| ACTIVITY TITLE | Generate your own idea: feel your inner self |
| AIM | Ceramic workshops allow you to express your personal emotions, your most intimate feelings, giving space to your imagination and creativity. They promote the development of young people’s socio-emotional skills, both intrapersonal (linked to the self) and interpersonal ones (linked to the relationship with others) and so as to combat exclusion and promote social integration. During this initial workshop, the goal is therefore to promote individual expressiveness and enhance one’s creativity (need to nurture your creativity and your inner artist) |
| TRAINEE(S) PROFILE(S) | Participants, Trainers, Assistants |
| LEARNING OBJECTIVES (min. 3) | Feel your emotions Enhance the ability to explore oneself deeply (digging deeper into your mindset)Be able to express your emotions, in a non-verbal way and through artistic-manual practiceEnhance creativity, working on imagination, ideation, development of ideasEncourage artistic expression |
| TEACHING METHOD(S) | The trainer helps the learner to reflect on himself/herself, inviting them to think of an object, to imagine an object that will then be reproduced with clay. What form will this object take? What will it be used for? Why this object? What does it mean for you? |
| DURATION (in minutes) | 2 hours |
| MATERIALS NEEDED | Paper sheets Colors |
| PREPARATION STEPS | Each participant will be provided with a paper sheet and some colours to start elaborating a sketch of the artwork |
| IMPLEMENTATION STEPS | 1. Ideate: think about the object, imagine it mentally, generate the idea on a mental level before sketching 2. Draw: start drawing the sketch and with the help of some markers and erasers try to reproduce your object. Using different colors, you can express your inner feelings and emotions 3. Practice: better define the shape, improve the quality of the sketch, and add any additional elements, including decorative ones. 4. Finalize: finalize your sketch. Later, from this sketch you will realize your handmade artwork with the use of the clay. |
| DEBRIEFING/REFLECTION | For the trainer: ask the participants what their feelings and emotions are when sketching. Do you like your sketch? What would you like to improve? Remember: drawing and sketching should be a relaxing moment, thus avoiding stress. The goal is not to get a perfect and impressive sketch.For the participant: try to boost your imagination, starting from very abstract things, for example: how would you represent the waves of the sea? What form do they have? How would you represent the breath of the wind? What form does it have? And the flap of a flame? A mountain? |
| TIPS AND HINTS | For the trainer: promote individual creativity and avoid any comments or corrections about the quality of the drawing/sketch. It’s a very intimate and individual phase, whose goal is to allow the participant to express innate feelings and emotions freely and without constraints. Some suggestions for the participants: Use your imagination Map your emotions Don’t be afraid to make mistakes Have fun Find your inner self and your own mantra |
| INNOVATION/ADDED VALUE | Verbal language is replaced by artistic practice as main form of individual expression. The artistic practice becomes part of a pedagogical pathway, where the individual learns to discover himself/herself and to tell others about himself/herself |
| ACTIVITY TITLE | Haptic perception: let’s discover the clay! |
| AIM | In this phase, participants have a very first contact with the clay. As a participant, you start exploring the clay and begin manipulating it, while studying its consistency, its texture etc. It is a very exploratory phase where the participant uses the 5 senses (specifically touch). |
| TRAINEE(S) PROFILE(S) | Participants, Trainers, Assistants |
| LEARNING OBJECTIVES (min. 3) | Enhance sensorially, mainly touch
Generating surprise in front of something unknown (it’s a very first contact with the clay) Encourage the participant to explore, experiment, manipulate and shape without being afraid of making mistakes |
| TEACHING METHOD(S) | In this phase, the trainer leaves the participant free to explore the clay, inviting him/her to perceive the consistency, the sense of heat or cold (temperature, etc.), and the texture of the clay. It is a truly experimental and exploratory phase. |
| DURATION (in minutes) | 2 hours |
| MATERIALS NEEDED | 1 piece of clay (white, black, red, as needed)
Water (to be able to shape the clay) |
| PREPARATION STEPS | Get a worktable (a surface where to work). NB. choose a porous and not smooth worktable, to prevent the clay from sticking as it is damp originally. Therefore, avoid plastic worktables and prefer wooden or marble ones
Find the materials: remember that there are two main types of clay available on the market, the white and the red. If you combine red and white clay, the object will already be originally colored (even if the final effect is seen only after firing). |
| IMPLEMENTATION STEPS | During this workshop you start exploring the clay with its characteristics, it is an exploratory phase. Very important is the exercise, the practice: focus on the realization phase, where you model, you give the shape, you change the shape, you develop your manual skills. You can also make some mistakes. If you fail, don’t worry, and try again.
