Pat Greene is Bungalower Media’s first sponsored Resident Reporter. Greene has joined our team as our Arts and Culture Correspondent, supported by the efforts of Interstruct Design + Build, an award-winning Orlando-based design and build firm.
Orlando has some great places to learn and develop a craft and since writing this column, I’ve realized I need to help spread the word. These places are also great spots to be around like-minded people and the City of Orlando’s Pottery Studio (Website) is a prime example.
The Pottery Studio has been in operation since 1968. They have regularly scheduled classes for different skill levels. They also have memberships and open studios. The facility has everything you need to get started and continue the craft and they have electric, gas reduction, raku firings, large worktables, 18 pottery wheels, slab rollers, extruders, a glaze room, and hand tools.
The classes fill up quickly. It’s a very popular venue in the ceramics community. It’s a community that seems to be getting more popular every year. Investing in classes and materials is affordable. Some even make money from ceramics, which have become more than a hobby.
I’ve toured the facility a few times with director Jason Sugiuchi. He sent me some information that isn’t on the website.
The City of Orlando Pottery Studio offers a range of classes. Six-week courses teach wheel throwing and hand-built pottery. They also offer family nights for ages six and up. The projects for these classes are different every month. They have private lessons for groups. The groups are for ten or more people.
The open studio is very popular. To access it, you must pass a test showing that you understand and can safely use the equipment.
During the holidays, they have special classes relevant to the holiday. Sugiuchi said the Pottery Studio hosts workshops with some nationally renowned artists. In addition, the studio works with the City’s neighborhood centers, offering senior classes, team-building exercises, and children’s workshops. He told me they built the sets and floats and provided art direction for the Recreation Division’s Summer City Showcase at Dr. Phillips, Winterfest at Lake Eola, and the Martin Luther King, Jr. parade float.
They currently have over 360 members and 120 students in classes.
I mentioned the city’s neighborhood centers, which are fantastic resources. The Pottery Studio is inside the Grand Avenue Neighborhood Center (Website). Each center offers classes; some have fitness centers and swimming pools. The fees are discounted for City of Orlando residents, and there are also senior discounts at some of the centers.
City of Orlando Senior Centers (Website)
These are inexpensive ways to learn something and come together with other community members.
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