Arbery Pottery: Come and play with clay
From "People Powered Forest Gate & Maryland - Finished"
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Proposed budget
GBP 1,600
Description
Project Name:
Arbery Pottery: Come and play with clay
Arbery Pottery - Woodgrange Road
Delivered by Ceramicists: Michelle Mtinsi, Leanne Vieira Commins and Nishat Tahsin
Our project is looking to improve :
- Mental health and wellbeing
- Community development and participation
We hope to give the local residents and community of Forest Gate the opportunity to be able to learn and explore through clay at our new ceramics studio opening between Forest Gate and Wanstead Park Station. Running over the course of a year, we will teach free pottery workshops once a month. This will culminate in an open studio exhibition to showcase and celebrate the participants’ creations, serving as an opportunity for reflection on everyone’s achievements.
In order to deliver these workshops, we’re applying for funding to cover the cost of materials and equipment needed for the making and firing of ceramics, such as a kiln and workbenches.
Our project aims to introduce pottery as a fun, relaxing, tactile experience where people can learn and socialise together as a community.
Pottery can be described as a form of the “effort driven reward circuit”, this is where using our hands to create something, triggers and releases happy chemicals to our brains like dopamine. Whether you regard yourself as a crafty person, artist or just someone who enjoys learning new skills, research has shown that hands-on activities can make a positive difference to our lives and decrease stress hormones.
We hope to deliver our programme of workshops to residents attending local schools and charitable organisations; we’re passionate about making our craft accessible and inclusive to as many people as possible, in particular those who face barriers to accessing the arts.
Our vision:
- Create inclusive, accessible creative workshops
- Improve the mental health and wellbeing of residents through creative activities
- Reach up to 300 participants during the course of this year-long project
- Keep our craft alive through teaching
Comments(17)
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Profile of Sue C
Posted by:Sue C
3 years ago
Hi, This looks like a lovely project. is it going to be open to residents of Maryland as well or just Forest Gate? Thanks
Profile of Nishat Tahsin
Posted by:Nishat Tahsin
3 years ago
@Sue C Hi Sue, Thanks for your comment. We will be looking at charitable organisations and school communities in Forest Gate and Maryland to meet our target of 100-300 participants for free classes and we also will have reasonably priced classes open to everyone.
Profile of Karol Piotrowski
Posted by:Karol Piotrowski
3 years ago
Can't wait. Whether free or affordable we need that type of venue/classes in the area.
Profile of Nishat Tahsin
Posted by:Nishat Tahsin
3 years ago
@Karol Piotrowski We are so excited to be able to share our passion with the community :)
Profile of Luxi B
Posted by:Luxi B
3 years ago
What a nice project!
Where is the studio exactly? I was not aware of pottery classes in the area
Profile of Nishat Tahsin
Posted by:Nishat Tahsin
3 years ago
@Luxi B Hi Luxi,
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and asking. We are in the process of securing a space between forest gate station and Wanstead park station. With aims to set up by the end of the year so hopefully you'll be seeing pottery classes coming soon.
Profile of Karol Piotrowski
Posted by:Karol Piotrowski
3 years ago
@Nishat Tahsin Can't wait! :)
Profile of Luxi B
Posted by:Luxi B
3 years ago
@Nishat Tahsin amazing! Thank you
Profile of Wendy Jackson
Posted by:Wendy Jackson
3 years ago
This sounds like a great community building project.
Profile of Nishat Tahsin
Posted by:Nishat Tahsin
3 years ago
@Wendy Jackson
Thanks for your comment Wendy. We think so too and hope to be able to improve community development and participation in Forest Gate. Hopefully we will see you in a future class.
Profile of The UP Garden Forest Gate
Posted by:The UP Garden Forest Gate
3 years ago
Do you ever use air-dry clay? If you would ever like to run a pop-up at a free outdoor venue, The UP Garden might be able to help! Check us out on www.theUPgarden.org and use the contact form to get in touch. Good luck with your project!
Profile of Nishat Tahsin
Posted by:Nishat Tahsin
3 years ago
We primarily use stoneware clay but we would be able to use air-dry clay and apply the same/ similar hand building techniques. The Up Garden sounds like an excellent project too and would definitely be something we could collaborate on to reach more residents. You can be sure to hear from us to discuss this further.
Profile of Jay Smith
Posted by:Jay Smith
3 years ago
How is the £5000 being spent? What happens to the kiln and workbenches when the funding ends? Do they get returned to the community for our use? How many workshops and how many places at each?
You say its for residents attending local schools and charitable organisations, so thats schoolkids and what kind of charitable organisations? So not everyone can come?
Where is the ceramics studio on Woodgrange Road? I haven't seen one but it sounds like a nice addition to the high street.
Profile of Nishat Tahsin
Posted by:Nishat Tahsin
3 years ago
@Jay Smith
Thanks for your message Jay. Yes the 5K is to invest in equipment to allow us to set up the space to run free classes with charitable community organisations and schools as well as affordable classes for the public. Following the project, the equipment will remain in our studio and we will continue to have affordable classes and apply for funding to provide further free classes. The studio will be located between the two stations.
Profile of Jay Smith
Posted by:Jay Smith
3 years ago
@Nishat Tahsin Thank you for your answers, some projects are not answering at all.
Would still like to know what kind of charitable organisations will be eligible for the free workshops, how many workshops and how many places at each? Bit concerned that there will not be much that is free or will be only for narrow set of groups.
How much will these "affordable classes" be? Thats a very vague term.
If you get funded this year, but not in the future then will there be no more free classes even for schools and charities? If you stop offering free classes, are you going to give the equipment back to the community at that point?
I like the idea of pottery classes and introducing people to it who wouldn't usually be able to afford to go, but not sure this project is going to offer that, and I also don't want to my money to go on funding equipment for a business that the community might not get to access after the year ends.
Profile of Nishat Tahsin
Posted by:Nishat Tahsin
3 years ago
@Jay Smith Hi Jay, as the funding would be given in parts we would be spending it on helping us set up with some of the following:
worktables, ware-boards for shelving, clay, raw glaze materials, mop and bucket, underglaze and decorating slips, batt wash, clay tools (wooden modelling tools, sponges, ribs, wire cutters, jugs, bowls, tongs, kiln gloves, kiln shelves, kiln props, scales, heat gun, rolling pins, moulds), extraction fan, and paying for part of the kiln. Maintenance cost +clay+glaze/coloured slip + tools that will need topping up throughout the year for the project.
In return we would be able to offer 100-300 participants a free class.
We had spoken to a couple of people from charitable groups at the vote day including a contact who works at the library which they have connections with local charities in the community, so we are positive that we can reach our charitable goal of free workshops. As for affordable workshops that people can pay for price tbc but we aim to make our pottery classes as reasonably priced to what else is available in London if not better. We hope to be at our studio for at least 5 years and hope to be able to apply for funding to give the community of Forest gate further free classes/access to learning ceramics.
Profile of Jay Smith
Posted by:Jay Smith
3 years ago
@Nishat Tahsin Thanks for those answers. It sounds a bit to me like this funding is going towards you setting up a private profit-making business. I do hope you get to stay in Forest gate and offer lots of free/affordable classes, and i've no reason to doubt your word, but equally there doesn't seem to be any protections in for the community that this is a good investment for them. Thats not really a criticism of you, more of the council and how this funding scheme is designed though.
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Education and youth
Health and welfare
Social inclusion
Community development
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