Join ceramicist Lauren McNicoll for this new Hand Building 8-Week Course: Exploring making techniques from the conventional to the novel at SET Ceramics.
There are 6 spaces available for this course, this is to ensure there is sufficient space to work in the studio and that students get the most from both the course and the tutor.
Course Overview:
This 8-week hand-building ceramics course at SET Ceramics introduces the essential techniques of sculpting, building, and decorating with clay. Suitable for beginners to intermediate makers, it encourages playful exploration and hands-on learning. As the course progresses, participants are invited to experiment and work more adventurously, including using the body as a tool for sculptural creation, offering a unique, embodied approach to working with clay.
Course Dates:
Week 1: Sunday 11 January 2026
Week 2: Sunday 18 January 2026
Week 3: Sunday 25 January 2026
Week 4: Sunday 1 February 2026
Week 5: Sunday 8 February 2026
Week 6: Sunday 15 February 2026
Week 7: Sunday 22 February 2026
Week 8: Sunday 1 March 2026
Please note classes missed cannot be made up at a later date.
Class Times:
Classes will start at 10:00 lasting 2.5 hours and finish at 12:30.
The last 30 minutes of the class are for cleaning up and organising work in progress.
Please do not arrive any earlier than 5 minutes prior to the class starting as there is no waiting area and the tutor will be busy setting up the studio for the class ahead.
Tutor Bio:
Working across sculpture, education, and facilitation, I explore clay as a material of connection, memory, and embodied process. Alongside my current technical and teaching roles across independent ceramic studios and Central Saint Martins, I run experimental workshops that blur the boundaries between making, movement, and performance, inviting participants to engage clay through sensation and play. My approach merges technical foundation with intuitive exploration. Recent work has been shown at VFD, Pocko Gallery, and Ugly Duck. I’m currently based at Tannery Arts, Bermondsey.
To see Lauren's work head to: laurenmcnicoll.com
About SET Ceramics:
SET Ceramics is a new community ceramics studio in a former Key Cutters and Cobblers, and part of the contemporary arts organisation and registered charity, SET. It is located on Crutched Friars, less than a minute from Fenchurch Street Station and round the corner from Tower Gateway.
The fully equipped studio features a 220-litre capacity kiln, four pottery wheels, hand-building and glaze facilities. This is an opportunity to see the space, get a feel for it and register interest in what the studio has to offer, including Studio Memberships, Throwing and Hand-building courses, and more.
Instagram account: @setceramicset