Well, tonight was the final night of the 10-week Winter Session of my Tuesday night
Beginning & Advanced Beginning Wheelthrowing Class at Lillstreet Art Center.
We all had a wonderful time making pots and sharing our clay experiences.
Everyone had a great time, lots of demos, lots of laughs, and a LOT of great pots!
Tonight we capped it off with a potluck dinner, informal critique & discussion…
and the ever-popular “bowl exchange.” Where everyone contributes one bowl (or mug?)
that they’ve made, and then we do a secret, White Elephant sort of random drawing & trading
game to exchange bowls (or mugs?) so everyone goes home with someone else’s treasure!

And oh, but wait there’s more…
I also found out tonight that my class for the Spring Session if already full.
More than two weeks before the session is scheduled to start may be an actual record?!
Sorry if you were planning in signing up, but waited too long. I tried to warn you
that the class fills up fast. I know at least a handful of this session’s students are returning,
but the rest are going to be newbies joining in on the fun! Sorry if you didn’t make the cut.
I think there’s a waiting list, but no guarantee that you’ll get in. Check it out at Lillstreet!!!

Although we still have two more weeks of the Winter Session…
Spring Classes will be starting soon… and registration is already open!

Don’t wait too long to sign-up. My Tuesday night Beginning Wheelthrowing Class
typically fills up, and I would hate to have you end up on the waiting list.
The class is for brand new beginners who want to get dirty and play in the clay…
as well as returning Beginners who still need to brush up on some basics and
refine their skills. You can sign-up in person at Lillstreet, or register on the
Lillstreet website. Either way… sign up today!

So… on the first night of my Beginning Wheelthrowing class, I asked my students
what they hoped to get out of class. What they wanted to learn. What they wanted
to make. One of my brand new beginners said she wanted to make a butter dish.
I explained to Abby that they are typically handbuilt, and not wheelthrown…
but I was willing to take on the challenge! Last night, we tackled the butter dish!

But before I could teach it… I had to learn how to make them myself!
I had never made them before and questioned how to make them “my own.”
So with some measurements, some textures and some basic handbuilding skills…
these are the first two! The first “prototypes” now in the drying stage.

By the way… Abby made her first butter dish last night – and was VERY excited!!!

Tonight’s demonstration in class was how to make bowls on purpose.
Not just a cylinder gone bad… and whoops, look at that, it’s a bowl?!
So my beginners were very excited… and very attentive.

So I made several bowls and demonstrated how to make them each different.
By turning “the same 2-pound” bowl into different shapes & styles.

We also introduced slip as a decorative tool. Nothing too elaborate.
Just a basic primer of what slip is, how to use it, and how it can quickly change a pot.
We painted a solid inside, then dragged a spiral, squiggled through it and chattered!!!
Voila’ – a decorative bowl. Easy. Simple. Any beginner can do it.

Tonight’s class ended with one of my favorite projects… STAMPS!
A lot of my students have taken an interest in textures & stamping… go figure.
So tonight we made stamps that will be bisqued fired and then they can start using them!

So our ceramic classes have started up again at Lillstreet Art Center.
Again this session, I am teaching wheelthrowing class for beginners & “advanced” beginners
on Tuesday nights.  Also, again this session, my class is full… with a waiting list!!!

uh oh… what am I going to do when “LOST” starts up on Tuesday nights?…
can you say TiVO?!!!

My class is filled with a great mix of energetic potters-to-be… some brand new to clay,
some brand new to Lillstreet, and some returning for “another tour of duty” in clay.
I have quite a few returning students which is always fun for me… continuing with them
from where we left off last session. We also have a few students “crossing over” and
joining my class from other previous classes. The new ones are in for an adventure…
it’s only Week #2, but they’re already having a great time getting dirty!!!

Next week, in addition to “throwing taller”… we’re also making STAMPS!!!

So after the woven clay plates on Monday, we continued our “weaving” theme
with a traditional weaving project – each kid with their own vertical “loom.”

