News, Events, Inspiration ◊ March 2023

Inside this issue: 2nd term classes are starting now. Learn more about our newest class. Does the studio seem 2.5 tons heavier to you? Degenerate pottery? Tell me more. How can I make cups and saucers that fit properly? Plus more interesting pottery videos and events for you.

A gaggle of glorious glazers

Our 2nd-term classes...

...are getting under way right now. So act fast, while there is still time to sign up for that class you're eager to take. Join us to experience the clay, creativity, and community offered in our classes.

Classes with available seats:

Introductory and Continuing Wheel

• Mon, Feb 27- Apr 3, 4:00-6:00 pm, with Kevan Wilson
• Wed, Mar 1-Apr 5, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, with Kay Yourist
• Thurs, Mar 2-Apr 6, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, with Nancy Bulkley
• Thurs, Mar 2-Apr 6, 12:30-2:30 pm, with Nancy Bulkley
• Thurs, Mar 2-Apr 6, 4:30-6:30 pm, with Kay Yourist
• Thurs, Mar 2-Apr 6, 6:30-8:30 pm, with Nick Glynos
• Sat, Mar 4-Apr 8, 9:30-11:30 am, with Laila Chalati
• Sun, Mar 5-Apr 9, 11:00 am-1:00 pm, with David Timm

Hand Building

• Thurs, Mar 2-Apr 6, 6:30-8:30 pm, with Meg Gizzi

New! Inquire / Draw / Design / Build

• Thurs, Mar 9-Apr 27, 11:00 am-1:00 pm, with Darcy Bowden

Enroll here.

Build on a tradition...

...that dates back more than 30,000 years. Our newest class, Inquire / Draw / Design / Build, is your opportunity to experience how ceramic art of the past can influence and illuminate your work in the present. This multifaceted, 8-week class, led by ceramic artist Darcy Bowden, will meet on

Thursday, March 9-April 27

11:00 am to 1:00 pm

The first two class sessions will take place at University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) on State St., where you will explore historical ceramic artifacts by observing, sketching, researching, and learning about the works you find compelling. 

The remaining six sessions will be held at Yourist Studio Gallery where you will continue to research, plan, design, and then create the work informed and inspired by your visits to UMMA. 

Come with an open mind to see where your inquiry will lead you. Previous drawing experience is not necessary; however, previous experience with hand building or wheel throwing is.

Register now.

Warm up...

...the remains of winter in our March Try It class:

Try It Once on the Wheel

• Sat, Mar 11, 1:00-2:30 pm, with Laila Chalati

Enroll now.

Tons of fun!

The studio received a delivery of over 5,000 pounds of clay on February 21. That should keep everyone busy for a while.

We can handle it!

As these examples show, teacher Laila Chalati knows a thing or two about teaching her students how to make good handles.

Job opportunity

Studio intern

We're interviewing potential studio interns for spring to help with studio maintenance in exchange for studio use. The successful applicant should know how to mix glaze, load kilns, mop floors, and perform other typical studio duties. Please send a letter of interest, including your pottery studio experience, to Kay Yourist.

Say goodbye...

...to February but don't leave the lovely pottery you made during the month behind. On March 31, we will remove all bisque and glaze ware that has collected on the shelves in February.

• Please pick up your glazed pieces and take them home to enjoy.
• Please glaze your bisque ware now or take it home for glazing in the future.

Regrettably, any unclaimed bisque ware and glazed pieces remaining after March 31 must be discarded to make room for new work.

Masking update

Before coming to the studio, please check the following links for current advisories on COVID transmission risk and case numbers in Washtenaw county:

CDC COVID Community Levels page.

Washtenaw County Health Department page

CDC currently updates its advisory every Thursday at 8 pm ET.

The studio will operate in accordance with the latest CDC advisories. Thank you for helping us keep our studio safe and healthy for all students and members.

Potters quick tip

Q. I'm about to start making some cups and saucers, and I want them to be suitable for my guests, not for the Mad Hatter's tea party. How can I make sure my cups and saucers are a perfect fit?

A. Check out this Ceramic Arts Network video featuring potter Meredith Post, who demonstrates her process for getting cups and saucers to fit perfectly. Knowing your clay's shrinkage rate and careful measuring are key. Visit Post's website to see her "contemporary homewares with retro flair."

These videos are part of our continuing series for beginners at all levels.

"I look at clay as a way to connect with my ancestors."

Ceramic artist Malene Barnett

On-site exhibitions

We'll let you know when new ceramics exhibitions are on display and open to the public. Before you go to an on-site exhibition, be sure to check the art museum's web site for any current pandemic precautions.

Around the World in Blue and White. Selections from the William C. Weese Collection of Chinese Ceramics. University of Michigan Museum of Art. Ongoing. More . . .

