April 2023 Newsletter
There are a lot of updates in this month’s newsletter! Make sure to finish scrolling through everything, you won’t want to miss the news we have about our new club kilns, the new Club admin advert, and lots of exciting club events!
General club notes & updates
Studio Clear Out
On Sunday 30 April we will be clearing out the drying shelves, damp cabinet, and poly boxes. Any pieces dated earlier than 19 March will be recycled - so make sure to grab your pieces before then!
Reminders
There are 2 residency opportunities - applications close on Friday 14 April. Here is the link for more info, and the online application.
Please remember that if you are parking out back, there is no turning. Drive in, back out, or vice versa. Why? 3-point turns ruin the gravel surface.
Advert for Club admin role (WPA Administration Support)
Wellington Potters’ Association (WPA) is a busy, dynamic group of creative potters based in Thorndon, Wellington. We have over 500 members who are obsessed with all the ways you can create with clay and we need an enthusiastic, capable organising force to help the Committee manage the club.
This is a new role so you will have the opportunity to influence how the club can operate to benefit the members and promote the art of ceramics. You will be the face of WPA so the ability to interact with a diverse group of people is needed. This contract position is for six months fixed-term and is based primarily at the WPA rooms but some hours can be worked from home as agreed with the Committee.
The rate for this role is $35.00 per hour (+GST if any)
About you:
You will need to be available for about 20 hours a week with some flexibility for more hours when we are holding one of our events (like Ceramicus https://wellingtonpotters.org.nz/ceramicus ).
You will help with various tasks agreed with the Committee such as ensuring the club rooms have supplies, be a point of contact for member queries and questions, manage the membership process for people who want to join, entering accounts into our accounting system, supporting the Committee with the newsletter and social media updates. When needed, you will help organise the classes we run for members and work with Wellington High School’s Community Education Centre to ensure their classes run smoothly. Your weeks will be varied and we need someone who can achieve agreed goals without close supervision. Someone who is familiar with ceramics is preferred but not essential.
You will have a familiarity with Microsoft Office and feel confident in using Xero, our financial system (with support from our Treasurer) and HelloClub, our membership and event platform (with support from its WPA admin). You will need a modern laptop capable of using Microsoft Office / Xero programmes and a cellphone. A detailed list of tasks the Administrator may be asked to do is available from the Committee but we will agree the priority of responsibilities with the successful candidate.
Advertising for this position ends on 21st April 23 at 11.59 pm. Enquiries can be made through the WPA inbox: wellingtonpotters.info@gmail.com. The successful candidate is expected to start no later than 22nd May 2023.
New Kilns
Our kiln planning sub-committee met in March! Thanks for all the hard work team!
Planning for the arrival of our new kilns
As you know, the Club has purchased three new Nabetherm kilns to replace Cob, Brick & FE2. We are expecting the new kilns to arrive in early May. A planning sub-Committee met in March to plan for:
Preparation: reconfiguration of the kiln room, storage for shelving and props etc.
Disposal: members ballot for sale of the old kilns.
Installation: of new kilns, new signage, new firing schedule, new paperwork.
Testing: of new kilns (club firings impacted during this time).
Expectations and training for licenced kiln operators: refresher training to be offered, timing TBC.
What does this mean for you?
There will be an impact on club firings. If possible, fire your pieces before Friday 5 May.
Please be patient as the kiln team tests the new kilns.
A kiln room working bee will be organised, all licenced kiln operators will be invited to contribute to this.
Do you have a new name for a kiln? We will be running a naming competition later this month!
Ballot for purchase of Cob, Brick & FE2
To ensure everyone has an equal opportunity to express interest in purchasing Club kilns, we are running a ballot. The ballot opens Monday 11 April and closes 5pm Monday 18 April.
The Brick (3 phase) - available for immediate removal. Enquiries over $1300 with controller or $500 without controller.
The Cob (Cobcraft) - available for immediate removal. Enquiries over $1300 with controller or $500 without controller.
FE2 - Elecfurn - date available TBC (when new kilns are imminent). Enquiries over $2500
All kilns come with shelves and furniture. Full description of kilns, measurements and photos are all available, please email wellingtonpotters.info@gmail.com for a copy.
Terms are ‘as is where is’. Buyer is responsible for removal.
