Throwing On The Wheel
I started working in clay in 2015, specifically hand building sculptures. In 2022, I decided it was time to learn how to use the wheel and throw clay on said wheel. These new skills will eventually expand my abilities to make functional ceramic ware in bulk at a more rapid pace. My exploration into functional ware started with me making ceramic molds construct my ‘Orchid Pots’.
Once I learn these new wheel throwing skills, my plan is to combine the hand building and wheel throwing skills to create home décor goods for Palisade Posh. That is the long-range plan, but in 2022 the goal is to learn and move toward mastering the wheel. I’m realizing that in itself may be a lofty endeavor!
I had my first wheel throwing class on Saturday at the Art Students League of Denver and I have to say it kicked my butt… but in a good way! I have a lot to learn when it comes to throwing on the wheel including how to position the height of the wheel, which side to place the pedal (I was working with an electric wheel) and getting the hand positions down. About halfway through class we figured out the height of the wheel was too high for my short 5’1” stature, and lowered the wheel, this made a huge difference! One big challenge I have is being left-handed, although my instructor said this could work to my advantage. As a lefty, I’ve learned over the years to use both hands depending on what activity I’m doing. For example, I play tennis with my left hand, but I cut paper using scissors in my right hand and I paint using both hands! This also goes for my feet… so one of the first things I needed to figure out was which foot felt most comfortable in operating the pedal that makes the wheel turn. I started on the left but later moved it to the right and that felt better so one quandary overcome.
The next set of challenges which I’m still figuring out are mastering the different hand motions that one uses to manipulate the clay. Some gestures it doesn’t matter as you use both hands like wedging the clay (which I also need to work on because I did not do a very good job of homogenizing my clay on Saturday) and centering the clay. Centering the clay is an interesting thing as it seems to be both intuitive while also involving the sense of feel. You know your clay is centered when it is still, by “it” I mean your arms and hands are still as the wheel turns and they move over the clay. If the clay is not centered the sensation you feel in your arms and hands as they move over the clay feels like it does when you are driving your car or bike with a flat tire, they ungulate as they move over the surface of the clay. This is not good as your goal is to achieve a sense of stillness in your arms and hands as they work the clay. I’ve yet to cognitively recognize this sense of stillness when centering the clay but I am confident that one day I will, until then I keep trying.
Once the clay is centered the next step is to widen the clay surface and, this too has its own hand gesture; I’m still figuring out which hand (the left or the right) feels most comfortable to use when at this stage. For each of the steps that follow, I’m still working out which hand to lead with which adds another layer of complexity in learning how to work with clay on the wheel.
Step three involves opening the clay. You do this by holding your thumb up as if you are about to hitch hike for a ride only instead of sticking your thumb in the air you place it in the center of your clay and use the other hand for support as you gently press down.
After you open the clay, you need to widen the opening and in so doing start to form the base of your pot. From here, using your needle tool you stop and check the thickness of the base. The trick here is not to make your base too thick or too thin.
When the base is at a good thickness, the next hand gesture is ‘the claw’ which you use to widen the bottom and the sides of the vessel without widening the opening at the top. For this gesture you use your middle finger and thumb of one hand pulling upward from the base of the pot while the other hand is used to support the wall as you move your hand up. For me the challenge is remembering which fingers to use and then getting them in the correct place. It’s like sign language for clay… if you have a finger in the wrong place something different happens.
After you’ve completed ‘the claw’, which you only do once, the next step is to compress the clay walls. This you accomplish by using your middle finger together with your index finger and again move upward on the interior of the vessel, the other hand again acts as wall support as the clay is compressed. You can also compact the clay along the top rim of the pot using your finger (not sure which one) or a wet sponge. This gesture I’m still a bit vague on but hopefully will not be so in future classes.
Speaking of wet… one of the many things that is different from hand building with clay is that you use water to keep the clay moist as it spins on the wheel, here too I’m still figuring out just how much water to use, the trick (I think) is to find that sweet spot between enough to keep the clay wet and easy to manipulate as the wheel turns and not so much that you find yourself wearing more clay than is perhaps on the wheel… I think I was in the latter category on Saturday!
This is as far as I got in my first class as I spent a great deal of time just working on centering the clay. I find working with the wheel incredibly challenging and find it like learning a new sport, not that I’m all that athletic! Because you are using your feet to make the wheel move in combination with your arms and hands it is like a full body sport, like tennis or more so like fencing! To center the clay, you must have your arms pulled in and use your core to brace them. Once centered there are intricate hand motions that require the application of specific fingers to achieve each step and all this combine must be done purposefully and intentionally. Now that I think of it, working on the wheel reminds me very much of fencing which is a sport I have done! It is both elegant and complex and when done correctly gives you great results! I am very much looking forward to developing this new skill set and enjoying the tactile aspect of this creative art form! It may not burn calories like fencing did but it sure does stimulate the mind and understanding the feel of the clay. Whereas painting relies heavily on seeing and understanding what you are seeing, throwing on the wheel, I discovered on Saturday, has a great deal to do with feel and understanding the tactile quality of the clay. Saturday was exciting, challenging and humbling all at the same time.
I learned that each stage of creating on the wheel has a different hand gesture and getting your fingers and arms in the correct position is in itself a challenge. The analogy I used to get my head around it was that is was like sign language for clay. Each hand gesture/position accomplished something different with the clay.
