Stokerama: A Woodfiring Experience with Bruce Dehnert — Sep 19 - 28
We will explore forms and surface treatments that are suitable for achieving successful results in woodfiring.
We will explore forms and surface treatments that are suitable for achieving successful results in woodfiring.
We will explore forms and surface treatments that are suitable for achieving successful results in woodfiring.
Dates: September 19, 2025 → September 28, 2025
Times: 9-5 pm on making days. Mixture of hours during firing days.
Level: All levels
Membership Price: $1170 (Members can use code MEMBERS10 upon checkout to receive 10% off)
Workshop Description:
This workshop will be an exploration of wood-firing ceramics, pottery, and/or sculpture in Mendocino's beautiful environment. We will cover approaches to making, decorating, and preparing work for wood-firing, with opportunities to load and fire the center’s wood kilns. As the firings progress, we’ll compare results and engage with our own work as well as others' to better understand our individual aesthetic curiosities and inquiries. Demonstrations will include techniques on the potter’s wheel as well as handbuilding, so all skill levels and experiences are welcome.
The workshop will begin with two days of creating your pieces in the studio, (19th/20th). On Monday, we’ll load the Train Kiln, followed by the Cat Kiln on Tuesday. The firing process will continue until Thursday, September 25th, with an unloading session on Sunday, September 28th.
Come, immerse yourself in the art of wood-firing.
About the Instructor:
Dehnert received a BA in Literature from the University of Montana and MFA in Ceramics from Alfred University. He has taught at Hunter College and Parsons School of Art and Design, The School of Art [New Zealand], the Universiti Malaysia Sarawak [Island of Borneo], and the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. He has taught workshops in Japan, India, China, Canada, New Zealand, and the USA.
Dehnert is the recipient of a New Jersey Artist Fellowship Award, and other awards including three Fletcher Challenge International Ceramics Awards, the Settlor Prize in Sculpture, and a Carnegie Premier Award for Works on Paper. A finalist in the Robert Wood Johnson International Figurative Competition, his work is held in many collections including The Crocker Museum [California], the Liling Museum of Ceramic Art [China], The New Dowse Museum [New Zealand] and The White House [Washington, DC]. He recently presented a solo exhibition, “Architectonic,” at The Hunterdon Art Museum.
A writer, Dehnert has published in numerous journals including Metalsmith Magazine, Studio Potter, Ceramics Monthly, and Ceramics: Art and Perception. He co-authored the best-selling book, “Simon Leach’s Pottery Handbook,” published by Abrams Publishing of New York City, and provided review of Vince Montague’s recent memoir, “Crooked Pot,” for the book’s back cover. He served as an advisor to the Jingdezhen Ceramics Biennale [China], and is on the Board of Directors for The Art School [Demerest, New Jersey].
A Fellow of the International Academy of Ceramics [IAC] and Head of Ceramics at Peters Valley School for Craft for 22 years, Bruce is currently Head of Ceramics at Sugar Maples Center for Creative Art at the Catskill Mountain Foundation in New York.