Clay Studio in community sharing

I've been working in the clay studio almost daily, though for no longer than 3 hours.  I spend the first 15 minutes usually running a mop here or there.  By coming in early I can swab down about a quarter of the floor each day...before anyone else has to walk on it.  It's helping my cough considerably.

Staying away whenever anyone else is doing carving of leather-hard clay is also helping I think.  I also am changing my clothes as soon as I get home, so less clay dust is spread around in my apartment.

Below a table is a huge slab of plaster on which we recycle clay

This is not my personal studio, but a community studio.  I'm a member of the Black Mountain Center for the Arts Clay Studio, as an independent student and a volunteer.  My volunteer job is to open the studio once a week for 3 hours and monitor the other students who come to work on their own projects...during Open Studio time.

Mathilda is one of our teachers who also makes a lot of pots

Anyway, I usually create something each day I'm there, and sometimes finish something else.  And often I bring home things that I can paint my glaze designs upon.  Today was a throwing, trimming and bringing home day.  So my 3 hours were well spent, and I can now work on my own time doing some glaze painting at home.  I then go back to the community studio to use the glazes which are available to the students, as well as the kilns (loaded and fired by teachers.)

Pat has a background in chemistry and knows a lot about our studio glazes in these big buckets

We have 2 big Skutt electric kilns which fire to cone 6 for glazes