Whirlwind Tour of the Ceramic Surface with Ayla Mullen

2 – Day Workshop, Saturday and Sunday February 16 & 17, 1 – 5 pm each day.

Call or email the Center at 540-745- 2784 or education@floydartcenter.org to register. Here is a link to this course on the website: http://floydartcenter.org/classes/02-february/whirlwind-tour-of-the-ceramic-surface-with-ayla-mullen/

Explore a variety of ceramic surface decoration techniques on a series of tiles in this weekend intensive workshop. Techniques introduced will include inlay, sgraffito, slip transfer, slip trailing, carving and sprigging. We will utilize colored slips and ceramic underglazes, and experiment with which materials work best for each technique. Students will be provided with pre made greenware tiles to experiment on, and will have the opportunity to try out each technique after it is demonstrated. The first session will focus on carving. slip trailing, sprigging and sgraffito, and the second session will introduce inlay, slip transfer techniques, applying surface techniques to 3D forms, and an opportunity for students to integrate techniques and build up a layered surface look. There will not be time for any wet clay work during this workshop, however, students can bring their own greenware forms in leather hard stage to work with on the second day, or work with tiles all weekend.

About the Instructor: “I see pots as vessels for storytelling; they can invoke thoughts, memories, and emotions which enliven a moment or an
entire day. In the studio, I make wheel-thrown and altered functional stoneware pottery, decorated with hand-carved and
inlaid botanical designs and patterns inspired by the landscape of my home in the Blue Ridge Mountains. What is the
formal vocabulary of emotion, and how can I convey the poetry of the natural world within the limits of a vessel? My hope
is that these plant stories, carved in clay, will expand and individualize, taking on a life of their own in peoples’ homes like
the best folktales– through the accrued layers of meaning which use and touch bring to everything familiar.
I have a BA in Ceramics and Environmental Political Theory from Marlboro College. I have continued my education at the
Penland School of Crafts and La Meridiana International School of Ceramics. I completed a 2.5 year apprenticeship with
local potter Ellen Shankin in 2017, and have been developing my own studio practice here in Floyd since then. I have
worked with clay both sculpturally and functionally, but love the processes of wheel throwing and surface decoration best.
You can find my work at the Heartwood Gallery, the New Mountain Mercantile, and on my website, www.aylamullen.com” -Ayla Mullen