Creating Landscapes with Clay

From left to right: Roseann James, Desiree Conwell, Debbie Olguin, Pauline Graham, Kathy Labon, and Beth Meyers

Doris Betuel

Magnificent landscapes—they are all around us! Take photos, paint them on canvases, create beautiful fused glass pieces, and even carve them out of wood. Now, add sculpting our beautiful Southwest scenery out of clay. We recently had a class in doing just that. The class was offered to members of the Robson Ranch Ceramics and Pottery Club and taught by Dee Lee.

During a four-hour class, students were able to create landscapes from near and far. Working on photos for inspiration, students carved their clay slabs and added pieces of clay to create scenery of all types and places. After the carving was done, colored slip and underglazes were added to provide depth and intensity to each project. Slip is what we call liquid clay, and it can be colored and brushed on slightly dry clay to develop shadows and accents to projects. Underglazes are essentially clay paint and can be applied on projects before they are fired to create different effects.

Beautiful to behold and unique to each member, these clay landscapes are truly a tribute to the imagination and creativity of each member. Check out some of the finished projects!

If you would like to start your journey into pottery, please email Mary Ann Bechtel at [email protected] for more information or to sign up for a future orientation class.