The Vitality of Clay
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The Vitality of Clay


A Summer School for Ceramic Artists and Earth Material Practitioners

17-18 January 2026

Start 2026 with two days designed to shift your practice, not by adding new techniques, but by decentering from our human-centered relationship with clay itself.

Walk through Yarra Bend Park with a geologist who speaks ceramics. Pie Bolton will reveal the invisible world beneath your feet, sediments, deep time, and earth's continuous flow, translating geology into the kind of material literacy that changes how you see every decision in your studio.

Tell the stories of your clays. Pattie Beerens facilitates clay storytelling through embodied practice, connecting to clays not as homogenous material but as distinct, gathered from place, each carrying meaning. Working together, you'll explore how the lines of these stories can be interwoven as a community.

Make glazes and clay bodies from materials already in our landscape. Claire Ellis shares her methodology for working with so-called “waste” materials from bluestone cutting sludge to crushed bisqueware and sink sludge from Slow Clay and even wood ash from a local restaurant, revealing the creative possibilities in materials we already have.

Three acclaimed practitioners. Three distinct pathways into what regenerative ceramic practice actually looks like for you. Two intensive days of demonstrations, deep conversations, and hands-on exploration in a small group setting.


Details
8 hours x 2 Days

You will learn

  • Inspriration and a window into regenerative ceramics practice

You will get

  • New knowledge into ceramics as regenerative practice

Appropriate for

Serious ceramics students who wish to be inspired


Preparation

What to bring

  • Sketchbook, camera/phone

What to wear

Sturdy foot ware for the Geology walk!


Your Teacher

Pie Bolton — Geologist, Ceramic Artist, Klytie Pate Award Winner Bridges geology and ceramics, offering insights into material agency, deep time, and the preciousness of earth that inform more thoughtful, regenerative making.

Pattie Beerens — Multi-Award Winning Artist Pioneered 'clay weaving' and embodied practices that move from control to collaboration, asking what it means to work with materials as active participants rather than inert substances.

Claire Ellis — Innovation Award Winner Chef-trained approach to material sourcing and experimentation, turning constraints into creative possibilities and waste into wonder.

All three are current or past members of Clay Matters, committed to exploring what environmentally responsible practice looks like in contemporary ceramics.

Organized by

Slow Clay Centre

Slow Clay Centre

1171 reviews

Escape to Slow Clay Centre and learn the art, craft and design of expression in clay. 

Slow Clay Centre is one of the most highly regarded specialist ceramics/pottery schools in Australia. We aim to give you THE BEST experience learning our ancient craft and our longevity stands for this with thousands of students who have learnt from us! 

We welcome all levels from kids and beginners adults taster classes to advanced professional development and mentoring. 

Our weekly students receive priority to re-enrol each term and take advantage of our generous loyalty program providing free studio access in between classes (conditions apply). In this way we can help you to develop your skills to a high level like no other school. 

Our unique "Slow Clay" (TM) method for teaching the pottery wheel, established by Slow Clay Centre director and ceramic artist Jane Sawyer, has been taught for more than thirty years. Based on the Japanese techniques Jane studied training as a production thrower in Japan in combination with western techniques, the "Slow Clay" method offers a synthesis of East and West. It provides ergonomic best-practice and a solid foundation for personal expression and confidence with clay. 

All our courses offer a foundation of skill-based learning within a rich framework of contemporary art and design enquiry so you can follow your interests. Our ultimate aim is to help you achieve whatever your personal goals are with clay!

Based in a beautiful inner-city studio in Collingwood, Melbourne, Australia, the Slow Clay team consists of leading professional ceramic artists and experienced teachers who offer high-level teaching in a broad variety of topics - see our web site for teacher profiles. Together with guest professional artists who host workshops and forums, we are a vibrant community and wish to share our passion for clay with everyone who is keen, no matter what level.


Terms

Cancellations & Refunds

If the organiser cancels the class:

You are entitled to a full refund.

If you can't attend the class:

You’re welcome to send someone in your place.

OR

  • A transfer can be requested 14 days before the class starts. An admin fee of AU$25.00 applies.
  • A credit note can be requested 14 days before the class starts. An admin fee of AU$25.00 applies.

No changes will be allowed after these times.

We recommend the refund upgrade option upon checkout in case you’re not able to attend the class. Learn more about refund upgrade option.

Terms & Conditions

Welcome to Slow Clay Centre!

We aim to give you the best experience learning ceramics! Each course may have slightly different terms but these are our generic ones: please read carefully:  

General: 

These apply to all Slow Clay Centre courses, workshops and events:

  1. Deposit or full payment (depending on the course/workshop/event) must be made at the time of booking
  2. Please choose carefully. Due to our limited class sizes once you've booked and paid either the deposit or the full fee we will only refund what you have paid if the class is cancelled by us. If you are unable to attend you may transfer your booking to a friend for no charge or, provided we can fill your place, we can sometimes transfer you to another class or hold your payment in credit for up to 24 months for a future course
  3. There is a $25 fee for transfer or credit note and you must pay any fee difference if the new course price is higher 
  4. Please note: All students will receive a reminder between three weeks and/or one week (depending on the course)  before the start date with a link to pay any remaining balance with your credit card. Students who paid the deposit online will have the balance automatically deducted. Others will need to click on the link provided or ring our office on 99437844.
  5. Due to our limited class sizes, if your balance is not received three weeks before the start date and you have not made arrangements with us, we reserve the right to find a replacement student and your deposit will be  forfeited


Weekly classes: These additional conditions apply to all Slow Clay Centre weekly classes.

  1. Please note that making ceramics, particularly on the pottery wheel,  can be a physically demanding activity. If you have any pre-existing illnesses and/or chronic injuries to your back, shoulders, hips, neck, wrists or elbows we strongly advise you to seek a medical opinion before enrolling as some activities might exacerbate past injuries and we take no responsibility if this occurs. 
  2. We ask that you fully disclose any prior and/or ongoing illnesses or injuries that could affect you before you enrol AND inform your teacher in person during the first class. 
  3. Your enrolment is conditional on your acceptance that Slow Clay Centre and/or the company's employees, whether casual, contract, or permanently employed, are indemnified against any exacerbation of any past or any new injuries that may arise as a result of your activites.
  4. All work made during classes is to be used for personal, non-commercial purposes. This is individually negotiable for advanced students or for studio exhibitions but we ask students to accept that the emphasis of our classes is strictly on education not studio production. If you sell your work made using our materials you must acknowledge Slow Clay Centre and also ensure you have your own product liability insurance
  5. Teaching fees are fully inclusive of materials but students will incur a single firing fee based on the current cost (advised in your class) 
  6. Please note: we encourage judicious selection of your work to fire. Firing is always optional and all clay is recycled until the first firing. After that you must pay the firing fee for everything that gets fired. If it cracks, glaze drips, or you just don't like it, you are still required to pay the firing fee unless the fault is caused by us.
  7. Collection of fired pieces: Please understand that our storage capacity is extremely limited. Students will be notified via email when work is ready to be collected. Work will only be retained for two weeks following notification. 


Regarding Kids Clay Club: 

  1. It is your responsibility to clearly report in writing on the enrolment form, any illness, allergies or disability that may affect your child's involvement in the Clay Club activities.
  2. Please sign-in and sign-out your children
  3. Please respect our teachers and be prompt to arrive and to collect your children (within 5 minutes of class time)
  4. Children are expected to be mature enough to follow instructions, to work in a group together, to respect everyone's needs and differences and to be polite to everyone.

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