Shaping: start shaping from very simple objects. Try to manipulate and shape small clay balls and try to reproduce very simple objects (an animal, a flower, a glass etc.) Improving: through exercise and shaping more and more times, you will eventually obtain a homogeneous mass (a clay free of any impurities) ready to be processed in the following phases. |
| TIPS AND HINTS | Some technical tips:
When shaping the clay, be careful about how much water you need. The more you manipulate/shape with your hands, the more the clay in contact with the air tends to dry quickly Be careful that: the more you manipulate and touch the clay, the more the clay will be malleable and easy to manipulate, as it dries out very easily by evaporating the water |
| INNOVATION/ADDED VALUE | This activity is based on direct experimentation by the individual and on learning by doing. |
| SUGGESTED READINGS | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48HW9kQXL64 |
| ACTIVITY TITLE | Clay modelling: improve your manual and artistic skills |
| AIM | The objective of this activity is to explore the different steps when transforming the clay (i.e., the material in its original state) into fired clay, mainly known as “terracotta”. Terracotta is a semi-finished product, so it is not the final artwork. The final artwork will be called “ceramics”. |
| TRAINEE(S) PROFILE(S) | Participants, Trainers, Assistants |
| LEARNING OBJECTIVES
(min. 3) |
Develop critical thinking when selecting materials, generating ideas, carrying out the discovery process of clay shaping and modelling
Improve manual and artistic skills Enhance self-confidence in one’s abilities Develop empathy when working with others Know the main techniques of clay processing (wick technique, lathe technique, slab technique) and know how to adequately select the correct tools to implement one or more of these techniques |
| DURATION (in minutes) | 4 hours |
| MATERIALS NEEDED | Molds
Tools for carving and processing: rolling pins, slats, awls (which allow you to carve, shape, decorate etc.). Wooden sticks and/or toothpicks Lathe |
| PREPARATION STEPS | The preparation phase concerns the ability of everyone to identify which are the most suitable materials, the most suitable tools to realize a specific artwork. |
| IMPLEMENTATION STEPS | 1. Modelling: the participant starts realizing the object, starting from basic shapes to more detailed ones. You have two possibilities: create a new and non-existing object or rethink an object that already exists, reinvent it in some way. Here you can play with fantasy: do you want to make a cup? Why don’t you make the shape of a dolphin and make sure that the tail is the handle of the cup itself? And again, other ideas: create a teapot with two sleeves etc. or why not have atypical handles? E.g. shaped like a tree branch or an octopus’ tentacle.
2. Exploring: this phase is very manual and experimental one, so you will need more time. You can build (add clay) but also deconstruct (remove parts of clay) while creating your own object. This aspect of experimentation is fundamental in an active and non-passive learning mode, based on experimentation, manual practice etc. and you are the direct learner in your own learning pathway. 3. Improving: at this stage, you improve the level of complexity of the technique, e.g. by creating a bas relief or a high relief (using the clay). There are also studies of physics, resistance and mechanics that come into play during clay manipulation and ceramic workshops |
| DEBRIEFING/REFLECTION | It is a very manual phase that can be carried out both individually and in groups. Everyone in the group can implement a specific task: for example, there are those who shape, there are those who make the final artwork and those who decorate it, embellish it. Or participants can work together on the same product. In any case, group work will foster dialogue and develop a sense of empathy among the participants |
| TIPS AND HINTS | It is a long and complex phase; the participant must therefore be patient and not get demotivated at the first mistake or accident while modelling (if you fail, just try again!) |
| INNOVATION/ADDED VALUE | Innovation in ceramic workshops can lead to enhanced creativity and increased engagement of the individuals (allowing them to experiment and create new handcrafted products) |
| ACTIVITY TITLE | The pottery decorating process: let’s create your own artwork! |
| AIM | In this workshop, the participant better understands how clay, once fired, and transformed into terracotta (fired clay), can then be finally transformed into the artwork (the ceramic)
There are therefore three main processing steps: clay, terracotta, ceramics before getting the final product. At the end, the ceramic will be decorated, and the aesthetic beauty of the object will be evaluated, as well as its general quality. |
