James Rigler brought into the classroom the idea of ceramics as being “more alive, open and exciting than just a collection of brown pots.” His workshops utilised the potential of clay in the generation of ideas and encouraged pupils to engage with the objects that surround them in their everyday lives and appreciate their narrative potential.

The workshops echoed the concerns of James’ own practice, the idea that history and storytelling can make any object special. They also introduced the concept of making an object to convey a meaning or set of characteristics and were a chance to show the vibrant potential of ceramics to a new and questioning audience.        

Pupils began with an energetic drawing session of objects James had chosen, investigating ways to respond to scale, texture and imagined histories, discovering how to know something through drawing. James then introduced 3D sketching using variety of materials and found objects. Pieces were developed from their explorations, and, at the end of the workshops, were positioned in locations around the school. The pupils formed a trail that allowed an encounter with their objects and the stories that had developed with them.