Emily Schroeder Willis

This course provides an introduction to clay as a material. Participants will be introduced to a wide variety of methods and techniques to build, decorate, and glaze ceramic. Demonstrations in Hand-building, coiling, slap-building and surface application including glaze development and application, slip decoration and firing methods, will give students a proficiency in working with clay and in the ceramic department. Introductions to the rich and complex history of ceramic through readings, lectures and museum visits, will provide students with exposures to the critical discourse of contemporary ceramic. This is primarily a beginner's course but open to all levels of students.

Readings will vary but typically include, Hands in Clay by Charlotte Speight and John Toki. Vitamin C: Clay and Ceramic in Contemporary Art by Clare Lilley. Ten thousand years of pottery by Emmanuel Cooper. 20th Century Ceramics By Edmund de Waal. Live Form: Women, Ceramics, and Community by Jenni Sorkin. The course will look at artist like Magdalene Odundo, George E. Ohr, Shoji Hamada, Roberto Lugo and Nicole Cherubini as well as historic ceramic from the Art Institutes of Chicago?s collection.

Students are expected to complete 3 projects by the end of the semester, Biweekly readings will be part of the course.

This multilevel class is for students with or without experience in wheel throwing. Beginning students are introduced to ideas, materials and techniques for throwing vessels. They acquire the necessary skills to construct and analyze a wide range of vessel forms. Intermediate and advanced students continue their individual development of throwing, glazing and firing kilns. Course discussions focus on issues around the vessel to acquire critical understanding of containers and their functions, as well as using the wheel as a means for constructing sculptural forms.

This course covers the history of clay and ceramics from the earliest known ceramic objects dating back more than 20,000 years up to the present. This history course will take us through each continent and look at its use of ceramics in different cultures at different times throughout history. It will help us understand how clay/ceramics have been connected to other elements of art history and have influenced and been influenced by other mediums. We will map how different pottery traditions traversed the globe to guide us on our journey in discovering the rich history of this material. Focus will be given to the role clay and ceramic plays in our human development as ritualistic, artistic, functional, and mass-produced objects. Additionally, we will look at the use of clay and ceramic objects in contemporary art, design, and craft. Each week will be structured with readings helping understand the historical context coupled with a reading that shows its contemporary influence.

This course examines a variety of cultures (African, North, Central and South American, European, Asian) through the lens of their ceramic histories. Students will develop vessels based on a response to this cultural information. Each projects will be rooted in a discussion and a tour with a different curator at AIC. Topics addressed will be: gender and sexuality, domestic and ritual vessels, architecture and environment, politics and culture and class and industry.

What are the concerns that drive one's creative practice? How does one set the terms for its future development? Sophomore Seminar offers strategies for students to explore, reflect upon, and connect common themes and interests in the development of an emerging creative practice that will serve as the basis of their ongoing studies at SAIC and beyond. Students will examine historical and contemporary influences and contextualize their work in relation to the diverse art-worlds of the 21st Century. Readings, screenings, and field trips will vary each semester. Presentations by visiting artists and guest speakers will provide the opportunity for students to hear unique perspectives on sustaining a creative practice. One-on-one meetings with faculty will provide students with individualized mentorship throughout the semester. During interdisciplinary critiques, students will explore a variety of formats and tools to analyze work and provide peer feedback. The class mid-term project asks students to imagine a plan for their creative life and devise a self-directed course of study for their time at school. The course concludes with an assignment asking students to develop and document a project or body of work demonstrating how the interplay of ideas, technical skills, and formal concerns evolve through iteration, experimentation and revision.

Prerequisite: Must be a sophomore to enroll.

This course is a forum for in-depth critiques, technical, conceptual, and professional practice discussions based on the student's practice and research. The goal of this class is to provide students information and guidance on how they can continue with their art practice after school. Each student enrolled in the course will be assigned a studio space within the department. The course is open to Seniors only who have previously taken 9 credit hours of Ceramics classes, 2000-level and above. Students signing up for this class must also be enrolled in any 3 credit hour Ceramics class, 2000-level and above. Seniors may enroll in this course for two consecutive semesters only. The format for this course is primary individual and group meetings, readings, presentations, field trips, exhibitions, and group critiques. Additionally, we will have a discussion with guest artists speaking about their work and the technicalities of how to continue with their art practice. Students will learn how to document, install, and promote their work. It is expected of the students to self-direct their own project culminating with a final exhibition project as part of their BFA or Gallery 1922. This course requires instructor consent. Fill out the form found at this link, https://tinyurl.com/35b26s78, to submit your portfolio and list of ceramics classes taken in the ceramics department.