| TRAINEE(S) PROFILE(S) | Participants, Trainers, Assistants |
| LEARNING OBJECTIVES (min. 3) | Improve thematic knowledge and technical skills related to ceramic and pottery techniques
Improve time management skills and cope with frustration Boost personal imagination and fantasy Improve personal aesthetic sense |
| DURATION (in minutes) | 8h (without considering the drying and cooking phases – from clay to fired clay and then ceramics – as they can take several days) |
| MATERIALS NEEDED | Oven
Enamel (different colors including white) Crystalline (high temperature resistant crystalline. You can choose different colors) Brushes for decoration Stencil for decoration Lathe |
| PREPARATION STEPS | Research and selection of materials, including the choice of suitable collars (according to their resistance to high temperatures)
Before decorating and painting your artwork, you can also make some simple sketches, pre-decoration drawing sketches. |
| IMPLEMENTATION STEPS | 1. Take your object (made of clay) and let it dry outdoors for a minimum of 7 days to a maximum of 15 days
2. Once the object is dried, put it in the oven to be cooked (when cooked, it will be no more called “clay” but “fired-clay/terracotta”) – 1st cooking 3. Once cooked, just use white enamel (if you want to decorate your object later with other colors) or just use a colored enamel 4. If you use white enamel, let it rest 24 hours before decorating and painting it 5. It’s time for decoration: you can use colored crystalline, resistant to high temperatures (950°-1000°) 6. Put the object once again in the oven and you will get your final artwork “the ceramic” (we recommend an oven with 220 volts or 380 volts supply) – 2nd cooking |
| DEBRIEFING/REFLECTION | Reflect on the following questions: Did you choose the good crystalline (resistant enough to high temperatures)? Do your colors stick well or peel off? Try to refine more and more your technique and expertise when modelling ceramics. |
| TIPS AND HINTS | Remember that it is possible to evaluate the quality of the final product only after the 2nd cooking |
| SAFETY MEASURES | Be careful when using oven (220 volts or 380 volts supply) |
| INNOVATION/ADDED VALUE | The innovation lies in the fact that each participant will be able to perfectly know the different coloring techniques to be able to critically choose the most suitable crystalline and decoration technique. It is also a phase in which the imagination and the development of the personal aesthetic sense are strongly encouraged. Moreover, when decorating, the participant integrates ceramics with other art forms or disciplines, such as painting. |
| ACTIVITY TITLE | Function vs aesthetic: how to assess the quality |
| AIM | The goal is to evaluate both the aesthetic and the quality (in terms of excellence) of your ceramic. |
| TRAINEE(S) PROFILE(S) | Participants, Trainers, Assistants |
| LEARNING OBJECTIVES (min. 3) | Develop critical thinking
Improve soft skills: communicate, share and debate with others |
| DURATION (in minutes) | 2 hours |
| MATERIALS NEEDED | Flipchart and post it to write down any feedback, comments |
| IMPLEMENTATION STEPS | Evaluate the aesthetic of your artwork: are the colors clearly visible in the final object? Can you see any flaws in your ceramic?
Evaluate the processing: what worked well and what did not work at all during the different steps? How was your experimentation process? Did you like the experience? Evaluate the product compliance: did you meet your initial expectations? Do you like your artwork? How much do you like it? Exchange with your team: exchanging with others is a great opportunity for reflection and learning together. Do they like or dislike your artwork? Generally, when evaluating clay, consider the following factors too: texture (smooth and consistent texture); plasticity (ability to be easily shaped); color (changing accordingly to its composition and firing temperature) |
| DEBRIEFING/REFLECTION | Ceramic workshops allow you to develop a series of skills that go far beyond manual skills and artistic-manual practice. In fact, a series of technical and relational skills, both intrapersonal and interpersonal, are strengthened. In addition, through ceramic workshops, you get knowledge, experience, and sectoral expertise. |
| TIPS AND HINTS | Don’t stress and be shamed: remember that quality also depends on experience and constant practice. You should practice more and for several years before being a high-quality ceramist. |
| INNOVATION/ADDED VALUE | The innovation lies precisely in the fact that the artistic expression of ceramics is used within a non-formal training context and with the aim of developing the knowledge of oneself, one’s creativity, one’s manual skills and thus improving the sense of self-esteem despite any cognitive or physical disabilities. |