Coil Vessel

This project involves students creating a hand-built ceramic pot using coil construction techniques.

Students will learn ceramic building techniques: wedging, coiling attaching clay with the four s's, as well as, focusing on surface quality.

Coil Pot

  • Uses more than one color clay body
  • Coil construction
  • Minimum of 2 distinct coil techniques
  • Blended either inside or outside smooth

Sculptural

  • Three dimensional form - no more than 8" tall
  • Hollow vessel (no more than 3/4 in thick)
  • Name Stamp (stamped into clay)

Principles of Design

  • Form has added visual interest beyond the vessel 
  • Consider pattern, rhythm, movement, unity, variety 
  • Consider 
  • Glazing choices enhance the form (minimum of two glaze colors)

Technical Videos

Step-by-step Instructions

DESIGN
  • Research coil vessels and identify which vessels you find most appealing
  • Draw 4+ design ideas for your coil vessel using at least 2 coil techniques in each design idea
  • Refine your favorite idea(s) by making subtle changes
BASE
  • Start with either a slab base or use coils to create a base
  • Be sure you join all of the clay you add using the 4 S's - Score, Slip, Stick, Smooth
  • If you want to use a mold, be sure you put a layer of plastic wrap between the mold and your clay
COIL TECHNIQUES
  • One side of your project (inside or outside) will be smooth and all the coils will be joined together. 
  • Add coils using different coiling techniques to add variety, increasing visual interest
  • You must use at least 2 different coiling techniques, but you can use as many as you would like
  • Your vessel should be no bigger than 8 inches in any direction and at least 6 inches in at least one direction
  • You must use at least 2 different clay bodies (white, red, black) in your project
SURFACE FINISH
  • One surface, either the inside or the outside, should be fully joined and smoothed.
  • After smoothing fully, you are allowed to add carved, impressed, or added clay textures to increase visual interest
  • One surface, either the inside or the outside, should remain coiled
FINISHING
  • You are allowed to add additional details of your choosing
  • You must stamp or etch your name into the vessel - choose a location that will not distract from the grandeur of what you have made (the resting base is often a good choice)
GLAZING
  • You must use at least 2 glazes on your vessel
  • You cannot glaze the resting base that touches the kiln shelf - you must remove any glaze that would touch the kiln shelf

Coil Techniques

YOU MUST USE AT LEAST TWO OF THE FOLLOWING BASIC COIL TECHNIQUES
COIL
SNAIL COIL
RAINDROP
ROPE
RAINBOW
FENCE
YOU CAN USE ANY OF THESE ADDITIONAL COIL TECHNIQUE IN ADDITION TO THE TWO REQUIRED COIL TECHNIQUES
PANEL
WEDGED RIBBON
HANGING LOOP
DECORATIVE SLAB
HIDDEN COIL
SCULPTURAL ADDITIONS

Plastic & Leatherhard Clay

All of the building happens during the Plastic stage, when the clay is wet and pliable. You must blend the backside of your coils together when they are still plastic. You can carve textures or add decorative surface details when it becomes leather-hard.

Bisqueware

Once the clay is completely dry, it is fired in the kiln. When it comes back from the kiln, it is hard and permanently changed. It will no longer reconstitute back into malleable clay.

Glazed

Finishing your sculpture with glazes that add color to your ceramic project. Do not add glaze to the bottom that touches the kiln shelf. You'll need at least 2 glazes.

Cloud Vessel

  • Clay Bodies: white (MISSING SECOND CLAY COLOR)
​
  • Coil Techniques: coil, snail

  • Principles of Design: movement (swirls), unity (repeating swirls above and below lines)
 
  • Added details: hidden coil, irregular edge
 
  • Glazes: Spots - turquoise patina exterior, black interior

Corn Vessel

  • Clay Bodies: white, MISSING SECOND COLOR CLAY​

  • Coil Techniques: coil, panel

  • Principles of Design: pattern (vertical lines), unity (repeating vertical and horizontal lines)

  • Added details: hidden coil, feet

  • Glazes:  teal exterior, black interior

Organic Vase

  • Clay Bodies: white, black
​
  • Coil Techniques: coil, MISSING 2ND TECHNIQUE

  • Principles of Design: movement (undulating, twisting form), pattern (repeating black and white stripes)
 
  • Added details: folding wrinkles
 
  • Glazes: Spots - matte clear exterior, magenta interior

Research

Find COIL VESSELS you like from history or from contemporary culture. Notice the patterns and coil techniques you find most appealing.
Coil vessels have been made for thousands of years. Perhaps the oldest, and certainly the most famous ancient coil pottery, comes from the Jomon (pre-Japan) 16,000 years ago (around 14,500 BCE). The Jomon people were a hunter-gatherer people living in what is now Japan prior to the arrival of the Yayoi people. 
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HOLLOW
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2+ CLAY BODIES (white, red, black)
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2+ BASIC COIL TECHNIQUES
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2+ PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN (pattern, movement, etc.)
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2+ ADDED DETAILS (additional coil techniques, lip, feet, handle, etc.)
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SMOOTHED SIDE (either the inside or the outside is smoothed)
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STAYS TOGETHER (coils are joined well and vessel doesn't break apart)
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RESTING BASE (flat bottom, foot, or feet - no glaze there)
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NAME (etched or stamped)
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2 GLAZES (could be like this - interior is one glaze, exterior is a different glaze)
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2 GLAZES (could be like this - black glaze wiped off of raised surfaces, red glaze added on, clear on top of everything)

