Kia ora clay fam
Two sleeps left to the Matariki pit firing and hangi at Caroline's. More on that below.
The school holiday programmes kick in next week and libby and the crew have all sorts of clay fun lined up for young budding potters. Read on!
Matariki shin-dig
Our Matariki shin-dig is just a few days away now - ka mau te wehi!
Here are a few reminders about times, the location, and what to bring:
2pm - we will start loading pots into the pit.
- If you're not taking part in the pit firing, you don't have to come to this bit, but you're most welcome to be there if you want to :)
- We will light the pit whenever we've finished loading the pots, and stacking the wood and combustibles.
5.30pm - we'll say a karakia to the stars of Matariki, and the kai will be delivered by Heavenly Hāngī.
- If you haven't bought a hāngī ticket, just bring along your own kai and join in the celebration.
- BYO drinks. Alcoholic drinks are welcome, but please drink responsibly and ensure you get home safely.
The address you're coming to (Caroline Hamilton's property) is 988 Tuhikaramea Road, Ngāhinapōuri.
- If you're travelling from Hamilton and making a right-turn into Caroline's gate, you may want to consider carrying on up the road 30 metres and turning around at Gilmore Rd and coming back, as the right-turn into the drive can be a little dangerous when crossing the oncoming traffic.
General things to bring with you:
- A chair.
- Warm clothes to wear!
- Closed, sturdy shoes if you're going to be working around the pit.
Pit firing things to bring with you:
- Your pots - if you're taking part in the pit firing and would like to transport them yourself. Libby will pick up any uncollected pots from WSP on Saturday morning and transport them to Caroline's.
- Snacks, if you're going to be there loading the pit and think you might get peckish before the hāngī is delivered.
- We'll have some "magic dust" to sprinkle through the pit. This is a mixture of salt and copper carbonate, which produces the reds synonymous with pit-fired pottery. But you might to bring your own combustibles and colourants to include in the fire, or wrap your individual pots in. Good materials include copper wire, old nails, seaweed, salt, banana peels, coffee grounds, bones, eggshells and many others...
We're looking forward to celebrating WSP's inaugural Matariki shin-dig with you all - see you there!
Mānawatia a Matariki
Newly fledged Firemasters
Congratulations to Suzy Dunser and Clare Wimmer who have both been signed off as Phoenix wood kiln Firemasters. Woo hoo!
School holiday programmes
There's a few places left, and still time to book into the following programmes:
Freestyle Hand Building
Thursday 3rd July, 10am – 12noon OR
Thursday 10th July, 10am - 12 noon
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.
Find more info and enrol for the 3rd July workshop here
For more info and enrol for the 10th July workshop here
Full Day Pottery Programme
Monday 7th July, 9am - 3pm
In this full 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.
Adventures on the Wheel
Thursday 10th July 2025, 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.
53rd annual exhibition coming up
Our annual exhibition is a celebration of all our members and their work, no matter what level of their pottery journey they are at! Everyone is guaranteed to have at least one entry selected, you can enter up to four separate works, and there is no entry fee.
Entry forms available online and in the studio.
Key dates:
1st June - Entries open
3rd August – Entries close
4th August - 9th August – Delivery of works to WSP studio
14th August, 5.30pm - Opening preview and awards evening
15th August - 14 September – Exhibition runs
16th September - 23rd September – Collection of unsold pieces from WSP studio
The Mighty Waikato Pottery Throwdown
Coming up on Saturday 23rd August. Lots of fun challenges, with Ginny Lane and Caroline Hamilton as co-queens for the day on Team Awesome Judging (TAJ). Save the date!
Fun fact: Taj (as in Taj Mahal) means 'crown'
Reminders
Studio closure
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
There's a few places left in the Term 3 classes. You can see what's available here.
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. Check it out here
Studio schedule
Here's how it looks for next week, but as always, check the online calendar before you come in.
Friday 27 June
9.30am to 4pm Members' Open Studio
6 to 9pm Intro to Pottery class
Saturday 28 June
10am to 1pm Play With Clay
1 to 4pm Members' Open Studio
2 to 10pm Matariki Shindig
4.30 to 6.30 studio closed for Private Lesson
Sunday 29 June
10am to 1pm Wheel Throwing Taster class
Monday 30 June
9am to 4pm closed for school holiday programme
Tuesday 1 July
9.30am to 4pm Members' Open Studio
6 to 9pm Play With Clay
Wednesday 2 July
9.30am to 12.30pm Play With Clay
1 to 4pm Members' Open Studio
Thursday 3 July
9am to 4pm closed for school holiday programme
Friday 4 July
9.30am to 4pm Members' Open Studio
