Workshop with Emily Reason

Slip decorated candlestick holder

On Saturday, I attended a workshop with Emily Reason hosted at Claymakers.  Workshops are fun and give me a chance to be a student.  I was excited to go to this one because I really love Reason’s work and I was curious about her surface treatments.

She works with porcelain and fires in a reduction atmosphere.  Most of her work is slipped and/or carved and has multiple glazes.  I suspected that there was a series of fussy steps to yield her final pot – and there are.

Overall, it was a pleasant way to spend a Saturday.   The workshop was well organized.  She threw pots in the morning and then finished them in the afternoon.  And, in anticipation of delayed drying, Emily brought several of the same demo forms in the leatherhard stage.  She teaches classes and has written a book – therefore, she was very articulate as she described what she was doing and why.  She is an excellent instructor.

I have taken a lot of workshops but this was the first demo workshop that I have attended.   I was hesitant to take a demo workshop because I wasn’t sure that I would retain enough information without practicing it immediately.  But, overall it was fine.  I took pictures and notes, asked questions, and got lots of inspiration.