The Clay Studio

The studio seems great. I actually purchased a gift certificate for my girlfriend here that she was not able to use before they closed.
I would love to talk to someone about my options.
Does anyone know who the contact for the studio is?

Now permanently closed.

Thank God for the Clay Studio. This place rocks.

Learning the craft of pottery is really fun. I’ve learned so much for the last 5 weeks, for example, build a container using the coil, make a plate using slab hand-​building techniques, and construct a bowl using throwing and pulling techniques on the wheel.
By the way, I’m a beginner with no experience before taking this class, and still have 3 more weeks to finish the beginner class. I’m going to enroll to the next class for sure.

It’s too early to say I love, but really really like this place. John is a great and patient instructor. And the space is truly communal in that it is open to anyone from the community to learn and explore clay arts, period.

i am so glad i found this studio.
close to my work so i can come in when i have spare time.
never too crowded so i can focus on producing work.
being a community member is totally affordable.
john is great and so is blue.
the only complaint is i wish they had a gallery so i can be inspired by the great artists that go there.

I’ve been a student for close to 6 months now and can’t imagine going anywhere else, and plan to continue going here as long as I can. I started as a complete novice and have quickly gained knowledge and confidence through their guidance and expertise.
Calling John and Co «generous» is a grand understatement. The long open hours are a great thing, and during that time you’ll always find friendly and helpful people around.
If you have ANY interest at all I encourage you to check out the website, or just go stop by the space during open hours. You’ll love it!

I signed up for the beginner’s class extremely skeptical that I would enjoy pottery at all. I showed up the first day expecting to give it a few classes and just give up.
However, I was blown away by how much fun they make pottery. John has built an amazing community around pottery and is an amazing teacher. I started showing up a few hours early for class (thanks to the studio time they give you in addition to the class) and liked it more and more each week. Now I’m signed up for some advanced classes and expect to be making pottery for a long time.
Even outside of classes, the people of all skill levels who are involved with the studio are great. They are amazingly friendly and helpful.
Can’t recommend this highly enough.

I heart art.
I came to Clay Studio without any prior knowledge of working the wheel and very limited hand building experience. I showed up really late *eek!* to my first class, and it was no big deal. This studio is very relaxed and friendly and John is a fantastic teacher; I always felt like I had his undivided attention. I love that in addition to the two hour class, you can come in during the week and work on projects.
The location of the studio is convenient, and I never had a problem finding parking on a Thursday evening.

This studio is very friendly and the people who create there are extremely talented, an inspiration. The classes were helpful and many people take classes there over and over. My only gripe was the time it took to get anything fired. They wait to have a full kiln, which means sometimes you wait weeks to get the end result (when my class was over I went back 3 times over the course of a month to pick up my work and it was still not fired). Other than that, I loved taking a class here.

The space was great and there were plenty of wheels to work on.
However, that seemed to be the problem. I think the class could’ve been smaller. The class started out with about 20 people. Half way through the course about 5 people dropped leaving 15 people.
Unfortunately, those people who left were the neediest people around. It seemed that they hogged up all the attention and any spare time the professor had. It was sort of hard to try to get them to come around to my workstation because they were busy helping others. I guess that works well for them, but it didn’t for me.
Other than that, it was great. I got to make a lot of stuff and you get about 8 hours of free studio time. And the people are down to Earth.
I think I might try the Castro studio for my next pottery class.

I just started taking classes here and I love it. It’s not intimidating for those who want to try something new so they can stop thinking about work (like me) and the staff are patient and funny. I actually find a catharsis in holding the clay and letting it take shape as it spins; it’s a working meditation and totally relaxing. At first I got a little frustrated, but now I’m getting the hang of it and my creations aren’t half bad! If you’re a beginner and interested in ceramics, this is a great studio. I also like that once you’ve signed up for classes you can practice any time they are open (6 out of 7 days per week).

The Clay Studio is an excellent place for a beginner to take up pottery. This started as just a way that my girlfriend and I could take up an activity out side of work, yet became something that we really enjoy and are pursuing beyond the beginner class. John is an excellent teacher, with a great personality, who made us appreciate the art of ceramics and just straight out make us laugh. The studio space has excellent facilities for not only beginners but more advanced as well as professionals who want studio space. I believe more people need to check out classes or studio time at The Clay Studio, you won’t regret it.

