A Vessel for Home – Hand-Building Pottery Workshop

Join ceramic artist Violaine Verry for a reflective pottery workshop exploring the idea of home through clay.

Homes are shaped not only by the spaces we inhabit, but by the objects we live with: vessels that hold, protect and gather meaning over time. In this guided hand-building session, participants will create small ceramic vessels inspired by their personal sense of home, whether that is a memory, ritual, place or feeling.

The workshop will focus on form, balance and the expressive qualities of clay, working with simple pinch and coil techniques.

Suitable for complete beginners and those with some experience of clay, the workshop encourages a thoughtful and intuitive approach to making.

At the end of the session, participants will choose one piece to be fired. All pieces will be finished in a gloss white glaze, emphasising light, shadow, the soft earthy tones of the clay and the subtle marks of the hand.

Finished pieces will be ready for collection from Dora House approximately 6 weeks later, and participants will be contacted by email once they are ready.

All materials and tools will be provided.

This workshop is part of the Royal Society of Sculptors' Year of the Home programme, marking 50 years since Dora House, the former home and studio of sculptor Cecil Thomas OBE FRBS, was bequeathed to the Society. Through exhibitions, workshops and events, the programme explores ideas of home, belonging, memory and making.

About Violaine Verry

Originally an art director and graphic designer by trade, East London–based Violaine began working with clay in 2018 as an antidote to more than 20 years of intense screen time.

Her style is inspired by the aesthetics of undecorated, vernacular French pottery as well as the clean lines of contemporary minimalism and architecture. Whilst she is by nature a precise craftsperson, Violaine finds that ceramics encourage her to embrace a more wabi-sabi approach to both her work and her life.