Ancient Polychrome Pottery Workshop

This intensive five day pottery workshop will provide a solid foundation in understanding prehistoric Southwest polychrome pottery and how it can be replicated today. We will cover the entire process from digging our own clay, hand coiling pottery, stone polishing, painting, slipping and finally firing our pots in an open, outdoor fire. The class takes place outdoors near ancient ruins at the base of the Chiricahua Mountains.

Class Includes

• All materials
• Lunch fixings on 3 days (29, 30, 31)
• Field trip to dig wild clay
• Visits to prehistoric ruins
• Field trip to collect natural paint minerals
• One year of full access to all online pottery classes on ancientpottery.how ($105 value)
• Camping on site, lodging is available nearby for those that want a more comfortable bed.

Coil Pottery

Decorate Pottery

Fire Pottery

Technologies Covered

• Coil and scrape pottery making.
• The use of natural clay slips, mineral and organic paints.
• Stone polishing pottery.
• Painting with yucca brushes.
• Firing pottery in an outdoor, open wood fire.
• How to collect and process wild clays and minerals for pottery production.

Class Schedule

Friday, March 29
Mix up the clay we will use. Explore the ruins, look at prehistoric pottery sherds and talk about how to reproduce the pottery we see. Begin forming your first pot.

Saturday, March 30
Finish forming pot and begin second pot. Field trip to dig wild clay. Begin slipping and polishing pottery.

Sunday, March 31
Let pottery dry completely before firing, go on field trip to tour Amerind Museum, have lunch at local cafe and collect clay on the playa.

Monday, Aprill 1
Finish up pottery, polishing and painting designs. Field trip to collect pigment minerals.

Tuesday, April 2
Fire pottery first thing in the morning. Class should finish up around noon.

Enroll in this Class

Cost is $620, a $150 deposit will hold your place. Sign up soon because space is very limited.

The Venue

The class is taught next to the ancient ruins of Chihuichi near the western flank of the Chiricahua Mountains. This village was occupied from about 1330 to 1400 by the Mogollon Culture. This is a primitive venue, we will be outdoors almost all day, there will dirt, uneven surfaces, sun and off-trail hiking. Camping is available on site at no additional cost or there are bed and breakfasts nearby. This is a wonderful opportunity to get an idea what life was like for the people that lived in southeast Arizona centuries ago.

About the Instructor

Andy Ward began reproducing prehistoric pottery in high school, now more than 30 years later he teaches pottery workshops throughout Arizona and New Mexico. The focus of Andy’s pottery is on polychrome pottery types of the prehistoric Salado and Mogollon people. He has taught prehistoric pottery workshops for the Silver City Clay Festival, Archaeology Southwest Preservation Archaeology Field School and Old Pueblo Archaeology Center, among others.

Testimonials

“As a former ceramics major in college married to an anthropologist, I found your class enlightening as well as very fun… My experience of local pottery has been so enriched by the experience of your class. Keep up the good work!!”
Carol D. Tucson, AZ

“Not only is Andy Ward an excellent potter, he is also an excellent teacher. His workshops on recreating ancient Native American pottery of the Southwest are superb. Participants experience the full range of pottery production from processing clay gathered from natural sources to forming the vessels, decorating them, and firing them. He teaches the practices of ancient potters, using the same tools they used. I have taken two workshops with Andy and plan to take others when the opportunity arises. It is more than a worthwhile experience.”
Sharon M. Tucson, AZ

“Andy’s class was one of the most fun and educational classes I’ve ever taken. I learned a lot about the history and different types of pre-historic pottery made in Arizona, the various methods used to form, finish and fire the pots, and was able to practice what I learned and make a pot of my own! And Andy is as kind as he is knowledgeable. I am not an “artsy” type and Andy was very patient with me. His encouragement, enthusiasm and love of traditional Southwest pottery-making is contagious. Everyone is the class was thrilled that they took it!”
Roberta G. Tucson, AZ

Lodging

Camping is available on site for workshop attendees at no extra cost. A National Forest campground is 12 miles away. There are several small inns and bed and breakfasts nearby, they are listed below.

• Dreamcatcher Inn – 3 miles away
• Dos Cabezas Retreat – 37 miles away
• The Inn at Sunsites – 22 miles away
• Many Airbnb offerings

Transportation

The site is about an hour and 40 minutes from the Tucson International Airport so if you are planning on flying in you will probably need to rent a car. If you are planning on driving in we are about 40 minutes south of I-10 at Willcox, Arizona.

Questions?

If you have any questions before you can commit for this workshop please contact Andy, the instructor using the contact form on this website.