Collaborating with Fire
INTRODUCTION
The Collaborating with Fire Retreat runs March 7 - 28, 2025 and is an opportunity to explore various ways of turning clay to stone, using the four elements: fire, water, earth, and air.
CONTENT
Throughout this three week intensive, we will cover a myriad of firing techniques that you can use to express your voice in clay. Woodfiring, sodafiring, pit, raku and electric firing – wherever your dreams lie, we can explore it together. Wheel throwing, handbuilding, and firing demonstrations, as well as drawing and writing exercises, are key components to our daily schedule. We will round out our technical skill building with group discussion and critique, inspiration sourcing and methods of self discovery.
Together we will dive into the elements of art and design, explore surface treatments for alternative firings, and process wild clay. A visit to the village’s Etruscan museum will be a source of inspiration for our making, as will be trips off the property to the beach, and the old town centres.
The instructor will work with students one on one, offering an open and safe space to deepen the creative practice. Students will be provided with individualized learning plans, demos, and exercises, so they can truly focus on where their excitement in clay starts, and practice cultivating it. Group gatherings and exercises will also be facilitated, encouraging collaboration and skill sharing.
This course is a comprehensive resource for any direction of your future clay practice – we’ll cover it all, and get into the nitty gritty of why and how we make! The workshop will culminate in a show of completed student work at the local gallery.
PREREQUISITES
This course is suitable for beginners who are just getting started and want to dive right into the deep end, or seasoned makers who are looking for more intentionality and mastery in their practice.
Instructor
Emma Smith is a ceramic artist, kiln builder and mover from Ontario, Canada. Growing up in the shadow of the Niagara Escarpment along the shores of the expansive Great Lakes, she aims to celebrate her relationship with place and environment through her artistic practice.
Emma works primarily in woodfired ceramics, where the pieces are made to be experienced quietly, encouraging moments of contemplation and reflection. Alongside her clay practice, she is inspired by the physical body, and loves to explore new ways to story-tell through movement. She is a regular performer with HAG, an aerial and stilt theatre company that produces narratives using puppetry, clowning, and circus arts.
Her current body of work focuses on love of place, and significant moments in time, while threading her two loves (clay, and the body) together.
Food and Relaxation
We will indulge ourselves in the best that Tuscany has to offer. Three meals a day, Italian style. Dinners will begin with an aperitivo, there will be wine at each lunch and dinner, and a ‘digestive’ will round things out (there are always non-alcoholic options, and all of it’s included in the price)
But not only will we eat, we’ll also learn how some of it’s done! Try your hand at our ricotta gnocchi or gnudi. Learn the tricks of a terrific tiramisu. And make your own wood-fired pizza from scratch. You’ll be able to go home and impress your friends with more than your ceramics!
Several local trips will round out our enjoyment of Italy.
Cost
For the 21 days, the cost includes: all meals and drinks, all trips and tastings, all tools and materials, train station pick-up and drop-off. (It does not include shipping your work home.)
Without accommodations: €3,900
In a shared cottage, single bed: €4,900
In a shared cottage, queen bed: €5,700
In a cottage to yourself, queen bed: €6,300
Partners, Plus-ones, and Families are welcome if you choose a cottage to yourself. Cost for their food, trips, etc: €2,500
Before deciding, I highly recommend having a look at the location where the retreats are held either via their instagram or website. It’s truly spectacular.
