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Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Fall Semester 2026

Beginning Ceramics (Face-to-Face)

ART 1610-01

Course: ART 1610-01
Credits: 3
Term: Fall Semester 2026
Department: Filmmaking, Art, & Design
CRN: 30317

Course Description

This class is hands-on experience working with clay. It is a beginning course and will be taught with the expectation that this is a first-time experience with ceramics. We will explore creative solutions and aesthetic ways of working using clay as an artistic medium in a series of studio projects designed to acquaint the student with basic hand-building, throwing, trimming, and glazing techniques. Particular attention is paid to the essential skills of creative problem-solving and expression, creative thinking, and spatial reasoning. Each project will have a conceptual component, and some individual research will be required. We will explore both functional and sculptural form.

Required Texts

Textbook: Functional Pottery, by Robin Hopper (optional)

Learning Outcomes

Student Learning Outcomes: Students will build their skills in effective Critical Thinking and Creative Thinking. 

Course Requirements

REQUIRED TOOL AND MATERIALS:
Textbook: Functional Pottery, by Robin Hopper (optional)
 
Sketch book and drawing implement. Always bring these to class.
 
Clay. Clay is available in the ceramic studio, but you must acquire a receipt from the cashier’s office in the student center and bring it back to the instructor to receive clay. If you need clay but do not have the funds temporarily, the instructor can issue an I.O.U. for clay, but the I.O.U must be paid for before the end of the semester or your grade will be dropped by 10%.  The prices are listed on the board in the studio. You may expect to use at minimum two bags of clay. Your course fees cover the cost of glaze, slips, firing, some studio tools and upkeep.
 
Basic ceramic tool kit found at the SUU Bookstore or online. 
 
Items not available in the basic kit that you will need include:
 
One or two watercolor or Chinese calligraphy paint brushes
 
A serrated Rib only available online and the SUU Bookstore. (This is mandatory for the hand-building projects. If you do not buy one, it will affect your grade). 
 
A small plastic container with a lid, such as a recycled yogurt or ice cream container.
A large container for throwing (such as a one-gallon bucket).
 
A small towel.
 
An apron (if you do not want to get clay on your clothes)
 
Recommended supplementary tools: Surform tool, small carving tools. Online sources to order tools are: Mudtools, Tacoma Clay Art Center, Georgie’s Ceramic Supply. There are many.

Course Outline

List Of Projects:
 
Project 1: Beginning Throwing (5% of overall grade)
For the first throwing project you are to throw six cylinders using one pound of clay. The cylinder must be taller than they are wide and even from top to bottom. This Project is only 5% of your overall grade and designed as such to give you time to explore the technique and not have to worry about it affecting your grade very much. You will have to throw more than just six cylinders, especially if this is your first time on a Potter's Wheel. We will not fire these pieces, so keep your cylinders wet so you can re-use the clay. 
 
Project 2: Throwing Mugs (20% of overall grade)
Project 2 is to make 5 mugs with handles. Mugs are a great extension of Project 1- cylinders. I recommend using one pound of clay for your mug. This project will be assessed on how even your mugs are thrown, how you addressed the lip of the mug, how well it was trimmed and the negative space of your handle. 
 
Project 3: Throwing Bowls (20% of overall grade)
Project 3 is to complete 6 bowls with a trimmed foot using one and a half pounds of clay but no more than 2 pounds of clay. This means you will need to throw more than 6 bowls to achieve the best six for your grade. Your bowls will be assessed on the inside curve of your bowl, how even it is trimmed and how you addressed the foot and the rim. 
 
Project 4: Pinching Cups (10% of the overall grade)
Pinching is one of the most basic methods of working with clay. This is a project to help get you acquainted with hand building. You are to pinch out 4 cup forms using one pound of clay (or more if you desire). Each cup must represent one of the four seasons. You will also have to use Terra Sigillata and underglaze on one or more of your pieces. These pieces will also be used as experiments for glaze testing. 
 
For this project we are going to add meaning and metaphor to the process. An art object should inform the viewer a little something about who made the piece. Thus, you must try to avoid cliché and overused symbols. For example, no suns for summer, no snowflakes for winter, no leaves for fall and no flowers for spring. You may also not use anything that someone else has created, such as, Snoopy comics, anything Disney or Swifty, no commercial logos and no television shows or movies. It must demonstrate your own ideas.
 
Project 5: Historical Coil Building (20% of overall grade)
Project 3 is an exploration of Ceramic History focused on learning the coil method. For this Project you must research a historic ceramic vessel and print it out on an 8.5 x 11-inch piece of printing paper. You will next make a template of your vessel to help you with re-creating it at a minimum height of 12 inches. It is recommended you choose 3 different pieces, and I will help you decide which one to re-create. Your piece must also include some form of decoration - either carving or underglaze or both. Your decoration must somehow reference contemporary times. You may choose to re-work the decoration on your researched piece as a guide. I will work with each of you individually to conceptualize specific resolutions to this problem. Your grade will be assessed on how well your piece follows the form of your researched vessel and the originality of the design you paint and/or carve on the outside.
The historic piece you choose for this project will be the basis for your historic research project that you can complete for extra credit.
The list below will give you some good starting points but is not a comprehensive list of all ceramic history.
 
