SOFIA TORRES
Pottery workshop
Learning outcomes:
Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process.
During January, I enrolled in a pottery workshop at Barranco. I was looking for something entertaining I could do during the summer break as I stumbled upon a post on social media describing a pottery workshop for beginners. I immediately felt drawn into it and began attending twice per week all January. In this workshop, Majana, the instructor, taught me how to mold raw ceramic, contour it using the pottery wheel, and create pieces such as plates, teacups, or teapots. It was very fun to go to this workshop as learning how to pottery was something I had always wanted to do but never had the chance. However, it was much more complicated than I expected. Majana told met that for pottery, one had first to learn how to be patient. This is extremely true. Not only is it physically painful to mold the raw ceramic because of its heaviness and dryness, but using the machinery to contour the ceramic takes a lot of time. Once the ceramic is slightly broken, or there is an "air bubble" in it that wasn't previously destroyed when it was dry, the whole thing has to be thrown away, and you have to start over from the very first step. It was very frustrating when I was almost done with a piece of ceramic that would be a plate, and it ended up breaking. I had to endure this challenge and continue working. I realized that when I work on a project or assignment, I often seek for the reward that comes with the result; I am always looking forward to the end product but not enjoying the progress. Through this workshop, I felt grounded in the present. I was able to pay attention to details in my actions and thoughts, without expecting a perfect result but instead appreciating what I was doing and learning to get to the outcome.
Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process.
During January, I enrolled in a pottery workshop at Barranco. I was looking for something entertaining I could do during the summer break as I stumbled upon a post on social media describing a pottery workshop for beginners. I immediately felt drawn into it and began attending twice per week all January. In this workshop, Majana, the instructor, taught me how to mold raw ceramic, contour it using the pottery wheel, and create pieces such as plates, teacups, or teapots. It was very fun to go to this workshop as learning how to pottery was something I had always wanted to do but never had the chance. However, it was much more complicated than I expected. Majana told met that for pottery, one had first to learn how to be patient. This is extremely true. Not only is it physically painful to mold the raw ceramic because of its heaviness and dryness, but using the machinery to contour the ceramic takes a lot of time. Once the ceramic is slightly broken, or there is an "air bubble" in it that wasn't previously destroyed when it was dry, the whole thing has to be thrown away, and you have to start over from the very first step. It was very frustrating when I was almost done with a piece of ceramic that would be a plate, and it ended up breaking. I had to endure this challenge and continue working. I realized that when I work on a project or assignment, I often seek for the reward that comes with the result; I am always looking forward to the end product but not enjoying the progress. Through this workshop, I felt grounded in the present. I was able to pay attention to details in my actions and thoughts, without expecting a perfect result but instead appreciating what I was doing and learning to get to the outcome.