Wheelforming Techniques

Learn to use the potter’s wheel to create simple, beautiful, and functional ceramic forms while discovering the techniques, challenges, and joys of hand-thrown pottery. This practical eight-week course welcomes both beginners and experienced throwers — helping newcomers develop core skills and guiding advanced students to refine their technique and explore new directions.

Under the expert guidance of Remy Pajaczkowski-Russell, you’ll follow the process from clay to finished, glazed pot. Through a combination of group demonstrations, individual mentoring, and hands-on practice, you’ll gain the confidence and skills to create elegant, well-formed ceramics. Remy’s teaching emphasises sensitivity to form, precision in technique, and the endless creative possibilities of glaze and surface.

Open to students of all levels, this course provides personalised instruction to support your development on the wheel, whether you’re throwing for the first time or looking to advance your existing practice.

All clay is provided and selected pieces will be glazed in the final class of the term. The pieces will be fired after the term is complete, and it may take up to four weeks after your course ends for works to be available for collection. We will notify you when they are ready for pick up. We will notify you when they are ready for pick up.

* Please note: There will be NO class on: Monday 8 June due to the King’s Birthday public holiday. Class will continue on 15 June.

* The course fee incorporates the cost for materials such as clay.

* NAS Short Courses are open to students of ages 16 years and over. The NAS Art Club is open to students between 15 - 17 years of age.

* What to bring? Please refer to the list of required materials in the Art Materials field below.

Students must supply their own art materials, please refer to the list below.

• Towel and protective clothes (old shirt or apron) 
• Notebook and pencils/pens 
• Any ceramics tools that you may already have 
• All clay and other materials are provided 
• We recommend students bring a P2 KN95 disposable mask 
• Enclosed footwear is essential in all studios on campus. 

Remy Pajaczkowski-Russell is an artist working on Gadigal land where he produces a range of domestic ware as well as pieces for exhibition. His practice concerns itself with the ethical production of utilitarian pottery by repurposing waste materials into glazes and clays.

Remy studied ceramics at the National Art School. After completing his degree NAS in 2016, he undertook an apprenticeship in a traditional woodfired pottery studio in La Borne, France. It was here that he developed his passion for woodfired ceramics and expressive slip decoration. Since then, he has worked in commercial ceramic studios and community-run studios, furthering his understanding of ceramics across the craft and industrial production industries. His work is held in public and private collections including Broken Hill Regional Gallery, Cement Fondu, and in the restaurants Bush in Redfern and Karrikin in Yamba.