PHOTO BY HUNTER SALMON
BY ERIK PILLAR & HUNTER SALMON | FEBRUARY 22, 2016
Edgewood Campus Activities Board (CAB) hosted a successful evening of fun for students with their Ceramics Night gala.
The event was run by CAB members in early February. Students were given access to the tools and materials needed for creating their very own ceramic art works and guided through the process of sculpting their work.
Several ceramics technics were taught to students. Most popular was the wheel method. Wheel sculpting uses a foot pedal to control the speed in which an attached circular table turns. Clay is placed at the center of this table, and the artists use the momentum of the wheel to sculpt their creation. One key to this and other methods of ceramic crafting is using plenty of water. Water helps loosen up the clay and makes for a more malleable product.
Another sculpting technique used was “rolling.” Artists slap their clay down on a table, and roll their lumps into the proper shape and size they desire. As a third method, students could utilize both sculpting techniques for a more fine-tuned project. One student found this technique most useful for the creation of a mug, and the various different sized pieces he needed for the handle and cup.
The student molds from Ceramics Night are to be sent off for firing soon, a process of super heating the clay into the final hard forms they will hold. Additionally, students may be offered the chance to glaze their work, which provides color and texture to their ceramics. All in all, students had a grand time with CAB and clay, and will look forward to this event in the future.
