Kia ora friends
The studio will be closed for Matariki tomorrow (Mānawatia a Matariki everyone!), but many of our Term 2 classes finished up this week, so that means there’s lots of Members’ Open Studio sessions for you to take advantage of next week 😊
In other news, we have had a bit of an incident in one of our bisque firings, read about that and everything else below.
Bisque firing incident
Sadly on Friday we had a problem with a bisque firing programme, and unfortunately some pieces that were in that firing have exploded. We are so sorry for this, it was human error (hi, it was me, Libby 😩) that caused it, and we can’t apologise enough. If you have pieces that were broken in that load, please see Libby and she will organise a firing credit for you.
WSP School Holiday Programme
The school holidays are just around the corner and if you or your friends are looking for some creative fun for the kids, we’ve got just the ticket. Check out the programme below and spread the word to your friends! More info on our website.
Full Day Pottery Programme
Monday 30th June, 9am – 3pm OR
Monday 7th July, 9am – 3pm
In this kids' day-programme, your child/ren will get to make their own pottery pieces using a variety of techniques, including:
Pinch Pot Creature - using the pinch pot method and adding features to create an animal or any creature in their imagination.
Freestyle Hand-building - let their imagination run wild and bring to life the creations in their minds.
Wheel Adventures - have a fun, messy time spinning clay and making pots on the pottery wheel.
Paint a Pot - choose a pre-made pot to paint with underglazes.
Freestyle Hand Building
Thursday 3rd July, 10am – 12noon OR
Thursday 10th July, 10am – 12noon
In this kids session your child/ren will use their hands and other tools to create anything that their heart desires. They can bring their own ideas and imagination, or work from the project sheets we will have in the studio.
Adventures on the Wheel
Thursday 3rd July, 1pm - 3pm OR
Thursday 10th July, 1pm – 3pm
In this kids session your child/ren will get to have a go at making pots on the pottery wheel. We will then glaze and fire their pieces for them, and they will be able to collect their pieces 3 weeks later.
Pit firing update
If you’ve signed up to take part in our Matariki Pit Firing on the 28th of June at Caroline Hamilton’s place, here’s some details about the special lower-temp bisque firing we’re going to run the week before.
If you have pots ready to be bisqued now, please put them on the designated shelves at the end of the studio. Anything that is there by the end of day on Monday the 23rd of June will go into the special bisque firing on Tuesday. These will come out of the kiln on Thursday afternoon. From there you have two options:
You can pick them up (from the same shelves) and take them away to add your own colourants and combustibles, and then bring them out to Caroline’s place when you come along on the 28th when we load the pit.
You can leave them on the shelf and Libby will pack them and bring them to Caroline’s on the morning of the 28th for you to add your combustibles etc. Please note, all care will be taken, but if something happens in transit then that will (literally) be the breaks. So, it’d be great if you can pick up your own pots and transport them, but we do recognise that it may be difficult to find the time to come into the studio between the Thursday and Saturday.
Lost Property
The lost property shelf is getting pretty full. Take a look next time you’re in and see if anything belongs to you. Some items have been there for a year or more, so we will look to donate these pieces to an Op Shop in a couple of months if they still haven’t been collected.
Tuesday evening Play with Clay volunteers
We’re looking for a few more volunteers to help out with our Tuesday evening Play with Clay sessions. Margaret runs the sessions most weeks, but it’d be great to have some helpers come along to help check people in, get bags of clay, and answer questions etc. If this sounds like you, get in touch with Libby 😊 In return we offer a free session for you to use at your leisure, either at another Play with Clay, or a Members’ Open Studio.
Reminders
Studio Closure, 14th July – 27th July
Hamilton City Council are replacing the roof over the whole Ward Park Arts Centre complex, and so we and our neighbours will need to close our workshops for two weeks for this to happen. The closure will begin on Monday the 14th of July and we will re-open on Monday the 28th of July.
Term 3 Classes
These start the week of 28th July, and are online now. Take a look and share with friends. Get in quick if you’re interested too, it’s a while away, but tickets are selling fast.
Raku Firing
Saturday 5th July, 10am – 2pm, Members and non-members welcome.
We’re raku-ing again! Get involved in this awesome, fast-firing process! Our raku expert, David Kenny, will run this event providing you with an opportunity to fire a few items each.
Find more info and sign-up here.
Fresh Baked – WSP Annual Members’ Exhibition
We’re excited to start putting together another glorious annual exhibition of your creations, and we can now confirm the entry and prize categories – take a look and get some inspiration – and get making!
Find more info and enter online or pick up an entry form in studio.
Save the Date - Mighty Waikato Pottery Throwdown
With more clout than Clay Gulgong and more prestige than Portage, the most hotly contested pottery event of the year is just around the corner! It’s the WSP’s own Mighty Waikato Pottery Throwdown. This year’s event will take place on Saturday the 23rd of August, and will be as fun, frivolous, and FREE, as always. More info to come soon!
Benchtop Oven – make an offer
Following the glorious upgrade of our kitchen facilities, we have this beauty little benchtop oven available. If you think you could make use of it for the bach or the shed, make an offer 😊
For Sale – Double Drive Cowley Wheel
Only 2 ½ years old (from Jan 2023). In excellent running condition. Cone driven, low maintenance wheel with aluminium wheel head and batt pins (for both large and small batts). You are welcome to view/pick up from Rototuna North. $1900 (RRP new is $2500). Great wheel but selling as I have upgraded.
There are two small cosmetic marks in the plastic tray (pictured by my thumb and forefinger) – does not affect usage in any way.
Please phone or text Victoria directly 021 211 2664.
Studio Schedule
Here’s how things are looking for the coming week, but as always, check the online calendar before you come in 😊
Friday 20th June
CLOSED for Matariki
Saturday 21st June
10am – 1pm, Play with Clay – thanks Teresa and Tim! xx
1pm – 4pm, Members’ Open Studio – thanks Kelly! xx
Sunday 22nd June
CLOSED for Matariki
Monday 23rd June
9.30am –4pm, Members’ Open Studio
6pm – 9pm, Hand Building Class
Tuesday 24th June
9.30am – 4pm, Members’ Open Studio
6pm – 9pm, Play with Clay – thanks Margaret! xx
Wednesday 25th June
9.30am – 12.30pm, Play with Clay - thanks Kristen and Mark! xx
1pm – 4pm, Members’ Open Studio
Thursday 26th June
9.30am – 4pm, Members’ Open Studio
Friday 27th June
9.30am – 4pm, Members’ Open Studio
6pm – 9pm, Intro to Pottery Class
Saturday 28th June
10am – 1pm, Play with Clay – thanks Teresa and Tim! xx
1pm – 4pm, Members’ Open Studio – thanks Ginny! xx
2pm – late, Inaugural Matariki Hoolie at Caroline Hamilton’s
Sunday 29th June
10am – 1pm, Wheel Throwing Class