We started with dowel rods & twine hanging from the ceiling. They had to string the loom
and tie it off the bottom with another dowel rod and hung a brick at the bottom
to keep it all taut. Once assembled, their looms were ready to start weaving. We discussed
techniques and colors.. and let them go! They loved it… in fact, they’re still doing it!!!
Tomorrow we’ll a short break from it today for some of my favorite – Tie-Dye Day!!!
But as soon as we were done – they will be right back to the weaving.

Then Friday is our last day for this camp. They’ll need to finish weaving back & forth
and then tie-off the bottom and add some decorative fringe!!! And voila’…
another week of Summer Camp will have come to an end. With a lot of happy kids!!!

And as if playing with the kid’s all day wasn’t enough…
my adult’s Beginning Wheelthrowing Class begins tomorrow night!
It’s another 8-weeks of fun – and a chance for the brand new beginners
to get their hands dirty, and the “experienced” beginners get to further
their skills and begin to develop their own style!

Lillstreet Art Center
Beginning & Advanced Beginning Wheelthrowing
Tuesday nights from 7:00pm-10:00pm… with ME as your teacher!!!

There’s only a couple spaces still open – register in person or online!!!
If you miss out on this Summer Session, mark your calendar now for the
10-week Fall Session which will begin on the Tuesday after Labor Day!

As we move forward into the summer… and get “deeper” into Summer Camp,
we start having some “specialty” camps for the kids to keep it fresh & fun.
This week was one of my favorites… Chess Camp!!!

During this camp, the kids each make a complete chess set out of terra cotta and
paint a board to go along with it. No simple sets here… the kids also need to come up
with a theme and decide who is “battling” who! I love to see the natural creativity
of the kids shining everyday through the process. Some of the themes were brilliant!!!
I think my favorite was Luke’s set which portrayed “The Seventies versus The Eighties.”
Complete with Rubik’s Cubes, Ms. Pac-Man, Rocky Horror Picture Show’s logo lips,
Purple Rain, Lava Lamps, Richard Nixon, Pinball Wizards, and much more.
And how strange & sadly untimely that his set also represents Michael Jackson
with his glittered glove… just one day after his death!

Other themes included…
* Freshwater versus Saltwater
* Dogs versus Cats
* Greek Warriors versus Egyptian Warriors
* Foods versus Drinks
* Antarctica versus The Arctic
* Monsters versus Aliens
* Fruits versus Vegetables

So by the end of the day today, everyone had completed their chess sets & boards.
They are now drying and will soon be glazed & fired. That is all except Noah…
who was working so diligently knowing that he would never finish his aquatic set.
He was working with such care & detail, making his pieces the best that he could -
and hoping to come back for the next session of Chess Camp that starts on July 20th.
We all hope he comes back… I want to see his finished “masterpiece.”

Looking for something fun to do this Spring?
Longing to get your hands dirty – but don’t have a garden to play in?

The new Spring Session of classes starts next week at Lillstreet Art Center.
Mark your calendar as my class starts next Tuesday, March 24th, 2009.
I will once again be teaching my class on Tuesday nights from 7:00-10:00pm.
My class is Beginning & Advanced Beginning Wheelthrowing.
It’s a 10-week class that meets every Tuesday night for three hours. You’ll learn
the basics of wheelthrowing and every step along the way to your finished pots!
Whether you are a complete novice, or an experienced beginner, this is the class
for you. We’re all very low-key, very social and very fun!

Lillstreet Art Center offers some of the best clay opportunities in Chicago!
In addition to your scheduled class session, you also get open studio time at Lillstreet
seven days a week – what a great chance to play inside & practice slinging mud!
So if you’ve ever wanted to play in the mud and make some pots…
it’s still not to late to sign up for classes at Lillstreet Art Center.

Registration is easy – just register online at www.lillstreet.com.
But hurry… my class generally fills up quickly.
Avoid the waiting list… register today!