Join artist Francisco Zhan in this 8-week Hand Building course at SET Ceramics.
There are 6 spaces available for this course, this is to ensure there is sufficient space to work in the studio and that students get the out the most from both the course and the tutor.
Course Overview:
Surface and substance is a 8-week course led by Francisco Zhan.
This course is an introduction to making ceramics by hand, using both conventional and experimental techniques. Exploring ceramics' potential both as painted sculpture, as well as functional objects.
Throughout the course of 8 weeks, participants will learn the basic building blocks of working with clay by hand, through pinching, coiling, slab-rolling and block carving.
Participants will be guided in using slips, glazes and resists to achieve a variety of decorative effects.
Surface and substance will provide learners with key knowledge of ceramic techniques and processes, as well as a space for free material experimentation. Using the skills learnt during the course, there will be time given to work on personal projects.
The course will cover:
- Hand building techniques: pinching, coiling, slab-rolling and block carving
- Decorating techniques: slips, glazes and resists.
- Experimental surfaces: inlays, Sgraffito.
- Recycling clay
This course is suitable for beginners. It also provides further support and training for those with some experience.
Course Dates:
Week 1: Monday 12 January 2026
Week 2: Monday 19 January 2026
Week 3: Monday 26 January 2026
Week 4: Monday 2 February 2026
Week 5: Monday 9 February 2026
Week 6: Monday 16 February 2026
Week 7: Monday 23 February 2026
Week 8: Monday 2 March 2026
Please not classes missed cannot be made up at a later date.
Class Times:
Classes will start at 19:30 lasting 2.5 hours and finish at 22:00.
The last 30 minutes of the class are for cleaning up and organising work in progress.
Please do not arrive any earlier than 5 minutes prior to the class starting as there is no waiting area and the tutor will be busy setting up the studio for the class ahead.
Tutor Statement:
www.franciscozhan.com
@francisco.zhan - instagram.com/francisco.zhan
Francisco Zhan (he/him) is a visual artist working with ceramic sculpture, writing and performance. He is interested in skeletons in closets, as much as closeted skeletons.
Francisco’s work takes shape through questions of queer practice, auto-ethnography and transhumanism. He borrows the language of ceramic relics, fashion phenomena and pop symbols to investigate history as a material – one that’s not inert, but alive, persistent and embodied in our everyday lives.
Francisco has taught ceramics at Camden Art Centre, Maison S. Sommet, and Mudgang Pottery CIC.
Francisco currently studies Sculpture at the Royal College of Art, where he was awarded the RCA President and Vice-Chancellor Scholarship, following his BA at Goldsmiths University (2016).
His love for making has taken him to residencies at Sanbao Ceramics Institute in Jingdezhen, and Casapiena in Sicily. His work has been shown nationally and internationally.
Francisco was a recipient of a Grand Plan Fund project grant in 2024.
About SET Ceramics:
SET Ceramics is a new community ceramics studio in a former Key Cutters and Cobblers, and part of the contemporary arts organisation and registered charity, SET. It is located on Crutched Friars, less than a minute from Fenchurch Street Station and round the corner from Tower Gateway.
The fully equipped studio features a 220-litre capacity kiln, four pottery wheels, hand-building and glaze facilities. This is an opportunity to see the space, get a feel for it and register interest in what the studio has to offer. Including Studio Memberships, Throwing and Hand-building courses, and more.
Instagram account: @setceramicset