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  • Généralités

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  • The importance of preparing clay, (wedging)

    • Preparation:

      1. Wedging the Clay: Begin with the process of wedging your clay. This involves kneading the clay to achieve a uniform texture throughout, eliminating any air pockets. Properly wedged clay is crucial for a smooth centring and throwing process. For a more detailed guide on wedging, consider looking for additional resources or videos that cover the topic in-depth.

      2. Shaping the Clay: Shape your well-wedged clay into lumps suitable for throwing. Aim for regular shapes with a rounded base to prevent air from getting trapped underneath when placed on the wheel. For beginners, a simple ball shape is recommended. Avoid using irregularly shaped lumps as they make the centring process more challenging.

      Centering Process:

      1. Positioning the Clay: Carefully place your shaped lump of clay on the centre of the wheel. If your clay has a rounded base, ensure it makes good contact with the wheel to avoid air pockets.

      2. Starting the Wheel: Turn on the wheel at a speed comfortable for you. It's important to find a balance; too fast might make control difficult, while too slow might not provide enough momentum for effective centring.

      3. Applying Pressure: With your hands firmly positioned, apply even pressure to the clay. The goal is to force the clay into the centre of the wheel. Use your body weight to your advantage, leaning into the clay to help with the centring.

      4. Adjusting the Clay: As the wheel spins, feel for any wobbles or unevenness in the clay. Use your hands to gently guide the clay into a more centred and stable position. This may require alternating pressure between the sides and the top of the clay lump.

      5. Checking for Center: Periodically, reduce the pressure and observe the clay's rotation. A well-centred lump of clay will spin smoothly without any wobbling. If you notice any irregular motion, reapply the pressure and continue to adjust until the clay centres properly.

      6. Finalizing the Center: Once the clay feels centred, slowly ease off the pressure while keeping your hands in contact with the clay for a moment longer. This ensures the clay remains in place and doesn't become off-centre as you remove your hands.


  • How to sit at the wheel properly

    • Sitting correctly at the pottery wheel is crucial for comfort, control, and efficiency when working with clay. 


      1. Positioning Yourself Close to the Wheel: Sit close enough to the wheel so that you're not reaching out too far to access the clay. Being too distant from the wheel can reduce your control and lead to discomfort over time.

      2. Leg Placement: Scoot your chair or stool forward until your legs are comfortably around the tray or the metal wheel head. This position helps in stabilizing your body and gives you better control over the clay.

      3. Aligning Your Body: Lean slightly forward so that your head is positioned directly over the lump of clay on the wheel. This alignment helps in providing a top-down view and more direct control over the centring and shaping of the clay.

      4. Arm Positioning for Stability: Take your left arm (or your right arm if you are left-handed) and firmly tuck your elbow into your torso. This bracing technique helps in stabilizing your arm, making it easier to apply consistent pressure to the clay. Lean your upper body weight slightly forward onto the braced arm. This not only stabilizes your arm further but also helps in applying controlled pressure onto the clay without exerting excessive force.

      5. Avoid Floating Elbows: Ensure that your elbows are not floating in the air while you're trying to centre or shape the clay. Elbows that aren't braced against your body can lead to shaky and inconsistent movements, making it difficult to maintain control over the clay. Tuck both elbows into your waist, using your body as a stabilizing anchor. This position allows you to leverage your upper body weight more effectively, providing a steady and controlled force to the clay.


      Tips:

      • Ensure your chair or stool is at a height that allows your thighs to be parallel to the floor or slightly angled downward towards your knees, promoting better posture.
      • Take breaks as needed to stretch and relieve any tension in your back or shoulders. Maintaining a single position for too long can lead to discomfort or strain.

  • Slamming down the clay

    • Slamming clay onto the wheel head properly is a crucial step in the pottery-throwing process. It ensures the clay sticks well to the wheel, reducing issues during centring and shaping. 

      1. Prepare the Clay: Start with a well-wedged, even, and round shape of clay. This prevents air from getting trapped beneath the clay when slammed down. An even shape also aids in initial centring, reducing wobble when the wheel spins.

      2. Positioning the Clay: Place the clay roughly in the centre of the wheel head. If you're using a lump with an irregular shape, it will spin and wobble, making the centring process more challenging. Aim to use clay shaped into spheres or with a rounded base and a conical top for better stability.

      3. Slamming Down the Clay: Aim to throw the clay as accurately as possible into the middle of the wheel head. Slam it down firmly to ensure it adheres well to the wheel head. The force helps the clay to stick and reduces the chance of it coming loose during the throwing process.