If you would like to put an entry into the ballot, email wellingtonpotters.info@gmail.com with the kiln(s) you are interested in and your offer.
If kilns are not sold via the members ballot they will be put on Trade Me for sale to the public.
Your Suggestions
We love receiving your suggestions via the suggestion box. The suggestions received in March were:
Replace whiteboard with a smaller one. Yes, we agree that it blocks the view of WPA’s collection and is difficult to clean. We are looking into a half-size board.
Request for beginners throwing classes for members. Thanks for this suggestion, we are in conversation with our tutors and look forward to announcing these classes.
Follow up sessions for ‘bring a friend night’ to glaze pieces. Unfortunately this is not something we will offer. Members night is a one-off 2 hour session.
Keep ‘em coming!
Upcoming & Ongoing Events
School Holiday Support Group
11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20 April
Are you a Teacher burnt out from the term and now looking forward to two weeks of making in the rooms? Or are you a member looking to avoid the school holiday crowd with plans of locking yourself in the WPA Rooms?
Join us in the rooms on Tuesday, Wednesday, and / or Thursday across the school break for some whakawhanaungatanga in the form of a small pottery support group. We will meet daily to discuss projects that we are working on, share ideas and techniques, work collaboratively to solve problems and overcome any roadblocks in your art-making practice. Arrive and leave whenever it suits but we will have a discussion session at 1:00pm each day.
Bring your child - school holiday session | 20 April
Want to share your passion for clay with your children?
The club rooms will be open for 2 hours in the school holidays for you to bring your child/ren along to play with clay. No tutors are provided by WPA though so you are to be responsible for your child's behaviour and safety while in the rooms.
You must provide all materials and fully supervise their activities, cleaning up thoroughly at the end of the session. Finished art may be fired at WPA - for this event only.
Please SIGN UP for this one off event. Max of 10 WPA members (with a maximum of TWO accompanying children, aged 5 years and up).
Upcoming Workshops
We’ve got a packed schedule of upcoming workshops! Click on any of the links below to save your spot in Hello Club. Please remember that every Wednesday for three months Vivian will be using three tables for her workshops.
We’ve also been made aware that some people think that the different colours depict a one day course or a multi course - please refer to the color legend to the left to see what the different colors indicate.
Sgraffito & Mishima with Vivian Rodriguez - 5, 12, 19, 26 April
Ceramic Bead-Jewellery with Vivian Rodriguez - 28 April, 5, 12 May
Sculpting Cats with Sarah Brockman - 2, 9, 16 May
Introduction to Glazing - 24 April
Lithograph & Monoprint with Vivian Rodriguez - 17, 24, 31 May
Mocha Diffusion with Vivian Rodriguez - 2, 9, 16 June
Wax Resist with Vivian Rodriguez - 23, 30 June, 7 July
Making Underglaze, Engobe, Coloured Clay with Vivian Rodriguez - 12, 19, 26 July
Ceramic Crayon Fundraiser for Taradale Pottery Club
10 dollars a piece. All proceeds are going to help @taradalepottery rebuild in the wake of devastating Cyclone Gabrielle. Grab yours at the club (if there are still some left)!
Pick up and cash only through the rooms donation box. First come first served, stock is limited. Crayons are located on the shelves above the sign in sheet (instructions are on a bright green box).
Huge shout out to the glaze club for coming up with this idea and putting in the hard work to make these crayons to help another pottery club in need!
Volunteer of the month - Caren P.
How long have you been a member and what made you join?
In late 2021 my partner got a job in Wellington and I was very sad to leave the beautiful farm we lived on in Lyttelton and the animals I had grown to love, especially Nick the farm dog. I’d really gotten in to pottery in Canterbury and just joined CPA so my first question was… Is there a pottery club in Wellington?
We live in a tiny house in Wellington so having access to such an incredible studio and community of talented potters to learn from and have a laugh with has really made me feel at home. Now I don’t want to be anywhere else!
What kind of ceramics do you most like to make?
I enjoy it all! Sculpting, Hand-building, large coiled pots, miniatures and wheel work too. I particularly enjoy the engineering required for some of the more technical builds I’ve done. But I think at heart I most enjoy sculpting. There’s nothing as exciting for me as bringing a character to life through clay.
What volunteering do you do?
I like to put my hand up for as much volunteering as possible and just generally help out around the place where I can. On days where I start early, I like to begin my day by doing the rounds through the studio, sluice room and kitchen to clean and tidy. This also helps me to get my mind focused.
