Clay is a wonderful, tactile medium that can be manipulated into nearly any shape and form you can imagine. These 3 basic handbuilding techniques don’t require any special equiment or tools. And if you are using air-dry clay, there’s no kiln necessary to fire the clay. Which makes it perfect for home use for yourself or the kids. Just know that air-dry clay will NOT be food safe or water tight, so anything made will have to be for decorative and sculptural use only.
1. Slab building:
This technique is one of the oldest known clay construction methods and uses flat pieces of clay to be cut and formed into a new object. Begin by rolling out the clay by hand using a rolling pin and two sticks about 1/4″ thick, or by hand tossing, “making a pancake” with the palm of your hand, again about 1/4″ thick.
Cut the flattened clay into the pieces needed for the final construction.
Allow the clay the dry to “leather hard”. This is when the clay is stiff enough to hold it’s shape unassisted, but you can still cut it cleanly and “glue” the pieces together. To attach the parts, use a pin tool (paperclip works) to scratch the surfaces that will be joined together. Add a drop of water to slightly liquify the edges, and press the joints firmly.
Use another tool to smooth the seams of the joined parts until the line has disappeared to give it a finished surface.
2. Pinch Pot:
Pinch pots were the first method for creating vessels and bowls. It starts with a round ball of clay. Open the clay ball with your thumb pushed down the center, about 1/2″ from the bottom.
With your thumb on the inside and all your fingers on the outside for support, use a pinching action to further open the clay into a bowl shape. Rotate the clay slightly in your hand after each “pinch”. Work from the bottom, pressing the clay outward, to the top.
By tapping lightly with a paddle you can smooth out finger dents and get the rim of the bowl level.
3. Coil:
I find this technique most difficult for young children, but when the clay is at it’s most pliable, coils can create some magnificent organic pottery. Begin by rolling a sausage of clay into ropes, 1/4-1/2″ thick, between the palm of your hand and your fingers. The danger is rolling the coil too thin in spots and it will break into pieces rather than a rope of clay.
Stack the coils next to or on top of each other to create your unique shape. Use a pin tool to scratch the surfaces of the coil to be joined together, add a drop of water and press the coils firmly. Be inventive with the design!
The seam where the coils come together can either be smoothed over with a tool and a little water, or if you like the look of the coils leave the joints as a pattern or texture on your piece. In these pictures, the coils were added to a pinch pot to further the complexity of the design on a simple bowl shape.
With these basic techniques in your “tool box”, clay can be as versatile as your imagination. Lets Clay Play!!