Project by: Olivia DeTraglia (11th Grade), Ely Silverman (11th Grade)
Project Advisor: Shauna Finn
Student(s)’s Advisor(s): Kelly O’Shea and Shauna Finn
Description of the Project:
Throughout this project, we will continue practicing throwing clay on the wheel and researching different methods that are used. We hope to learn more techniques and improve our throwing skills. At the end of this project, we will create a poster with some of our thrown pieces and talk about our process. We can also put our pieces on display somewhere in the building.
Final Product:
Final Reflection on Learning:
Olivia: I have learned a lot throughout this project and I am much more confident in my throwing abilities now. Practicing throwing multiple times a week has made me really comfortable on the wheel and with the clay. I have gotten a lot better at centering, pulling up, and making sure that the angle between my wall and base is basically 90 degrees. I am also now able to pull shapes that aren’t just cylinders and I can do that with different amounts of clay. I’m really happy with my progress throughout this project and I’m excited to continue to improve.
Ely: Throughout this honors project, I have definitely improved in my throwing capabilities. After watching several videos and taking advice from Shauna, I was more confident and also learned how to make the base of whatever I make sturdy enough. Since I was less experienced and more focused on practicing, I did not keep all the pieces I made, especially ones that collapsed or were too flimsy. Centering was something I got a lot better at. My pieces barely shake at the top when spinning after I’ve centered. Olivia helped me understand and better my technique and form when centering to make it more effective. I am satisfied with the progress I have made during this project and I am excited to continue building on these skills.
Update on Progress from Weeks 1-3 (include any photos or video if relevant):
We have continued practicing our throwing and watching videos to learn more about specific techniques that can help us advance our skills.
Olivia: I have (almost) mastered centering and pulling up the walls so that the clay is evenly distributed. I have also moved on from solely throwing cylinders and started to add some shape to my pieces. In the next few weeks, I am going to learn how to trim clay after it is thrown and work more on trying different shapes.
Ely: I am working on my ability to center while learning more from Olivia. My clay pieces have started to shake less on the top and are slowly becoming more even throughout. I’m definitely still working on making sure the base isn’t too thick or too thin before cutting it off the wheel. In the coming weeks, I am going to continue to perfect centering and become more adventurous in the shape of things I make.
Update on Progress from Weeks 4-6 (include any photos or video if relevant):
Ely: I have heavily improved on my ability to center the clay on the wheel, through the help of Olivia. The other day, I was able to finally make the walls of my piece sturdy enough that they did not flop over or wobble. I am still focusing on making sure that the base of whatever I’m making isn’t too thin and won’t crack in the kiln.
Olivia: I have continued working on pulling up walls and making my pieces even all around. I have also made a bunch of different types of shapes, which helps to practice moving the clay in different ways and has made me a lot more comfortable with the wheel. I also tried trimming clay for the first time and it didn’t go that well, but I am watching videos to see how others do it so that I can practice different methods for trimming. The gray pieces are some from these past weeks:
Update on Progress from Weeks 7-9 (include any photos or video if relevant):
Olivia: I have been practicing throwing cleaner pieces on the wheel, rather than having to trim them after. I have also started practicing with different size pieces of clay. This has helped me get a better feel for centering as well as having control over the clay no matter the size. Here is a collection of some pieces from throughout the trimester:
Ely: I have basically mastered centering and will continue to improve on my overall skills as I throw more and more on the wheel. I did not keep as many pieces as Olivia since I was more of a beginner and wanted to practice more than making something. If we were to do something similar to this next year, I will definitely keep more of my pieces and glaze them as well. I did slowly start experimenting with different sizes of clay but nothing too drastic.
