Intro to Hand-Building & Sculpting: The Moche Stirrup Vessel

This class is suitable for beginner and intermediate students.

Course Overview Immerse yourself in the world of sculptural hand-building during this 6-week introductory course. We will focus our techniques around the creation of the iconic "stirrup spout" vessels, drawing inspiration from the ancient Moche culture of Peru. Known for their intricate narrative sculptures, striking portrait vessels, and animal forms, the Moche style provides the perfect foundation for learning how to build complex, hollow forms without a potter's wheel.

What You Will Learn

• Foundational Hand-Building: Mastering pinch and coil construction, alongside the technique of sculpting a solid form and carefully hollowing it out to create the main chamber of your vessel.

• The Stirrup Spout: Step-by-step instruction on engineering, supporting, and seamlessly attaching the complex, hollow arch and spout that gives these vessels their name.

• Sculpting & Modeling: Techniques for adding dimensional elements and narrative details to the clay—whether you are sculpting faces, wildlife, or organic textures.

• Joining & Finishing: Proper scoring and slipping to ensure structural integrity through the firing process. We will also cover surface decoration using colored slips to highlight your sculpted details and bring your forms to life.

6-Week Breakdown

• Weeks 1 & 2: Introduction to clay mechanics and planning your design. Utilizing pinch, coil, or solid-sculpt-and-hollow methods to construct the primary body of your vessel.

• Weeks 3 & 4: Sculpting and modeling dimensional details onto the vessel. Constructing, joining, and refining the hollow stirrup spout.

• Week 5: Surface refinement. Smoothing the clay and applying decorative colored slips to enhance your design before the bisque firing.

• Week 6: Final glaze application over your slipped surfaces, firing preparations, and a wrap-up discussion on how to carry these foundational sculpting skills into future projects.

Who Should Attend? This class is perfect for complete beginners looking for a hands-on introduction to clay, as well as experienced wheel-throwers who want to branch out into hand-built, asymmetrical sculptural forms. No prior clay experience is required.

What to Bring

• Clothes and shoes you don’t mind getting dusty or muddy

• An apron and a small hand towel

• A sketchbook with reference images or ideas for your vessel's design

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The class includes 12.5lbs. of clay, studio glazes and firing. Additional clay is available to purchase if needed.

Wear clothes that can get dirty.  Bring an apron and towel.  All basic tools will be provided, but you're welcome to bring your own as well!

Participants must be at least 18 years old.

Students will be given one 2-hour session of open studio access per week, during hours the store is open.

Classes may be cancelled at short notice if the minimum attendance is not achieved. Your money will be refunded should this happen.

Cancelation Policy

You may request to cancel your participation.

-Full Refund: up to 2 weeks before the start date of the class.

-Full Credit: Cancellations within 2 weeks of the class start date get a full credit towards a different date/time of the same class.

-50% Credit: Cancellation requests made within a week of the class date/time will receive 50% credit to be transferred to a different date/time of the same class.  

-Full refunds if you find someone to take your registration.

-When you register for a class, you agree to these terms. In the event that Ceramica must cancel this event, a full refund will be issued for the remaining portion of the class.