Hi friends
Planning for a full year of clay activities is well underway, and this week we have the first Phoenix wood firing of the year to announce - read about that below, and all the other tid bits...
Phoenix wood firing - March
We're getting straight into the wood firings this year, and the first one is already planned with the amazing Suzy Dunser as our fire-master.
You may not know that it's incredibly rare for potteries to be able to have wood kilns in a city. At WSP we are blessed to be reaping the rewards of a dedicated bunch of people who gained the necessary approvals, fundraised for this kiln and cage, and built it for the society some time ago. Firing this glorious beastie is a community effort and a great way to explore a new type of potting with fellow potters. If you haven't considered wood firing before, perhaps this year is the time to get into it :)
These are the dates you'll need to be available for the prep and firing days:
Saturday 14th March: prep day: organise wood, prep shelves and kiln
Saturday 21st March: loading kiln
Sunday 22nd March: firing kiln
Saturday 28th March: clean up and unloading kiln
For everything else you need to know and to sign-up, visit the booking page.
Kids' Play with Clay
These sessions are starting up again on the 4th of February!
They operate in a similar way to our normal Play With Clay sessions, except they are designed for kids (of course!) and there will be tutors on hand to help guide them through their chosen projects each week. The price is $15 per participant, and includes clay, glazes and firing of pieces made at the session.
There's no need to sign-up for a full term of classes, you can just come to one session, or as many as you would like to attend. They became quite popular last year, so it's a good idea to book in if you're planning to come along.
Find more info and links to the booking forms for each date here.
Firing fees
Late last year we undertook a review of our firing fees and compared them to our expenses for electricity, gas, glaze materials, kiln consumables etc. As expected, we confirmed that the prices for all of these elements have increased since April 2023, when the last review was done.
After crunching a lot of numbers, graphing and analysing all the variables, we advise that we will be increasing the firing fees from the start of our next financial year, on the 1st of April. We are keeping the increase as small as we can, but unfortunately we aren't able to continue absorbing the rising costs of expenses related to firing and glazing.
We think the new fees will still be great value, especially compared with firing fees at commercial firing businesses, and other community pottery societies.
We understand that prices are increasing for pretty much everything these days, so it's not a decision we've made lightly, and we do hope you'll continue to enjoy using the firing services here at WSP. Thanks in advance for your continued support.
Clay + Ash - an exhibition
Check out this fantastic exhibition at Artspost, on now until 18 February!
"This will be the second curated exhibition in New Zealand that focuses on the process and work from potters who use wood kilns as both the means of expression and a functional tool to fire their work. The exhibition will show the diversity of work produced and also the variety of designs of wood fired kilns that potters throughout New Zealand have created. This resourcefulness of potters has forged a distinct culture in the ceramic community that relishes the dance with fire and the unpredictable nature of this elemental practice."
Studio Schedule
We've got one more week of open-studios-a-plenty, before classes kick off. But remember we're closed this Monday for Anniversary Weekend. Here’s how the schedule is looking, but remember to check the online calendar for any updates before you come in 😊
Friday 23 January
9.30am – 4pm: Members’ Open Studio
Saturday 24 January
10am – 1pm: Play With Clay - thanks Tim! x
1 - 4pm: Members' Open Studio - thanks Shelley! xx
Sunday 25 January
CLOSED
Monday 26 January
CLOSED
Tuesday 27 January
9.30am – 4pm: Members' Open Studio
6pm - 9pm: Play with Clay - thanks Margaret, Trudie and John! xx
Wednesday 28 January
9.30am – 12.30pm: Play with Clay - thanks Yasmin and Dave! xx
1pm – 4pm: Members’ Open Studio
Thursday 29 January
9.30am – 4pm: Members' Open Studio
Friday 30 January
9.30am – 4pm: Members’ Open Studio
Saturday 31 January
10am – 1pm: Play With Clay
1pm – 4pm: TBC Members’ Open Studio (pending a volunteer to run the session)
