Join us for an artist talk & reception, open to the public, with Samuel Newman (@suayceramics), Thursday, March 5, from 7pm to 8:30pm.  Happy hour begins at 6:30pm.

Higher Fire is excited to host Samuel Newman (@suayceramics) for an ambitious, immersive, 4-day hands-on workshop, Thursday – Sunday, Mar 5-8, 2026, 10am – 5pm

As a craftsperson, Sam revels in the act of making. Capturing the softness of clay, harnessing the kiln atmosphere to mark his ceramic wares, and the experience of using a well-made functional object all feed his narrative of creativity!

Sam guides participants through a cone 10 soda-firing at JTown Clay using our Geil soda kiln. Students explore glazing and surface preparation, wadding and kiln loading, and soda introduction. While the kiln fires and cools, students develop their skills in throwing, altering, trimming, and handle-pulling.

Learning Objectives

• Prepare pieces for firing — glaze, flashing slips, strategies for cone 10 soda
• Participate in soda-firing — wadding, cookie prep, kiln loading, soda introduction
• Throw, alter, create gestural forms (mugs, goblets, pitchers); trim, pull handles
• Iterative form development to find your personal, creative voice

Highlights

• Day 1: Overview of atmospheric firing, glaze palette, surface prep, student spray-glazing session, load the kiln
• Day 2: Sam demonstrates his signature forms (Bootstrap, Maker’s & Jigsaw mugs); students throw items for altering
• Day 3: More wheel demonstrations: trimming, altering, handle development; altered pitchers and goblets demo
• Day 4: Kiln unloading and group discussion; wad removal, grinding, sanding; continue fresh clay work completion

Schedule & Tuition

Thursday – Sunday, Mar 5-8, 2026  10 AM – 5 PM

• $849 – Regular, non-member
• $749 – Studio member (active member of HF-Downtown or JTown Clay)

Tuition includes your first 25 lbs of clay. Coffee/tea/breakfast is provided daily.  Each student gets their own pottery wheel. Students bring bisque-fired items, made of cone 10 clay, to glaze during the workshop; guidelines for size and space allocation are coming soon!

Spaces are limited with 20 seats available. Member pricing is the same for regular or firing members.

Workshop takes place at JTown Clay — 520 N 7th St., San Jose, CA 95112.

Skill: Intermediate

Participants should be comfortable centering and throwing cylinders with up to 4-5 pounds of clay.

Workshop full? Join our waitlist: