Lea Durie – Foraged Clay 3 Day workshop

Service Description

Over three days ceramic artist Lea Durie will share her approach to sustainable making practices, connected to place through locally foraged clays. Lea’s ceramic practice is informed by fieldwork, foraging and making with the intelligence and memory of locally found geological materials. This hands-on immersive workshop is for curious makers thinking about their material footprint or wanting to bring the local environment into their practice. Over three days you will gain specialist knowledge to work with the unique opportunities and challenges presented by foraged clay; consider your relationship with the materials you make with and expand your creative practice into exciting new areas. Your learning will be guided by demonstrations, shared knowledge, and research into the geology beneath us to: • learn how to recognise, find and ethically harvest clay • apply methods to process and test your clay, exploring the different outcomes from a range of clays available at the workshop and brought along by participants • discover how to work with your clay character, or make modifications to create unique clay bodies suitable for your project • make foraged clay slips and rock pigment washes for decorating your pieces • create small works using the clay you have prepared • equip yourself with the knowledge to continue your foraged clay journey independently. This is a course for novices and seasoned artists wanting to unlock new possibilities in their clay journey. We will be all about experimentation and play, leaving you with the skills to keep exploring foraged materials and considering how you want to bring the local environment into your practice. Participants are encouraged to bring along some of their own clay to test. What to expect? • Dive into the world of forgaed clay, starting with learning about clays and where to find them in your area and on your travels. • Create a range of test pieces for a variety of clays, understand their unique properties and load them to be fired overnight. • Explore ways to process different clays, ready for making • Experiment with modifications you can make to your foraged clay to create exciting clay bodies for any project • Work on a creative project using the clays we have prepared. With lots of time for hands-on making time over the three days to get creative with the material.