C. A. Sanger on sun 16 jan 00
I urge instructors not to give up on beginners who struggle. Keep
trying as long as they are willing to. I was one of those ham-handed
dullards! I am not exaggerating when I say it took me 6 weeks to pull a
lousy 3 inch cylinder. Another 2 weeks to get to 6 inches. Some days I
actually had as many as 6 people huddled around me at the wheel trying
to help me "get it up." Gives a new meaning to the term "mud
wrestling!" My teacher admits now he really thought I was a lost cause,
but figured a student who came in and tried for 5 hours a day 5 days a
week, driving 3 hours round trip, was worth teaching. I wasn't any
better at hand-building at first, either.
I think working clay is unique to most people. Few of our previous
life experiences provide us with the body skills needed. Learning to
throw is like a baby learning to walk. Watching someone else throw is
unintelligible till you know the "language."
In my case, it turned out I wasn't getting my fingers placed
correctly, mainly because I couldn't see the teacher's fingers inside
the pot. I was throwing with my fingers exactly opposite each other,
pinching the wall. Now I know you need to stagger them to move that
little bulge of clay up. I also had trouble pulling straight up,
instead pulling outward and enlarging instead of raising.
I devised my own patterning exercise to teach my brain the moves I
needed. I took an old mix master from the kitchen, the kind with a
rotating bowl. The bowl was clear glass. I coated it inside and out
with cooking oil, then turned it on. I pretended to pull a cylinder
over and over. I did this constantly for a weekend. On the following
Monday in class, I successfully pulled a short cylinder. The entire
class applauded and cheered! I will never be capable of production
potting, but I throw well enough to do the things I want. And my
teacher considers me one of his success stories.
Adapting previous body knowledge is the crux. For example, some
types of slab work resembles working with fabric. Beginners who sew
find electric wheels easier to use than kickwheels cause their brain
already knows that motion. Cutting clay slabs into specific shapes is
like laying out patterns on fabric.
So keep trying to teach the difficult learners as long as they keep
trying. Look for real-life examples of the body skills you need them to
use, and design some patterning exercises for those they lack.
Remember, it's easier to teach the quick, but you'll feel more sense of
accomplishment with the challenging students!
C. A. Sanger
ShardRock Clay Studio
Kansas, USA
www.ikansas.com/~chuck/
pam pulley on mon 17 jan 00
I'd like to thank all those that repsonded to this query about critiquing.
Many of the items I do, so maybe I'm not so far off the mark. But I still
feel there's room for improvement and will add your ideas to what I already
do.
Someone on the list wanted to know my educational backround before
repsonding. I thought I was posting to the list but never saw it and now
believe it was a private email. Since I haven't heard back I was checking
to see if my response got lost somewhere in cyberspace.
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Cindy Strnad on mon 17 jan 00
C.A.,
You said what I've been wanting to say, only so much better. Clay came
naturally to me, but I can identify with you as I had the same experience
with playing guitar. You say you'll never be a production potter, but you
throw well enough to make the things you want. It took me years to learn
what more gifted musicians seem to know instinctively, yet I can play well
enough that people enjoy listening, and I enjoy making music. I'll never be
as good as my more talented friends, but I enjoy my music all the same.
I think the key is desire. While it's true that desire and hard work and
determination alone will probably not make one a master, it will enable just
about anyone to do a passable job. I firmly believe that anyone **who wants
to badly enough** can make beautiful pottery, beautiful music, or whatever
the object of desire may be. On the other hand, if the student lacks desire,
not even innate skill will make a potter of him.
Cindy Strnad
Earthen Vessels Pottery
Custer, SD
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