CeramicsArt of pottery and sculpture with

Clay

Clay

• Clay is a natural material, found in river and creek beds.

• It is used to create ceramic pottery and sculpture.

Kiln

• Kiln is an oven capable of firing clay at high temperatures.

• The kiln we use heats the clay to as much as 2000 degrees.

Firing

• Firing is the process of cooking the clay to high temperatures.

• Firing causes the clay to become hard and durable.

Glaze

• Glaze is a thin coating of minerals which causes pottery to have a glasslike, waterproof coating.

Handbuilt

• Hand building is ceramic objects formed without the use of a potter’s wheel.

• Typically using slabs or coils of clay to construct the pieces.

Slab

• Slab is a hand building technique which uses a thin, flat sheet of clay to construct the objects.

• Slab are rolled out into thin sheets with either a rolling pin or a press.

Coil

• Coils are thin pieces of clay which have been rolled into long cylinders. They are then stacked on top of each other forming the ceramic piece.

Slip

• Slip is glue for clay, it is a mixture of dry, crushed clay and water.

• It is used to join two pieces of clay together.

Score

• Scoring is when a piece of clay is roughed up by making shallow scrapes.

• Slip is added to the scoring and the clay can be joined together. After firing the pieces are permanently attached.