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Ceramics

Our students learn to use clay as an artistic medium: throwing, building, molding, glazing and firing.

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"Being in clay, you start to feel so connected to the earth and everything around you."

Eliza Meow Hebert

BFA in Art (Ceramics)

Study an Ancient Art, Dating Back to Prehistory.

Ceramics is an ancient art, dating back to prehistory. Our students learn to use clay as an artistic medium: throwing, building, molding, glazing and firing—as well as experimentation with new techniques. Students explore individual ideas and develop a personal vocabulary of aesthetics.

See More Ceramics On Flickr

Our Ceramics Community

Check out the work our ceramics students are producing each year.

 

Tori Ellis Smith's BFA Thesis: Within a Daydream

Peyton Lawler's MFA Thesis: Relationships | Line and Object

Instructor Ray Brown Giving a Workshop to Students

The Ceramics Club, Mud Daubers

Mud Daubers Holiday Sale

A Wood Firing in the Kiln at Night

Students Flattening Clay on the Roller

Welcome From Our Studio Head

My name is Matt Long, and I am the head of the ceramics program. I work together with our Instructor/Technician, Ray Brown, to support each students individual growth in ceramics, which is inclusive of functional pottery as well as ceramic sculpture. Emphasis is placed on the technical skills required to work in clay as we support all facets of ceramics, teaching throwing, hand building, glaze calculation and more. We are dedicated to helping students working toward making well crafted, well thought out objects. We look forward to seeing you in ceramics. 

Matthew Long

Professor of Art

Three Different Degree Paths

The Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree has a deeper and wider general education foundation than the Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree. The BA degree provides flexibility for combining the study of art with a different field of study as a required minor. BFA students can use their art electives to focus on the studio area of their choice, such as ceramics. Graduate students have the same choice when earning the Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree.

UG

Art, B.A.

Earn a flexible BA in Art, explore diverse media, and pair it with another field for a well-rounded creative education.

  • Oxford

UG

Art, B.F.A.

Develop a professional portfolio with the B.F.A. Choose from any number of concentrations in expanded media arts or fine art.

  • Oxford

GRAD

Art, M.F.A.

Join an outstanding cohort of students training to excel in creative production while working closely with award-winning artists.

  • Oxford

Meet The Majors

See what currents students have to say about the department.

Eliza Meow Hebert

Eliza Meow Hebert

  • Student Activities Association

What type of artwork do you create and can you discuss your process?

See Eliza Meow’s Answer
Tori Ellis

Tori Ellis

  • Student Activities Association

Do you have any plans after graduation?

See Tori’s Answer
Jenna Schmidt

Jenna Schmidt

  • Student Activities Association

Do you have any advice for incoming art students?

See Jenna’s Answer

Featured Courses

All Courses
Ceramics Beginning Class

Art 340: Beginning Ceramics

An introduction to clay through constructive techniques, emphasizing three-dimensional form and design.

"I am so grateful to be in an environment with people that know more than me." 

-Bailey Pillow (BFA in Art, Ceramics)

Ceramic tree in handbuilding

Art 342: Handbuilding

Exploration of the three-dimensional form, with clay and glazes the primary media.

"Don’t be afraid to try different things, failing leads to progress." 

-Julianna Coleman (BFA in Art, Ceramics)

Ceramic firing

Art 441: Advanced Ceramics

Advanced study of three-dimensional form and ceramic techniques, including in-depth study in one area of concentration with strong emphasis on individual expression and research.

"My favorite memory is the wood firings we’ve done together as a class." 

-Brianne Powers, (BFA in Art, Ceramics)

Meet The Faculty

Matthew Long

Matthew Long

  • Professor of Art
Ray Brown

Ray Brown

  • Instructor and Ceramics Technician

Our Ceramics Facilities

The ceramics area is housed on the first floor of Meek Hall in room 127 and consists of a large indoor studio/teaching area, clay-mixing and storage area, loading dock, well-equipped glaze lab, and outdoor kiln pad. This 5,674 square foot classroom/studio space houses all facets of the ceramics area. Unleash your creativity at our fully equipped ceramics studio, offering everything from pottery wheels to kilns. Whether you're a undergradute or graduate artist, our expert instructors and range of classes provide the perfect environment to explore and develop your skills.

Main Teaching Room

The main teaching room houses 20 electric wheels, large working tables, and locker space for student work. All students have storage for their work and tools with access to public shelving and rolling carts.

Main Teaching Room

Graduate Studio

There are four 9 ft. x 16 ft. semi-private studios for graduate students.

Graduate Studio

There are four 9 ft. x 16 ft. semi-private studios for graduate students.

Glaze Lab

The glaze lab/electric kiln area is well equipped with easy and appropriate access to sinks, spray booth, glazes and materials and a semi-enclosed structure with ventilation for the mixing of glazes.

Glaze Lab

The glaze lab/electric kiln area is well equipped with easy and appropriate access to sinks, spray booth, glazes and materials and a semi-enclosed structure with ventilation for the mixing of glazes.

