The goal of our program, since its inception in 1969, has been to provide students with a high quality ceramics program by exploring a broad spectrum of ways to work with clay and glazes as an expressive medium, and by focusing on ways to interact and collaborate with the local community through the arts.

The 3-D clay program emphasizes the making of both conceptual and utilitarian work, and gives students the opportunity to gather and use local materials in their ceramic expression, and to build and fire kilns. In addition to our gas and electric kilns, our wood-fired traditional anagama, (based on the ancient Japanese climbing “cave” or “dragon” kiln introduced from China in the fifth century), is fired by students twice a year using locally collected and recycled wood.  Students work alongside with both professional artists and community members, including fisherman, loggers, friends, and neighbors.