Central and South American Pre-Columbian Ceramics
Jomon or Haniwa ceramics from Japan
Ancient Iranian Ceramics
Historical ceramics from Korea
Chinese ceramics from the Neolithic, Han, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties
Yixing ceramics from China
Historical Kabyle ceramics from Algeria
Greek Minoan and Mycenaean Pottery
French Sevres Porcelain
 
Project 6: Emotional Box (15% of overall grade)
For this project you will make a box with a lid using the slab forming technique. We will primarily work with leather-hard slabs. Your finished box must incorporate some form of decoration – such as sgraffito or underglaze painting. Your box must be made to contain a human emotion. This means the shape of the box might reflect that emotion and the decoration as well. Be creative!! Avoid cliché symbols (see the list presented in Project 4).  Your box must have a lid flange or be cut so that the lid stays in place.
 
Project 7: Terminology Quiz (10% of overall grade)
(see the list of terms on the Canvas Home page). 
 
 
 
Spring Term 2026
1610 Beginning Ceramics
 
Calendar:
 
Week 1: 
Sept. 2 – Introduction to class. Get Started on Project 1: Throwing Cylinders. DEMO 
 
Week 2:
Sept. 7 – Labor Day, no class
Sept. 9 – Workday. Continue Project 1.
 
Week 3:
Sept. 14 – Workday. Continue Project 1.
Sept. 16 – Project 1 due. Start project 2: Mugs. DEMO
 
Week 4: 
Sept. 21– Mug DEMO continued.
Sept. 23– Workday. Continue Project 2.
 
Week 5:
Sept. 28 – Workday. Continue Project 2.
Sept. 30 – Workday. Continue Project 2.
 
Week 6:
October 5 – Start project 3: Bowls. DEMO.
October 7 – Workday. Continue Project 3.
 
Week 7: 
October 12– Workday. Continue Project 3.
October 14 – Glaze Demo. Glaze All Thrown Work!!
 
Week 8:
October 19 – Fall Break, no class.
October 21 – Project 3 due: Start project 4: Pinch pots. DEMO. Glaze all thrown work. 
 
Week 9:
October 26 – Continue pinch pots and glazing.
October 28 – All thrown work glazed due. Start Project 5: Historical Re-Creation. Coil Building DEMO.
 
Week 10:
November 2 – Continue Project 4 and 5.
November 4 – Continue Project 4 and 5.
 
 
Week 11:
November 9 – Workday. Continue Project 4 and 5.
November 11 – Workday. Continue Project 4 and 5.
 
Week 12:
November 16 – Project 4and 5 due. Start Project 6: Emotional Box. Slab Building DEMO.
November 18 – Workday. Continue Project 6.
 
Last Wet Clay Day November 20th !!! 
 
ALL WORK MUST BE ON THE GREENWARE SHELVES BY MIDNIGHT!!
 
Week 13:
November 23 – Thanksgiving Break, no class, campus open
November 25 – Thanksgiving Break, no class, campus closed
 
 
Week 14:
November 30 – Glaze all work!!!
December 2 – Glaze all work!!!
 
Week 15:
December 7 – Glaze all work!!! 
 
Last Day to glaze is December 8th!!!
 
December 9 – Quiz Day and Clean-up.
 
Week 16:
December 14th thru 17th Finals Week
 
Your final exam time is:
 
Wednesday 
Attendance at the final exam time is mandatory. Schedule any departures after this date!!!
 
 

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Late Assignment Policy and/or Make-up Work: 
Due dates for all projects are listed in the calendar provided with the syllabus. It is recommended students adhere to all due dates. The dues dates provided are for pieces in their leather hard state ready to be dried and bisque fired. If a student misses a due date for a project, there is still time to complete the project with minimal affect on their grade. In fact, students may make up assignments or re-make assignments at any time during the semester with minimal or no effect on their grade up to the ‘Last Wet Clay Day’ where no student will be able to use wet clay in any form after that date. For this semester the deadline is November 20th. This is a hard and fast deadline, because the instructor is responsible for firing all of student work for this class and all other classes during the semester. The instructor needs the time after the ‘Last Wet Clay Day’ to ensure all the student projects are fired and complete. If a student misses this deadline without completing all the required projects, the only option is to give the student an incomplete for the course. The student will have to provide proof of a legitimate reason for not completing the course work on time, such as a medical emergency, death in the family or other situational cause.

Attendance Policy

ATTENDANCE POLICY: Because this is a Face-to-Face studio course it mandates you be in the studio to accomplish your projects for the class. Attendance is crucial to do well in this course. There is an Filmmaking, Art and Design attendance policy - if you miss more than one quarter (25%) of the class sessions you cannot receive better than a C. For this class that would amount to 7 absences. If you have an emergency, please contact me via email and we can make accommodations. You must be present in the studio for more than half of the class for it to count as being present. However, if your grade can be affected by too many absences, then it should be rewarded if you have zero absences. Thus, I will raise your grade by 5% if you make it all the way through the semester without missing one class session.
 

Course Fees

$19.00 per credit hour

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.