For a potter, working with clay is more than just getting your hands dirty.
“When I don’t understand the world, I go to the wheel,”
explained Elaine Angelski.
Angelski has been a potter for nearly 25 years, getting her start through the College of Art and Design in New Brunswick. When she returned home she set up a studio in Denare Beach and has been sharing her love of clay in the area ever since.
As the president of the Flin Flon Potters Club, Angelski and the other faithful volunteers who make up the club have been working diligently to expand the group.
“There’s been a rejuvenation
in the club this year,” she said. “We’d love to see even more people come out.”
Through a Flin Flon Neighborhood Revitalization program, the club was able to purchase a new kiln, currently housed at Hapnot Collegiate, where Angelski has been teaching pottery classes.
The purchase of the kiln has been a major step forward for the group. Without it, pieces were being left unfinished or were getting ruined.
Pottery can be created through hand-building or by working with the clay on a spinning surface called a potter’s wheel. Once the pieces are dry they are generally fired twice in a kiln, essentially a special oven than can reach temperatures above 1,000°C. The first firing brings pieces to a bisqueware state, where they can be decorated with glazes to give them colour. A second firing at a very high temperature liquefies the glazes and forms a smooth, glass-like finish. It also hardens the clay so it is durable.
“People would work for hours on a piece, and then the old kiln wouldn’t get to temperature and they’d be ruined,” said Angelski. “This new kiln is computerized and works great.”
The pottery club has space at the Flin Flon Community Hall, with three wheels used to create round items such as mugs and bowls. The space also includes a slab roller that squishes clay out into even, flat pieces used in hand building, and an extruder that forces the clay through a shaped die much
like a giant cookie press.
Angelski said that members of the pottery club pay a yearly membership fee and are then welcome to come in and use the equipment to create their own unique pieces.
Meeting the first Monday of every month, the group learns through hands-on experience and through discussion between members.
“The group gives us the opportunity to pick up things from other people,” she said.
Although she’s been working with clay for a number of years and has taught classes herself, Angelski still considers herself a student who continues to learn.
“Clay teaches me daily,” she said. “You have to stick to it and keep learning. I like to do a little bit of everything, including throwing on the wheel and hand-building. I like to play.”
“There are so many variables in clay,” she said. “No two pieces are the same.”
Flin Flon Pottery Club is hoping to offer classes again this spring. Anyone interested in learning more is invited to contact Angelski at 306-362-2311 or the club treasurer Pat Stevens at 204-687-0143.
