From Year 8
This term is shaping up (pun intended) to be a hands-on, creative, and rewarding one in Year 8 Art! Currently, students are moulding and forming their own ceramics piece; ‘A Personality Pot’ that demonstrates an exploration of form, construction, and decorative techniques by harnessing clay as an artistic material.
After creating several concepts for their pots based on research and their own influences, students first learn how to create the basic shape of their pot through the ‘pinch pot’ technique, and then add details through the ‘slip and slurry’ and ‘coiling’ methods, using a variety of shaping and scoring tools. For many students, this is their first time using clay, and as such this unit presents an especially rewarding opportunity for them to explore their creative abilities. It is also extremely valuable to have a master of ceramics at the school during these lessons as well, with our technician Saskia lending her invaluable expertise to classes as well.
Today in Art we got to create our designs we planned using clay. Mr Armato and Saskia taught us a few techniques for how to make a perfect pot, one of them is called the pinch pot technique, using your thumb to pinch down the middle of the clay and spreading it out to make a circular open shape like a cup. We also learned how to remove the cracks from the pot using the slurry and sponge to smooth out the clay.
Yusuf, 8D
I enjoyed creating pottery for Art by experimenting with various techniques such as hand-building. The process was not only fulfilling but also fun as I learned to manipulate the clay and bring my creative ideas to life.
Ava, 8D
So far this term, in Art the year 8s have been learning about clay and how to mold it into a pot; using the pinch technique. Following a strict design process, we sketched out the pots and learned about the different materials that are involved in creating the finished design. I can't wait to see what we do next in more lessons!
Milly, 8D
Elijah Armato