Introduction to Hand building
Coil building is one of ceramics’ most fundamental and ancient handbuilding techniques. By layering rolled coils of clay, makers can construct complex, structurally sound forms of almost any scale without the rotational limits of the pottery wheel. In this 4-week short course, coil building serves as a starting point to think more broadly about how we make with clay, balancing robust technical craft with playful, process-led experimentation. You’ll learn to prepare clay, roll uniform coils, develop joining and compression techniques, and alter surfaces using carving, slips, and sgraffito to create both functional vessels and sculptural objects.
Led by London-based artist Lauren McNicoll, who holds a background in architecture and contemporary sculpture, the course approaches clay as a living, expressive material that directly records touch, pressure, and bodily presence. Drawing on her own sculptural practice and creative influences like Florence Peake, Birgit Dieker, and Lindsey Mendick, Lauren will introduce exercises that encourage you to respond intuitively to the clay while building strong technical skills. Rather than adhering to rigid templates, you’ll learn to view unexpected material responses as creative possibilities while discovering how form and surface intersect.
This course is suitable for complete beginners as well as more experienced makers, who are looking to push their ideas further through ambitious forms and experimentation. With a small group capacity of just 6 places, you’ll receive plenty of direct, individual guidance from Lauren as you navigate each stage of the process.
What to expect
Over four weeks, you'll move through the entire lifecycle of coil building, from initial clay preparation and rolling to surface transformation and final firing preparation.
All sessions begin with clear technical demonstrations and practical exercises, focusing on a particular aspect of coil building. As you gain confidence, more time is given to individual making, allowing them to apply techniques in ways that feel personal and meaningful. While every week has clear technical aims, the course remains intentionally flexible, encouraging experimentation and allowing students to follow unexpected directions as their ideas develop.
You are encouraged to develop work that reflects your own interests and way of making. Options to explore either functional vessels (such as organic vases, planters, or bowls) or purely abstract, sculptural forms are fully welcome.
Week-by-Week Overview
Week 1: Meeting the Material
We begin with the absolute foundations, exploring clay wedging, understanding material properties, and building confidence through coil-rolling. The focus of this first session is process, touch, and observation. You’ll practice foundational joining methods and simple form construction, learning how the material responds directly to your pressure and pace.
Week 2: Building Form
Building on learnings from the previous week, you’ll move into larger and more structurally complex coil-built forms. Lauren will guide you through proportion, structure, joining methods, and ways of manipulating coils to create both functional and sculptural objects.
Week 3: Surface & Transformation
In week three, you’ll explore how surface becomes an active extension of the making process. Through carving, texturing, slips, and sgraffito, you’ll discover how intuitive, embodied marks transform a piece, focusing on how pressure, rhythm, and tool work alter the character and emotional resonance of your vessel.
Week 4: Personal Project
Bringing together the techniques explored across the course, you’ll develop a final piece that reflects your own creative interest. With Lauren’s dedicated guidance, you’ll refine construction, hone surface details, and prepare your finished work for firing, concluding with a collective reflection on your making process.
What You’ll Gain
By the end of the course, you will have:
- A strong technical foundation in constructing stable and expressive forms through effective joining, compression, and form development
- A strong understanding of surface techniques, including carving, texturing, slip application, and sgraffito to create rich surfaces
- Confidence in material exploration, learning to trust intuition, experimentation, and process-led making as part of your creative process
- Versatility across form, with the skills to construct both functional ceramics and expressive sculptural works
- A finished, fired ceramic work developed from your initial idea that reflects your personal voice and approach to clay
Course Dates:
Week 1: Sunday 4 October 2026
Week 2: Sunday 11 October 2026
Week 3: Sunday 18 October 2026
Week 4: Sunday 25 October 2026
Please note: missed sessions cannot be rescheduled.
Class Times:
Sunday Mornings
10:00-12:30 (2.5 hours per session)
Please note: the final 30 minutes are dedicated to cleaning and organising work.
Please arrive no earlier than 5 minutes before the session begins, as there is no waiting area and the studio will be in preparation.
Tutor Statement:
I am a London-based ceramic artist and educator working across sculpture and hand-building, with a practice centred on touch, materiality and our relationship to the body. I completed an MA in Fine Art Sculpture at Camberwell College of Arts (UAL) after studying Architecture at The Bartlett, UCL, and have exhibited widely across London, including solo and group exhibitions at Pocko Gallery, Ugly Duck, VFD and Studio KIND, as well as internationally at La Galleria Nazionale in Rome. Alongside my studio practice, I teach ceramics at SET Ceramics and the University of the Arts London, where I support students across a broad range of abilities and disciplines.
My teaching is grounded in the belief that working with clay should be joyful, exploratory, and deeply physical. Coming from a background in sculpture and architecture, I see ceramics as an art form where ideas take physical shape through direct contact with our hands. Clay is a living, expressive material that resists absolute repetition and records our presence, so my starting point is always touch, intuition, and trial.
I view this course less as a standard technique class and more as a shared space to think through clay as an artist. I encourage students to embrace unexpected outcomes as creative possibilities rather than errors. My goal is to equip you with robust technical skills while giving you the freedom and confidence to discover your own unique voice in the material.
Website: laurenmcnicoll.com
About SET Ceramics:
SET Ceramics is a contemporary community pottery studio tucked away inside a beautifully converted former cobbler’s shop on Crutched Friars, less than a minute from Fenchurch Street Station and a short walk from Tower Gateway.
Part of the arts organisation and registered charity SET, the space functions as both a working hub for members and an artist-led learning environment for the public. Alongside affordable studio memberships, we offer public courses, workshops, and kiln hire led entirely by practising ceramic artists.
With four pottery wheels, a 220-litre kiln, hand-building stations, glazing and finishing facilities, and dedicated studio spaces, SET Ceramics is set up for people who want to spend real time making and building skills. Course discounts apply for SET Studio Members and residents of the City of London.
Instagram account: @setceramicset