Ceramics
Westminster Adult Education Services offers some of London’s best ceramics courses and facilities at our Lisson Grove campus. Courses take place during the daytime, evening and at weekends.
We offer short courses as well as full qualifications at WAES, many of which are suitable for beginners and leisure learners. Techniques taught by WAES’ qualified and professional tutors include wheel-throwing, figurative sculpture, glazing and surface decoration. Learn how to produce exquisite pots, vases, bowls, plates, cups, dishes and even tiles.
Our inspiring and spacious ceramics and pottery workshop facilities include state-of-the-art kilns and equipment are where you can gain practical, hands-on experience in a supportive setting.
You will gain the confidence and independence needed to improve your career prospects and achieve personal and professional goals. Plus, learn professional methods and techniques which are used in the trade.
Our Ceramic Workshop
The ceramics workshop at Lisson Grove is a spacious, open plan environment for up to 16 students to work at once. It features state-of the-art kilns and 16 pottery wheels so that every student has the resources required to gain practical, hands-on experience with the support of our expert tutors and technicians. All material costs are included in the cost of WAES ceramics and pottery courses, including clay, firing and glazes.
Features include:
- 16 pottery wheels
- Hot box for fast drying of work
- Wet back spray booth for spraying glazes and slips
- Multiple worktop/workbench areas
- 3 large kilns
- Mix of glazes
- Smart screen technology for interactive lessons
- Huge range of materials for learners
Browse our courses below or contact us for more information.
Learners will have one wheel each. This course covers all techniques including basic beginner-level skills such as clay preparation, centring, throwing to cylinder, making bowls and turning a foot ring. More advanced learners will be challenged with individual tasks such as making lids, spouts and plates, etc.
On this short course, you will gain the skills and knowledge to begin working with wild clay and minerals to make ceramics. The course covers how to find and identify local material resources, processing techniques, testing and troubleshooting clay bodies, slips and glazes made from wild clay, stone and ash.
The course will be self-directed but tutor led and is designed to build proficiency and confidence in handbuilding and/or wheel throwing. You'll produce quality work through a project-based assignment (optional), using contemporary and historical ceramics for inspiration. Learners will be encouraged to be experimental with surface decoration and glazing.
You will build your proficiency and confidence in handbuilding and/or wheel throwing. You'll produce quality work through a project-based assignment, using contemporary and historical ceramics for inspiration. Learners will be encouraged to be experimental with surface decoration and glazing.
Please note: This course will be tutor supported for half of each session (90 minutes).
You will build your proficiency and confidence in handbuilding and/or wheel throwing. You'll produce quality work through a project-based assignment, using contemporary and historical ceramics for inspiration. Learners will be encouraged to be experimental with surface decoration and glazing.
Please note: This course will be tutor supported for half of each session (90 minutes).
This specialist short course which will focus on making ceramic beads for jewellery.
You will be guided through different techniques for making ceramic beads using specialist clays, coloured stains, and lustres. You will be taught about the different states of clay/ceramics including shrinkage, modelling techniques, marbling and glazing techniques using nichrome wire.
By the end of the three weeks you will have a small but unique collection of beads from which you can go onto to make earrings, necklaces and bracelets.
This course will cover all the basic preparation and construction processes - pinching, coiling, slab building, wheel-throwing, press-moulding, surface decoration and glazing.
Tutor: Tana West
This course introduces learners to the raku firing process which is a low fire process. In raku, pottery is removed from the kiln when red hot.¿It is cooled rapidly, often in combustible material like sawdust or paper.¿Raku can be a very volatile and exciting firing process and produce work with a beautiful lustrous finish or a traditional ‘crackle’ glaze and learners will be able to craft a range of work and select a limited number of items for raku firing on the final session.
Learners will have one wheel each. This course covers all techniques including basic beginner-level skills such as clay preparation, centring, throwing to cylinder, making bowls and turning a foot ring. More advanced learners will be challenged with individual tasks such as making lids, spouts and plates, etc.
This course is specifically for learners who have made work on the wheel intensive courses and wish to complete their work by glazing - NB - LEARNERS MUST HAVE A RANGE OF BISQUED FIRED WORK TO GLAZE
The course is a 'summer school' for current students who wish to continue to craft over the summer break. It will be self-directed but tutor led and is designed to build proficiency and confidence in handbuilding and/or wheel throwing. You'll produce quality work from a personal student created brief, using contemporary and historical ceramics for inspiration.
The course is a 'summer school' for current students who wish to continue to craft over the summer break. It will be self-directed but tutor led and is designed to build proficiency and confidence in handbuilding and/or wheel throwing. You'll produce quality work from a personal student created brief, using contemporary and historical ceramics for inspiration.
This course will cover all the basic preparation and construction processes - pinching, coiling, slab building, press-moulding, wheel throwing, surface decoration and glazing. It will teach you skills necessary to progress onto our UAL Level 2 accredited course in ceramics.
On this short course, you will learn hand building and surface decoration techniques. These include pinching, coiling, slab building, press moulding, slip application, stamping and sprigging.
- Highly qualified and professionally experienced tutors
- Accessible Central London centres with bespoke facilities and great transport connections
- A wide range of in-person, online, distance learning and community-based courses
- Unique work experience opportunities through partnerships
- Guest speakers offer introductions to career pathways in a variety of sectors
- Excellent progression to employment, apprenticeships or further learning including university