      4. Using Wheel Head Rings for Alignment: Many wheel heads have concentric rings that can be used as guides to centre the clay. After slamming the clay down, spin the wheel to observe the gap between the clay and the rings. Adjust the clay's position by pushing it away from where it's closest to the ring until the gap is even all around. This step doesn't have to be perfect but getting it as centered as possible now will make the next steps easier.

      5. Patting the Clay: Once the clay is as centred as possible, you can pat it into shape to further refine its position before starting the centring process with water.

      Key Points:

      • Starting with a well-prepared, round shape of clay is essential for a successful throw.
      • Accurate placement and firm slamming are crucial for ensuring the clay sticks to the wheel head.
      • Using the wheel head's rings can aid in achieving an initial rough centre, making the process smoother.
      • Keep the wheel head and clay dry at the start to avoid slipping. If necessary, clean and dry both before slamming the clay down again.
      • For porous surfaces, a slightly dampened surface can aid in adherence.

  • How to Position Left Arm and Apply Upper Body Weight onto the Clay

    • Proper positioning of your left arm and the application of your upper body weight are essential techniques in the pottery throwing process. These steps help in stabilizing and centring the clay on the wheel. 

      1. Arm Placement: Tuck your left arm into your waist to create a stable base. This positioning helps in minimizing unnecessary movement and provides a firm foundation for applying pressure. Rest your forearm on the plastic wheel tray, aligning it with the lump of clay. This helps in maintaining a steady and controlled pressure on the clay.

      2. Hand Positioning: Position your forearm so that it lines up with the lump of clay. The goal is to have the ball of your thumb and the base of your palm pushing in a straight line that intersects the middle of the lump of clay. Ensure that your hand is not too far to the left or right but perfectly aligned for effective pressure application.

      3. Applying Pressure: Lean your upper body weight forward slightly onto your braced left arm. This helps in transferring your weight effectively onto the clay, providing the necessary force for centring and shaping without exerting too much effort from your hand alone.

      4. Using Water or Slip: Keep the clay lubricated throughout the process with water or slip to prevent your hands from sticking to the clay. If you feel any friction, it's time to add more water, either with a cupped hand or with a sponge that you can dip into the water and squeeze out onto the clay.

      5. Sealing the Base of the Clay: As you push in with your left palm, use your little finger to firmly squeeze around the base of the clay. This creates a seal against the metal wheel head, ensuring that the clay is securely attached and preventing it from spreading outward.

      6. Introducing Vertical Pressure: With your left arm braced and applying horizontal pressure, introduce your right hand to apply some vertical pressure. Use the side of your right hand to push down directly over the middle of the clay, balancing the pressure applied by your left arm. Shape the clay into a disc by applying even pressure from both the side (with your left hand) and the top (with your right hand). Avoid applying too much pressure from one direction to prevent the clay from becoming too conical or flattened.

      7. Adjusting Techniques as Needed: Remember that every potter may have slightly different hand positions due to the variations in hand sizes and shapes. It's important to find a technique that feels comfortable and effective for you, even if it means slightly adjusting the standard positions.


  • Achieving the Ideal Centered Shape

    • Creating the right centred shape on the pottery wheel is vital for a successful throwing session. 

      1. Ideal Centered Shape: Aim for a shape with a flat top and only slightly curved sides that meet the wheel head flush. This form provides a stable base for further shaping and ensures the centre of gravity is optimal for opening the clay.

      2. Avoiding Indentations and Bulges: Be cautious not to create a deep indentation at the bottom of the clay. A lower centre of gravity can make the opening process more challenging. Similarly, avoid forming a bulge in the middle of the clay. This would require additional effort to flatten and could complicate the process of forming the base of your pot.

      3. Dealing with Gritty Clay: If you're working with groggy or coarse clay and the surface starts to feel like sandpaper, it's advisable to scrape away the outermost layer. This will make the centring process smoother and prevent the gritty texture from affecting your work. A gritty texture can also indicate that you're spending too much time centring. While it's important not to rush, excessively long centring times can be counterproductive.

      4. Centering Time: Efficient centering is key. Ideally, you should aim to complete the centring process in about 10 to 40 seconds. However, this can vary depending on the size of the clay lump, with larger lumps taking more time. Practice will help you become faster and more efficient at centring without compromising the quality of your centred shape.


