Creative Explorations: The Artist\ · 3rd Year · Form and Space · Spring Term

Coil Building Techniques

Developing skills in coil building to create taller and more complex clay forms, focusing on joining techniques.

• NCCA Curriculum Specifications
• NCCA: Primary - Clay
• NCCA: Primary - Visual Awareness

About This Topic

Found Object Construction challenges 3rd Year students to see the artistic potential in the everyday. This topic aligns with the NCCA Construction strand and encourages environmental awareness by using recycled materials. Students learn to look at a plastic bottle, a cardboard box, or a discarded lid not as rubbish, but as a structural component. They explore how to join disparate materials using tapes, glues, and slots, focusing on balance, stability, and transformation.

This topic is deeply rooted in the history of modern art, from Duchamp's 'readymades' to contemporary Irish sculptors who use salvaged materials. It encourages students to think like engineers and storytellers simultaneously. How can a collection of 'junk' become a creature, a building, or an abstract expression of a feeling? This topic thrives on collaborative problem-solving and active exploration of material properties.

Key Questions

1. Evaluate the challenges of building upwards with a heavy material like clay.
2. Design a coil pot that demonstrates strong and smooth joins.
3. Compare the advantages of coil building versus pinch pot methods for different forms.

Learning Objectives

• Demonstrate the process of scoring and slipping to create strong joins between clay coils.
• Design a multi-level coil pot that maintains structural integrity as height increases.
• Compare the stability of a coil-built form versus a pinch-built form of similar volume.
• Evaluate the impact of coil thickness on the drying time and potential cracking of a clay structure.
• Create a decorative surface treatment on a coil-built form, considering how it interacts with the underlying structure.

Before You Start

Pinch Pot Construction

Why: Students need prior experience with basic clay manipulation and understanding of clay's properties before attempting more complex coil building.

Clay Preparation and Wedging

Why: Properly preparing clay is essential for successful building, ensuring it is free of air bubbles and has a consistent texture.

Key Vocabulary

coil	A long, snake-like rope of clay, used as a building unit in pottery.
score and slip	A method for joining clay pieces, involving scratching surfaces (scoring) and applying a clay-water mixture (slip) to create a strong bond.
building upwards	The process of adding successive layers or coils of clay to increase the height of a ceramic form.
structural integrity	The ability of a clay form to withstand stress and maintain its shape without collapsing, especially as it gets taller.
even drying	Ensuring all parts of a clay piece dry at a similar rate to prevent cracking or warping.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

More glue always makes a sculpture stronger.

What to Teach Instead

Students often create 'glue puddles' that never dry. Through a 'structural challenge,' they learn that mechanical joins (like slots, tabs, or tying) are often more effective and cleaner than relying solely on adhesive.

Common Misconception

A sculpture is just a 3D drawing.

What to Teach Instead

Students often focus only on the front. By placing their work on a rotating 'lazy susan' or simply walking around it, they learn that a sculpture must be interesting and stable from every single angle.

Active Learning Ideas

Inquiry Circle: The Junk Challenge

Groups are given a mystery bag of 'junk' (lids, straws, cardboard scraps) and a specific prompt (e.g., 'build something that flies'). They must work together to use every item in the bag to create a stable sculpture.

45 min·Small Groups

Gallery Walk: Transformation Tour

Students display their sculptures alongside a 'before' photo of the materials they used. The class moves around, discussing how the artist successfully transformed the objects so they no longer look like 'trash'.

20 min·Whole Class

Think-Pair-Share: Joining Solutions

Students are presented with two tricky-to-join objects (e.g., a round bottle and a flat piece of wood). They brainstorm three different ways to join them without using standard glue, then share their best idea with the class.

15 min·Pairs

Real-World Connections

• Architectural restoration specialists use coil building principles to recreate historical adobe structures, carefully joining mud bricks and coils to maintain stability over time.
• Ceramic artists creating large-scale installations, such as those found in public parks or galleries, must understand how to build upwards with clay, managing weight and ensuring structural soundness.
• Potters producing functional tableware, like large serving bowls or vases, employ coil techniques to achieve specific shapes and sizes that would be difficult or impossible with other methods.

Assessment Ideas

Quick Check

Observe students as they join two coils. Ask: 'Show me how you are scoring the clay. Where are you applying the slip? Why is this step important for keeping the pot together?'

Peer Assessment

Students photograph their coil pot at two stages of construction (e.g., half-height and near completion). They then share with a partner, discussing: 'What challenges did you face building upwards? How did you ensure your joins were strong?'

Exit Ticket

On an index card, students draw a simple diagram showing the score and slip technique. They write one sentence explaining why this method is crucial for building tall clay forms.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can active learning help students understand construction?

Active learning turns construction into a hands-on engineering trial. By working in groups to solve 'stability challenges,' students learn through failure and iteration. They physically test the limits of their materials, discovering which shapes are strongest and which joining methods are most reliable, which is far more effective than watching a demonstration.

What are the best 'found objects' to collect for the classroom?

Cardboard tubes, plastic bottle caps, egg cartons, and clean food packaging are excellent. Ask parents to donate 'clean dry recyclables' a few weeks before the unit starts.

How do I ensure the sculptures don't just look like a mess?

Encourage students to use a 'unifying' element, such as painting the entire finished sculpture a single color (like white or silver). This helps the viewer focus on the form and texture rather than the individual pieces of junk.

Does this topic link to the 'Green Schools' initiative?

Absolutely. It is a practical application of 'Upcycling'. It encourages students to rethink waste and consider the lifecycle of the objects they use every day, supporting environmental education goals.

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