Coil Vessel Requirements

SCULPTING REQUIREMENTS
  • HOLLOW (a vessel has an empty interior, walls no thicker than 3/4")
  • SIZE (largest dimension should be between 6" and 8")
  • CLAY BODIES (two or more colors of clay)
  • COIL TECHNIQUES (must use 2+ basic coil techniques; can use any number of extra coil techniques)
  • DESIGN (visual interest created by incorporating at least 2 principles of design - i.e. pattern, rhythm, movement, variety, unity, etc.)
  • ADDED DETAILS (2+ things beyond the 2 required coil techniques)
  • SMOOTHED ONE SIDE (either the interior or the exterior is smoothed, joining the coils, increasing structural integrity)
  • STAYS TOGETHER (wedged clay, scored, used slip, smoothed joints, doesn't blow up in the kiln)
  • RESTING BASE (needs to sit on a flat surface - ie. flat bottom, feet, etc.)
  • NAME (etched or stamped using your name block)
GLAZING REQUIREMENTS
  • TWO or more glaze colors
  • NO glaze on standing/resting surface (wherever it touches the kiln shelf)
  • COMPLETELY COVERED except for flute components (windway, fipple, labium) and the bottom of resting surfaces

Vessel Forms
Consider the overall structure of your vessel. Besides being hollow, there are a LOT of ways to structure your form. 

SYMMETRY or ASYMMETRY
Consider whether you want your vessel to be symmetric or asymmetric. Symmetry helps make your design look intentional. Asymmetry adds movement and spontaneity.

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SYMMETRIC
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ASYMMETRIC
ORGANIC or GEOMETRIC
Many vessels are organic, but you can also consider making a geometric vessel.
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GEOMETRIC
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GEOMETRIC-ISH
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ORGANIC
OPENING TYPE
Often the opening at the top of the vessel is a round, circular opening. But, you can choose to make an irregular opening  that isn't round on top. 
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IRREGULAR OPENING
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CASCADING OPENING
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ROUND OPENING
NECK
​Does your vessel have a neck (a part that narrows before getting to the opening)?
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SKINNY NECK
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TWO NECKS
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NO NECK

Sketch Ideas

• 6 IDEAS
    very different ideas with very different silhouettes, different solutions to the visual requirements
• 3 REFINED IDEAS
    choose your favorite from the 6 and create 3 versions of just that one idea 
• DENOTE YOUR FAVORITE PARTS
     write notes or put asterisks next to your favorite parts you are certain you want to include

Form Template

You may want to use a form template to help reach your desired design concept.

Just remember the largest dimension should be between 6" and 8".  

Base

You can start with a slab or coils to start your form. You can freeform or use a mold to start out the base.

Coil Walls

Add coils in 2+ clay colors to create your vessel form - consider the color of your slip as a possible color variation as well.

Coil Techniques

Use a minimum of 2 basic coil techniques to create your form. You can use many other techniques also.

Added Details

Add 2+ Details
​(foot on the base, handles, spout, animal features, sculptural additions, form folds, multiple openings, etc.)

Smoothed Side

Smooth Side 
(one side, either the inside or the outside is completely joined, so the coils are no longer evident - this increases structural integrity)

Surface

Consider smoothing or adding additional texture to the surface

Name Stamp

Name carved or stamped into bottom of vessel

Turn in to Dry

Dry clay is very fragile - don't touch it after you turn it in

Glazing
GLAZE CONSIDERATIONS
Consider glazing and then wiping off the glaze from the surface to highlight the coil recesses.

Consider one color glaze on the outside and one color glaze on the inside.

​If you want the raw clay colors to show in areas, consider using a clear satin on those areas.

Consider matte or satin glaze on outside and gloss on inside or vice versa.

As a reminder, the same glaze will appear differently on different clay bodies.

Consider how the colors you use will create a cohesive project.
UNDERGLAZE
You can use underglaze to make detailed designs on your sculpture surface. Underglazes can be applied underneath a regular glaze or you can test out on top of a glaze.
TEXTURE & GLAZE
You can use impressed, carved or raise lines to create glaze barriers that make controlling glaze designs easier.

​You can also use stencils or stickers to create a glaze barrier to make designs within the glaze easier to manage.
GLAZE
You can use glaze to cover larger areas on your sculpture. Regular glazes can mix, run, or move unpredictably.
MINIMUM OF 2 COLORS
NO GLAZE WHERE IT RESTS ON THE KILN 

Documenting

Take four photos of  your sculpture
  • One photo - front view
  • One photo - 3/4 view
  • One photo - side view
  • One photo - inside vessel
Your photos should have a solid color background without any other objects visible (use the photo cube). Your photos should be cropped so that your object is centered in the frame with an equal amount of negative space around all sides. Your photo should be cropped close so that the object takes up the majority of the frame.

​Fill out the written reflection
Send an email sharing your work with an important adult following the email instructions

Grading Criteria