  • Speed of the Wheel and Hand Positioning

    • Understanding the wheel's speed and proper hand positioning is essential for efficient and safe pottery centring. 

      Speed of the Wheel:

      1. Optimal Speed: The wheel should be spun at a fast pace, but not at its maximum speed. A very high speed is seldom necessary and can be counterproductive. A quick rotation ensures that any adjustments you make with your hands affect the entire piece of clay almost instantly. The goal is for the wheel to rotate several times every second.

      2. Avoid Slow Speeds: Centering at a slow pace can prolong the process unnecessarily, especially when producing multiple items like bowls or mugs. If the wheel spins too slowly, you'll have to maintain pressure or positioning longer to ensure the adjustments are applied evenly across the clay, which can be inefficient.

      Hand Positioning:

      1. Avoiding Skin Irritation: Beginners often press the palm or side of their hand too firmly against the metal wheel head, which can wear away the skin and cause discomfort. Avoid pushing your fingers or any part of your hand directly down onto the metal. If you notice metal residue on your skin or feel excessive friction, adjust your hand positioning.

      2. Maintaining a Slip Barrier: Ideally, maintain a thin layer of slip (watery clay) between your hand and the wheel to reduce friction. This layer naturally forms as you centre the clay. If you hear a grinding noise or feel friction, slightly lift your hand, so it's just above the spinning metal, maintaining the slip barrier.

      Pinching Fingers and Stability:

      1. Focusing on Finger Tips: Rather than watching the clay, observe your fingertips. If the clay is off-centre, your fingertips will wobble along with it. To correct any wobble, squeeze your fingertips inward against the clay, focusing on keeping them steady and unwavering.

      2. Ensuring Centered Clay: If your fingertips are stable and not wobbling, the clay beneath them is likely well-centred. For re-centring, lean the palm and ball of your thumb of your left hand into the clay, pushing forwards, then stabilize any wobbling digits until they're completely still. Follow this by compressing down with your right hand from the top.


  • Coning the clay

    • Coning clay on the pottery wheel is a technique used to align the clay particles, making the clay more pliable and easier to shape. 

      1. Understanding Coning: Coning involves shaping the clay into a cone by moving it up and down between your palms. This process is akin to wedging the clay but is done on the wheel. The purpose of coning is to align the clay particles (platelets), making the clay more uniform and easier to work with.

      2. The Process: Start with centred clay on the wheel. Begin coning by placing your hands around the clay and gently squeezing as you move your hands upward, forming a cone shape. To cone the clay down, apply slight pressure from the top of the cone, leaning it slightly forward as you push down. This forward and downward motion helps maintain control of the clay, preventing it from becoming too wide at the base.

      3. Coning Technique: When coning up, ensure the clay moves smoothly between your hands, forming a neat cone shape. As you cone down, tilt the clay slightly towards you, applying pressure in a forward and downward direction. This encourages the clay to bulge slightly at the base, keeping it manageable.

      4. Avoiding Common Mistakes: If you push the clay directly down without a forward motion, a bulge may form in your hands, making the clay difficult to control. Always lean the clay slightly forward as you apply downward pressure.

      5. The Benefits of Coning: Coning helps to smooth out any irregularities within the clay, even if it has been thoroughly wedged. After several coning cycles, the clay should feel smoother and be easier to open and shape. While not necessary for every piece, coning is particularly beneficial when working with larger amounts of clay or more complex shapes.

      6. Practice and Application: Coning is a skill worth practising, especially for pieces that require a high degree of uniformity and smoothness. It's particularly useful for larger projects or more intricate designs.


  • Removing Hands from the Clay

    • Properly removing your hands from the clay is a subtle yet crucial skill in pottery, essential for maintaining the centred state of the clay. 

      1. Contact During Motion: Always ensure the clay is spinning when you make contact or remove your hands. Just like turning wood on a lathe, the material should be in motion before you touch it or stop touching it. This prevents any unintended distortions or imprints.

      2. Gentle Release: When you're ready to remove your hands, do so very gently and gradually. Abrupt movements can cause slight wobbles or distortions in the clay, potentially offsetting even perfectly centred clay.

      3. Consistent Motion: Maintain a smooth and steady motion when engaging with the clay, akin to a fluid dance where every movement is deliberate and controlled to avoid jarring transitions.

      4. Practice Subtle Detachment: The goal is to detach your hands from the clay as if there was never any connection. With enough practice, this will become a seamless part of your process, appearing as though you’re simply lifting your hands away without effect.