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 12 April 2026
Week 2: Sunday 159 April 2026
Week 3: Sunday 26 April 2026
Week 4: Sunday 03 May 2026
Week 5: Sunday 10 May 2026
Week 6: Sunday 17 May 2026
Week 7: Sunday 24 May 2026
Week 8: Sunday 31 May 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.
Alongside studio memberships, we offer artist-led courses, private classes, team workshops, and kiln hire. With four pottery wheels, a 220-litre kiln, hand-building stations, glazing and finishing facilities, and dedicated studio spaces, SET Ceramics is set up for people who want to spend real time making and building skills.
Instagram account: @setceramicset