Wheel Throwing
Wheel thrown pottery is produced on a potter's wheel. This rotating wheel
"throws" the clay outwards, and the potter uses his hands to
control and mold it against this force. This technique is often used to
produce symmetrical vessel forms such as bowls, vases, and plates.
Hand Forming
In this technique, the potter uses tools or simple
hand pressure in forming a clay body. Hand forming is often used in more
sculptural forms and combined with other forming methods to produce the
final object.
Coil Construction
Coiling is an age old technique of building pots or sculpture's by laying
coils or ropes of clay one upon another and working them together. Coiling
can be treated as a preliminary to pinching, stroking and even throwing.
Slab Construction
This technique uses pieces of clay which are formed through rolling and
pressing. The slabs can then be cut into shapes and manipulated in a variety
of ways. Once the desired shape is achieved the piece is fired. The terms
hard slab and soft slab refer to the relative hardness of the clay body
itself during the forming process.
Slip Casting
Slip casting is the making of pottery in molds using liquid body or slip.
The mold is filled with slip. The absorption of water from the slip by
the plaster causes a thin wall of clay to be deposited on the surface
of the mold. Surplus slip is then poured off and the cast is left to dry
and shrink away from the mold. Once dry the new form can be removed from
the mold and fired.
Tools
Tools are used to manipulate clay in various fashions, depending on the
tool and the desired result. They can include everything from simple wooden
sculpture tools to the pottery wheel.