Pewabic: Detroit's Pottery: documents the pottery's past while celebrating the present. Pewabic Pottery. Ongoing. More . . .

Matt Wedel: Phenomenal Debris. Wedel's work represents "the phenomenal debris that is shed from being human." Toledo Museum of Art. Now-April 2. More . . .

Clay as Soft Power: Shigaraki Ware in Postwar America and Japan. How pottery transformed global relations. University of Michigan Museum of Art. Now-May 7. More . . .

Dopamine Dressing. Colorful, textured clay and metal sculptures by YehRim Lee. University of Michigan Museum of Art. Now-August. More . . .

Explorations in Brown Clay. Julie Schnell Madden. Gifts of Art Gallery, Taubman Health Center. Now-March 3. (Note: this exhibition is limited to Michigan Medicine patients and their visitors. A link on the exhibition page will allow you to visit virtually.) More . . .

Everlasting Exuberance. Alexander M. Clinthorne. Gifts of Art Gallery, Taubman Health Center. Now-March 3. (Note: this exhibition is limited to Michigan Medicine patients and their visitors. A link on the exhibition page will allow you to visit virtually.) More . . .

Broken Pieces Made Whole: Mosaics. Sue Majewski. Gifts of Art Gallery, Rogel Cancer Center. Now-March 3. (Note: this exhibition is limited to Michigan Medicine patients and their visitors. A link on the exhibition page will allow you to visit virtually.) More . . .

Motawi Tileworks: A Celebration of 30 Years. Gifts of Art Gallery, Rogel Cancer Center. Now-December. (Note: this exhibition is limited to Michigan Medicine patients and their visitors. A link on the exhibition page will allow you to visit virtually.) More . . .

Expressions in Paper and Clay. Juxtaposes contemporary Japanese prints with contemporary Japanese ceramics. Kalamazoo Institute of Arts. Now-May 14. More . . .

The Art of Refreshment. Illustrates the wide variety of materials, styles, and uses of drink and dinnerware from ancient times to current day. Flint Institute of Arts. February 25, 2023-August 27. More . . .

Underneath Everything: Humility and Grandeur in Contemporary Ceramics. "Clay is the humblest of materials, often overlooked and more readily associated with a morning cup of coffee than with the international art world. But it is underneath everything." Theaster Gates. Grand Rapids Art Museum. Oct 7, 2023-Jan 13, 2024. More . . .

Virtual tours and videos

Here's a selection of pottery events, exhibitions, and museum tours that you can visit and enjoy online. Lots of tasty ceramic eye candy!

Malene Barnett. This talented multimedia artist tells Black women's stories through clay. More . . .

Breath Exhibition 2022. Contemporary, sculptural, conceptual and functional ceramics by students at TAFE, Hornsby, NSW. More . . .

Breaking Ground: Women in California Clay. 100 years of groundbreaking contributions to ceramic art. American Museum of Ceramic Art. More . . .

A new Unforgettable Dinnerware online lecture from The International Museum of Dinnerware Design is now available as a video: Contemporary Black American Ceramic Artists with donald a clark and Chotsani Elaine Dean.

And three from Colossal:

Sculptures evoking organic growth by Toru Kurokawa. More . . .

Playful ceramic "dust furries" by Linda Lopez. More . . .

Aquatic sculptures mimic sea life by Lisa Stevens. More . . .

Degenerate dinnerware: shape and decoration

NCECA 2023

Michigan Mud

Carve an elegant...

...fluted bowl. Watch as the Ondo Studio ceramic artist hand builds and carves an elegantly shaped fluted bowl. Wheel throwers, this carving technique will work for you, too.

Drop collar vessels...

...with potter Mary Fox. Enter the Creation Room to learn how Mary Fox throws her signature drop collar vessels. As she throws, Fox explains how her favorite form evolved.

See a portfolio of Mary Fox's "beautiful vessels to enrich and inspire."

Here are our open studio hours for the rest of 2022 and for 2023:

• Tuesday, 12:00-6:00 pm
• Wednesday, 12:00-6:00 pm
• Friday, 12:00-6:00 pm
• Saturday, 12:00-6:00 pm
• Sunday, 4:00-8:00 pm

There are no open studio hours on Thursday. Saturday open studio hours begin at noon with the exception of one Saturday a month, when the Try It Once on the Wheel class meets from 1:00 to 2:30 pm. Check our class schedule for the date for this class.

Please remember to sign in when you arrive and sign out when you leave. And make sure to clean your work area thoroughly before leaving.

We have curbside delivery of clay, tools, and pottery during our regular hours. If you have a specific need, please call us at the studio, during regular hours, at 734-662-4914.