I’ve joined the induction team recently, and I’ve really enjoyed seeing the new members making the most of the studio.
Then there’s the once a year Anagama! That fire has well and truly been lit in my belly. I really enjoy the change of pace and the physicality involved in all Anagama activities and it adds to the anticipation of it all. It’s a wonderful communal experience with all the elements at play and I feel very lucky to get to experience it.
What do you hope for WPA in the future?
WPA is a really special place, I have had so much input and help with many of my creations and feel very grateful to be surrounded by such generous and talented potters.
So I hope that it continues to thrive as a community of people that support each other, share knowledge and foster innovation and new ideas. I also hope we continue to work together as a collective to keep the space clean and organized. And continue to have loads of fun!
Volunteer of the month nominations - going digital!
Now you can nominate your fellow WPA potters for Volunteer of the month - online! Our volunteer nomination box is still open at the club, but if you prefer to nominate someone digitally here is your chance.
As you all know, the WPA functions solely on the hard work of volunteers. We would like to recognize members for their hard work, this form is where you can nominate a fellow potter who you see helping around the club. It can be something simple as they help take the trash out, or they help put away bats, or they are helping organize an event. Every action is really appreciated, and we would like to recognize them publicly.
Volunteers who are nominated will be reviewed by the committee, and highlighted in an upcoming newsletter in a small feature with information about what kind of volunteer work they do and bits about the pottery they also like to make.
Thanks for your help in recognizing our helpful members!
Upcoming events (outside WPA)
Japanese Pottery Tour With Marian Howell
In September 2023 Marian Howell will be leading a 13 day small group ceramic tour to Japan, including 4 very special days of hands on workshops with leading Japanese potters. Participants will enjoy demonstrations by master artists including Mr Ken Matsuzaki, Ms Natsu Nishiyama and Mr Hodika San in Mashiko and with Mr Kazuya Ishida in Bizen, and will then have time to practice these techniques in the studio.
Japan is always an exciting destination for our specialist ceramic tours and we have included guided visits to Naoshima Art Island and the Shigaraki / Inbe pottery villages plus many other special places such as the Niho and Yahoi Kusama Museums, the Kurashiki Historical Quarter and the Korakuen Garden. Marian has taken previous groups to Mashiko and as well as having a lot of fun and laughs they have all loved the amazing atmosphere of Mashiko – a town that revolves around ceramics, and the fantastic spa hotel that we stay in.
The workshops will cater for all levels of experience and we also invite non-potting partners to join us to enjoy our experience of Japanese culture. She is limiting the workshop numbers to only 14 people to ensure that everyone can obtain full benefit, so she recommends that if anyone is interested to book early as my previous tours have all been fully booked.
Details are outlined in this brochure or they can email or phone Marian direct – prices are in AUD. If you know anyone that you think might be interested, please feel free to forward this email to them.
Marian Howell Ceramics | E: marian.ceramic.tours@gmail.com | M: + 61 408 432 732
Clay Works Potters' Market 2023
The Clay Works annual pottery market is on Fri 12 and Sat 13 May 10am – 4pm both days.
An awesome sale over two days of work by emerging and well-known NZ potters. This is not only a much-anticipated event in Auckland's arts calendar, but also the annual fundraiser for St Columba's community work, the most visible of which is its Friday community lunch which has been provided weekly since June 2017 (currently catering for about 50 people weekly). This is the 9th year of Clay Works and it has a strong following. Ideally timed for Mother's Day the following day, we have prices to fit every budget. Playground open to entertain the littlies. On Saturday, there will be sausages, and Nell's famous relishes, chutneys and jams, for sale. Just over a month to go - please share to your networks to help us promote this event. See you there! https://fb.me/e/2NxkSnWyJ
Photos of the pottery for sale will be posted on Inst @clayworksnz and our new FB page, https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100087265971210
The Kilns at Te Horo Resident Potter Applications Open
Expressions of interest are invited for the inaugural Resident Potter at “The Kilns at Te Horo”. The Kilns are a multi-cultural arts centre being developed as a resource for the local community and visitor attraction on the site of Mirek Smíšek’s former pottery on the Kapiti Coast. Further information can be found at https://www.thekilnsattehoro.co.nz/