Natural Impressions in Pottery - a clay workshop for children

Date, Time: Wednesday morning July 30th, 9-11 am.

Programming Cost: $25/person, including the materials. Start registration by clicking the RSVP link; After you submit a registration, we will send you an invoice for payment. If cost is a concern, let us know about the need for scholarship/assistance. Maximum of 10 participants.

Location: In the Gathering Room at “Iowisota”, 2472 IA-26, Lansing, Iowa.  Midway between Lansing and New Albin. Entrance to the education space is on the upper level on the back side of the “house”.

What to expect for the event: We will go outdoors to talk about textures in nature and collect materials for our project. Indoors, we will learn how to work with clay and each child will create their own pocket vase from slabs of clay. The instructors will demonstrate and assist so that each child is able to complete their own unique piece of functional art. A snack will be provided mid-workshop. The entire project will be completed within the workshop but will still need to be fired in the kiln to be finished. The instructors will fire the completed projects and have them available for pick-up approximately 2 weeks after the workshop.

We will have you sign a waiver for your child to participate. Parents are not expected to stay during the workshop. Parents/guardians are welcome to stay on-site and observe for all or part of the activity, but they will not be working with the children.

About the teachers: Joel Shoemaker is a potter who retired from a career as a librarian and teacher in the Iowa City Community Schools. Becky Kobos taught elementary art in Iowa City. Joel and his wife Becky met at the University of Illinois in the clay studio as she majored and he minored in Art Education. Becky is also known for her fiber art.  Meanwhile, Linda Haugen has been making pottery as a hobby for over 35 years, incorporating patterns and designs from nature into most of her functional stoneware. Linda retired from a career in natural resources; she has worked extensively as a volunteer with youth. Linda, Becky and Joel are excited to share their gifts and provide a creative opportunity to the children in the local community.

How to sign up and pay: This is intended for children age 8-10. Registration is limited to 10 participants. Click the link for registration and then fill out the registration form. This will hold your space. Once you have completed the form, we will email you an invoice that you can pay by cash, check, credit card, or PayPal.

Feel free to send any questions to iowisota@gmail.com.