The Ceramics Labs provide a site to engage contemporary art and culture as it interfaces with ceramic media. Students are challenged to experiment with form and meaning in traditional and experimental genres, expanding definitions of ceramics and mixed media, and by including ceramic elements in performance, installation, and social practice projects.
The large open studio includes: ample work space, pottery wheels, a slab roller, extruder, slip mixer and mold making area, stocked glaze room with spray booth, 1 large skutt, a de-airing pug mill and mixer, a tile saw, and a sandblaster. Our kilns includea large Bailey front-loading Thermal Logic and three small electric kilns, one medium downdraft, one 40cu ft Bailey downdraft car kiln and one medium updraft gas kiln.
In addition to the main studio area there is a generously-sized outdoor courtyard for larger or experimental work.
To encourage interdisciplinary work and accommodate a wide range of ideas, we have augmented our traditional facilities with a computer workstation with scanner and laser printer for printing iron oxide decals, and can access facilities to produce silkscreens and prints on ceramic media. The Ceramics Labs also supports research in digital processes and 3D printed clay by CED Professor Ron Rael.
First developed by Peter Voulkos, the Ceramics Labs has a strong legacy in the Bay Area ceramic arts scene. Former faculty members include Richard Shaw, Ron Nagle, Robert Hudson, and Jim Melchert. Noted alumni include Marilyn Levine, Nancy Selvin, and Nicki Green.
Courses rotate between these selections:
- ART 15 – Ceramics: Foundations
- ART 132 – Advanced Ceramics: Research and Methods
- ART 137 – Advanced Projects in Ceramic Sculpture
- ART 160 – Special Topics in Visual Studies
Ceramics Facilities & Contacts
Location: 182 Bauer Wurster Hall
Lab Hours: TBA
Lab Use: Access to these spaces is reserved for students enrolled in Art Practice Ceramics classes, Art Practice majors who have previously taken classes in our facility, and graduate students in Art Practice. Non-majors and students seeking ceramics facilities use should use the Berkeley Art Studio(link is external) at the MLK Student Center.
Facilities/Materials Fee: varies per class
For more information, contact:
Ehren Tool, Ceramic Studio Mechanician
Email: tool@berkeley.edu(link sends e-mail)
Phone:+1(510) 642-3673
Office: Bauer Wurster Hall 182C
Faculty Oversight:
Stephanie Syjuco
Associate Professor
Media Highlights
- Bomb Magazine: “Swallow the Parts Whole: Sahar Khoury Interviewed by Anna Betbeze”(link is external)
- 48 Hills: “With powers of porcelain, Ahn Lee spins Cantonese folklore futurism”(link is external)
- “Origin Stories: Expanded Ceramics in the Bay Area,”(link is external) featuring Professor Stephanie Syjuco, and former faculty/alums Nicki Green, and Kari Marboe at Berkeley Art Center
- KQED Arts: “Bay Area Sculpture Right Now: Nicki Green's Talismans of Queer Subtlety”(link is external)
- The Brooklyn Rail: “Jim Melchert with Constance Lewallen”(link is external)
- Craft in America PBS documentary: “Service”(link is external) episode, featuring Ehren Tool (MFA and staff)
- The New York Times: “Peter Voulkos, an Influential Sculptor Who Broke the Rules”(link is external)
- Berkeley News: “Cups for conversations — about war"(link is external)
- KQED Spark episode: “Richard Shaw”(link is external)
Topics
Ehren Tool (MFA and Staff Mechanician) is a celebrated contemporary ceramic artist whose work addresses the trauma of war.
Reniel Del Rosario (BA ’19) runs a ceramic food stand outside of Wurster Hall. Del Rosario was the recipient of a prestigious 2019 Windgate-Lamar Fellowship from the Center for Craft.