Cubbies

Ventilation Unit

Outdoor/Open Air Kiln Pad (1,200 sq. ft.)

1 up-draft gas kiln, 1 down-draft gas car kiln, 1 up-draft gas test kiln, 1 salt kiln1 soda kiln & 2 raku kilns

Glaze Lab/Electric Kiln Room (1,249 sq. ft.)

Houses 9 large ware carts, 1 large Laguna spray booth with its own ventilation system, 7 electric kilns (6 with computer controls), 2 tables with material bins/hood ventilation system exclusively for each table top in semi-enclosed structure.

Glaze Mixing and Storage

Material storage bins, scales, ventillation

Material Storage

Outdoor kilns

Soda kiln

Clay Mixing Room

Beyond The Classroom

Learning art is more than what’s learned in the traditional studio courses. Our courses are complemented with demonstrations, lectures, and critiques from faculty and visiting artists. Students can also join in the activities of the ceramics student organization, interact with visiting artists, volunteer with the UM Museum, and experience a residency with a relevant site or artist.

Led by Matt Long and Ray Brown, Mud Daubers is a group of undergraduate and graduate student ceramicists who showcase their work at the Double Decker Arts Festival, support the local Empty Bowls fundraiser, and organize other events throughout the year. They host a fall and spring sale on campus to raise awareness of the program and fund their activities such as bringing many national and international visiting artists to our department.

When patrons visit City Grocery, they might be surprised to find that the restaurant has added a personal touch to the dining experience. Rather than plating meals on traditional white plates, select entrees are placed on handmade ceramic dishes, brought from the potter’s wheel to the tablecloths...

Read the Full Story Here

In addition to the artists who visit campus through Mud Daubers, the department also has an established visiting artist program called Art Talks. This program creates access to artists in person and via webcam, and helps students and faculty to keep pace with contemporary artistic practice and emerging technology used in cultural production today. Students can also expand their professional networks.

The list of visiting ceramic artists – either through the Mud Daubers or Art Talks program – is long and illustrious. A short sample includes

  • Matthew Schiemann, Manager for the St. Pete Clay Artist in Residence Program at the Morean Center for Clay and adjunct professor at St. Petersburg College.
  • Chandra Debuse, Self-employed artist and community educator in Kansas City, KS
  • Tommy Frank, Self-employed artist and Community Class Instructor – Ceramics, Red Star Studios, Kansas City, MO
  • Von Venhuizen, Associate Professor of Ceramics, Texas Tech University
  • David Hiltner, Executive Director of Red Lodge Clay Center in Red Lodge, Montana.
  • Josh DeWeese, Associate Professor of Art at Montana State University
  • Jeremy Kane, Associate Professor of Art, University of Alaska, Southeast
  • Sara Panzarella, Artist and co-owner of Imagine, a fine arts and crafts gallery in Skaneateles, NY
  • Jeremy Randall, Visiting instructor of art at Cazenovia College in Cazenovia NY, and an adjunct instructor at Syracuse University

Our museum has recently in the past years have been named to EDsmart’s list of “51 Most Astounding University Museums”, with a recent ranking of 17—one spot ahead of Princeton University. Many art students intern or volunteer with the UM Museum where they might work with art education programs or curate an exhibit.

In the museum, you can study the David M. Robinson Collection of Greek and Roman Antiquities, one of the finest collections in the United States. Covering the 1000-year period from 800 B.C. to around A.D. 300, the collection contains Greek and Roman sculpture, Greek decorated pottery, inscriptions, architectural fragments, inscribed Sumerian clay tablets, small artifacts in terracotta and bronze, and Roman copies of Greek art works.

Students and faculty work together to identify relevant residencies to provide valuable work experience, professional networks, further application of skills learned at the university, and a stronger resume.

For ceramics studio students, this might be a summer or winter break placement with an artist (i.e. Ron Dale and Chris Gustin) or with one of the big ceramic art centers in the country, such as Arrowmont School of Art and Craft, Appalachian Center for Craft, Red Lodge Clay Center, and The Morean Center for Clay (formerly St. Pete Clay). Longer-term residency placements tend to occur after graduation.    

For those planning different career paths, the UM Office of Outreach’s formal Internship Experience program also assists students with internship placements in any career area of interest in Atlanta, New York City, and Washington D.C.

Art majors have exciting opportunities to experience the art and architecture abroad. They can arrange their own study abroad experience through the Office of Study Abroad. Or, they can travel with UM faculty.

One possibility is the course titled Art on Location, where UM faculty can take a course of students to different locations around the US and abroad. For example, in the 2-week 2019 Winter Intersession, art historian Dr. Louise Arrizoli teamed up with a French professor to offer a study of art in Paris, France.

Meet Our Alumni

See some examples of where a ceramics degree can take you.

Caroline Boykin

Caroline Boykin

Where did your love of ceramics originate?

See Caroline ’s Answer
Sara Truman

Sara Truman

Meet Sara