Partially grant-subsidized workshop: Members $30, Non-Members $50

Handbuilding Workshop, April 29th -- May 1st

This workshop is open to members and non-members.  Please phone the studio (892-2701) on Wed eve or Sun morning to put your name down or reply to this blog posting.  A few details, including costs, are grant dependant, but we will update this post when we know more information.  The information below was provided by Liz Demerson.

BIOGRAPHY

Before pottery was in Liz Demerson's life, she received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of New Brunswick in 1998 and a Master of Arts from Concordia University in 2001; both in Socio-Cultural Anthropology.

Liz Demerson graduated from the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design in 2003 with a Diploma in Fine Craft. She has been creating pottery in her own studio and worked as technician and teaching assistant at NBCCD for four subsequent years. Juried into the New Brunswick Crafts Council in 2004, she began attending craft sales in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.  In 2005 she began to supply pottery for the wholesale market through attending the Atlantic Craft Trade Show.  In 2006, she attended the One of A Kind sale in Toronto.   She ran a pottery studio and craft store at Kings Landing Historical Settlement in 2005 and 2006.

Liz has been teaching pottery since graduating from the College as a teaching assistant, and began to teach privately in 2005.  After obtaining a teaching degree from the University of New Brunswick in 2009, and having a baby in 2008, she has been teaching Art in the public school system as a substitute, and has since begun teaching pottery at the NBCCD.  Even while working on her teaching degree, substituting and raising her daughter, pottery has always been on Liz's agenda and has continued to sell her work at craft sales and to a few wholesalers around the Martimes.

Functional ware has always been Liz's main interest. She loves the thought that the pieces she creates are used daily as a favourite mug or bowl. Her influences are mostly from contemporary sources; high fired porcelain pieces and minimalism in decorating.  She uses both thrown and handbuilding techniques to create two distinct lines. Recently she has begun to experiment in combining the two techniques to create larger more dramatic forms.

Workshop Itinerary - Details provided by Liz Demerson

Friday Evening - 2 hours: Introduction, slide show and discussion of my work and influences.

(I will bring a memory stick with my pictures on it)

Saturday 9am-12: Rolling out slabs of clay, texturing the clay, stretching the textures (15-20 mins) Will Need: White Stoneware Clay

• Making Handbuilt Tableware - cups, plates, platters (45 mins)
• Combining thrown and handbuilt forms. (Throw 2-3 forms and handbuild additions to put together when leather hard. I was thinking: a large bottle, platter, and a teapot (1 hour)
• Making styrofoam molds, slump and hump molds. (1 hour)

Saturday 1-4pm: 

• Footing the plates and platters and handling the cups... (45 mins)
• Everyone makes some molds and some plates and platters. (I can bring a bunch of mine if there are some who do not want to cut molds at this time. (2 hours)
• Those making molds Will need: Sheet Styrofoam Insulation (the pink or blue stuff), 1/2 inch thick for smaller pieces like soap and side plates and 1 inch thick plus for bigger items like plates and platters, exacto knife, pen, and black marker, sand paper... I will bring my own knife, marker and pen as well as my clay tools... This is a messy venture as you can imagine, styrofoam tends to be static-y

Sunday: 9am-12: Assembling the bottle and teapot forms, and large platter. Throw foot and spout, pull handle. (1.5 -2 hours)

• Decorating the forms: applying thick slip. (I use thick white slip, the consistency of heavy cream almost whipped. I usually just sieve some porcelain slop) (15 minutes)
• Finishing the wares made on Saturday. (leveling plates and platters, smoothing rims and feet (15 minutes)
• Wrap up... Clean up!