approaching…. this term I am offering classes at my ClayMotion studio in Dunnstown, Ballarat AND Jewellery Making Workshops at the Ballarat Nth Community Centre and the Dayelsford Neighbourhood House.
Enrolment for the ClayMotion classes can be made online at the ClayMotion website.
Enrolment for the Jewellery Making Workshops MUST be made through the community centres – phone numbers are below.
Classes are filling fast, so be sure to enrol as soon as possible 🙂
ClayMotion Classes
Adults Classes
26th April—27th June, Wednesday 10am-12noon or Thursday 7-9pm
Beginners to advanced, Wheelthrowing and handbuilding, Set projects or self initiated
$150.00 per term (materials and glazing not included: these costs will vary dependent on what a student makes)
Mums Classes: Time Out Sessions
26th April—27th June, Tuesday 1pm-3pm
Beginners to advanced, Wheelthrowing and handbuilding, Set projects or self initiated
$150.00 per term (materials and glazing not included: these costs will vary dependent on what a student makes)
Childrens Classes
2nd May—20th June, Wednesday 4-5.30pm
Set projects are explored using a range of handbuilding techniques.
$90.00 per term (materials and glazing not included: these costs will vary dependent on what a student makes)
Jewellery Making Workshops
ENROLMENTS MUST BE MADE THROUGH THE CENTRES: phone numbers below. $60.00 including all materials, firing and jewellery findings.
Daylesford Neighbourhood House : 5348 3569
3rd-24th May, Thursday 10am-Noon OR 6th-27th June, Wednesday 7pm-9pm
Ballarat North Community House : 5329 1101
15th May 5th June, Tuesday 10am-Noon
This work by Dawn Whitehand is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.