I am rigid. Variety is not the spice of life; rather, a strict diet of predictability is on my menu. I started taking pottery classes because I’m anal and needed to direct this extremist energy into a specific activity or else it might rear its ugly head elsewhere.
I spent the first class in a mild state of anxiety-​shock, functional but not quit «there». I was convinced that I would do something wrong somehow causing a catastrophe that would shut the entire studio down. After John drilled into my head that it was «only clay» (he probably had to say it about 100 times to get it into my thick skull) I relaxed and started enjoying myself. The Clay Studio offers the perfect balance of hands on instruction along with giving students enough space to enjoy the creative process on their own. In addition to the weekly class students are also welcome to come in for 8 additional hours per week of free studio time to practice on their own, although there is always someone there to help you if you have a question.
I’ve taken all three levels of the adult classes and look forward to taking the last class over and over again. There is always something new to learn and someone willing to teach you how to do it. I’ve had the pleasure of having both John and Joyce as instructors and look forward to learning a lot more from them. So if you’re like me and trying something new gives you THE FEAR, give The Clay Studio a shot. I’m glad I did.

I’ve been throwing for a few years now so I signed up for an intermediate class with John. It was great. He’s very patient and helpful. The class was filled with people at a variety of skill levels so you never felt out of place. Studio time is extremely flexible and John is almost always there to chat or help. I’ve settled on their community studio time so if you are more advanced and need something less rigid, that’s a month to month option.

I’m one of those people who spends hours online investigating my options, and other people’s opinions, before investing my time/​money in just about anything. So after a lengthy time wanting to try ceramics, then more lengthy time investigating my options, I decided to try the beginners class at The Clay Studio. Its proximity to my place of employment aside, I am incredibly glad I made the decision I did. Approaching the last of the beginners classes, I can now say that I’ve found not only an activity that I enjoy immensely, but a place in which I love to participate in it. Both John and Joyce have a relaxed and encouraging style of teaching, and are right there in your work with you as necessary. And everyone else involved with the studio who I’ve met in my practice time away from class, and in class itself, has been really friendly, encouraging, and interesting. There are plenty of wheels, spacious counter tops on which to work, and lots of inspirational works around the place to keep you motivated when you’re still figuring out how to make things on the wheel, and your slab didn’t turn out the way that you wanted. I recommend The Clay Studio highly to anyone either starting out, or continuing to learn about ceramics.

This is a fantastic place for anyone who liked to play in the mud as a child – they offer classes for those who are beginning or are more advanced, and an unlimited studio pass for those who seriously know what they are doing. Most of the classes are a combination of working on the wheel and handbuilding. Each session includes 8 two-​hour classes and access to the studio during non-​class hours. The instructors are knowledgeable and laid back.
One thing to note is that The Clay Studio has moved from its old location on Harrison St to a new building at 61 Bluxome – about two blocks from the Caltrain station.

I would definitely recommend this place to anyone who has an interest in learning how to throw clay or become an better potter. I am a beginner, but we have learned so much after only three classes. John, the teacher, is very patient and helpful. Even with a dozen students he manages to devote some personal attention to everyone each time we meet. For anyone considering taking classes here, I highly recommend putting aside an hour or two outside of class to come in and practice. The extra effort makes class time more valuable as you build experience. There is even a kitchen area in the studio with a microwave in case you want to while away an afternoon. Working with clay can be a wonderful way to take some time to yourself and deveop a new skill.

So, this is a preliminary review for people thinking about checking this place out. The Clay Studio is a spacious warehouse studio for local artists to throw clay and make ceramics. They also just started teaching classes for children and adults. I’m a total novice but decided that Ghost made throwing clay just too sexy. So, I started taking the beginning class with John and he’s a fantastic teacher. There are only 11 people in the class and lots of great equipment, plenty of wheels, and space to make a mess. (clay flinging everywhere is not so sexy as it turns out). I’m finding that it’s a great arm workout and I’ve already had a lot of fun in the first class. 8 2-​hour beginning classes are $ 215 plus $ 6 for tools. You also get 10 hours of studio time to use any time of the week. John definitely encouraged us to use it to practice (not me, of course, I’m a naturally talented artiste — this pot is supposed to look like chewed gum!). Wear shoes that you want adorned with clay. ..