Definition Of Handbuilding In Ceramics

Handbuilding is an ancient pottery making technique that involves creating forms without a pottery wheel using the hands fingers and simple tools.

Definition of handbuilding in ceramics.

The most common handbuilding techniques are pinch pottery coil building and slab building. What makes these creations unique is the hand artistry and the type of potter s clay you use. To make a pinch pot one inserts a thumb into a ball of clay and continually pinches the the clay between the thumb and fingers while rotating to thin. Pinchpot coiling and slab techniques.

They can be used individually or combined together to suit your whims. Incise indenting into the wet clay. Greenware any unfired clay body before it is bisque fired and is very fragile. Learn about the spruce crafts editorial process.

Beth peterson is a potter artist and writer with more than 30 years of experience crafting clay and ceramics. You start by kneading the clay into a small lump about the size of your fist. Basic pottery hand building techniques. Making a pinch pot is the simplest way to begin working with clay.

The three basic techniques of hand building are pinch coil and slab construction. Hand building pottery using slabs of clay is an exciting way to create shapes that could never be produced using a potter s wheel or that would be difficult to achieve if you are doing hand construction using coils of clay. Pin share email kidstock getty images. Most often ceramic tools are used to carve engrave incise the clay.

Below are the three most common forms of creating hand built pots. Handbuilding is working with clay by hand using only simple tools not the pottery wheel.