with Didem Mert

Course Schedule:

3rd Wednesdays // 12-2p ET

Course Description:

Join Didem Mert (she/they) to learn different ideas/ways of thinking about surfacing your pieces in wet, leather hard, and the bisque stages! Bring pizzazz, color, design, and POP that surface deco)!

In this course we will learn how to work backwards- understanding your sense of style and what you’d like to achieve in terms of a finished piece and how we can work backwards from that.

Other goals and instruction in this course includes, but is not limited to:

Wet-surfacing with slab-building techniques.
Water etching & inlay on late leather hard clay.
Take drawings and render them to make vinyl cut stencils on a cutting machine.
Use vinyl stencils to decorate bisque fired pottery.
Test & alter glazes, commercial and handmade, no matter what temperature they’re rated for!
Brushing/application techniques for glazes and underglazes for even coverage.
Tips and tricks to loading and firing work to help surfaces be the best they can be!

To learn more about techniques and discussions in this course please take a look at the course syllabus below. Demonstrations and lectures are subject to change depending on students’ needs and interests.

*I will be demonstrating how to take drawn images on my iPad to turn into vinyl stencils using a Silhouette cutting machine. If you have a Silhouette- great! Cricut cutters also work, but please note I am not as proficient in that machine and software and will only be demonstrating and using Silhouette’s machine and software. If you’re interested in purchasing a Silhouette I recommend looking at Silhouette Portrait machines on Ebay, FB Marketplace, or even Poshmark. Any version will do. That is the cheaper of the machines, so if you’re not sure if vinyl stencils are something you’ll use regularly, that'd be the most affordable option. If it’s something you KNOW you’re going to love I’d recommend THIS machine (this is the one I have and it’s fantastic!).

Month 1: Working backwards

Lecture and discussion thinking about your sense of style and what you’d like to achieve in terms of a finished piece and working backwards from that to figure out step-by-step techniques to turn those dreams into reality!
I’ll also discuss wet surfacing techniques, glazes and underglazes (homemade and commercial), and post-glaze firing a bit. That way you can get a better scope of the possibilities taught within this course and questions you may want to ask.
Students will be asked to write out a short paragraph and include a sketch or two with that to send me so I can better understand their individual goals throughout the year. NO PRESSURE WITH THIS! Doesn’t have to be super wordy/formal. I prefer more informal tbh!

Month 2: Wet surfacing with slab-building techniques

Using colored porcelain to create surfaces and form all in one full swoop. A great technique for those of you that don’t love the glazing process!

Month 3: Water etching & inlay on late leather hard clay

Using stencils and/or shellac to resist water etching (sponging the surface of the leather hard clay with a lightly damp sponge). Another great technique for those of you that don’t love the glazing process!

Month 4: Talking glaze and underglaze (homemade and commercial)

Write down some prior questions you may have before this class so we can have an open informal discussion.
We will also discuss brushes, applicator bottles, glaze storage, note taking, test tiles, and application methods.
Please note with this discussion this isn’t a glaze chemistry course! Of course I will help as much as possible if you’re interested in creating your own glazes, but if this is your ultimate goal I might recommend taking a course with a glaze chemist wizard!

Month 5: Lining, dipping, & spraying glazes

Sounds easy, but it can actually be a lil difficult to achieve the perfect thickness of glaze!

Month 6: Brushing glazes & creating a “wash” effect

Again, sounds easy, but it can actually be a lil difficult to achieve the perfect thickness of glaze!

Month 7: Take drawings & render them to make vinyl cut stencils on a Silhouette machine

Lecture that will mainly consist of screen sharing to show you the process on my iPad and computer.
Cutting, weeding, and applying contact paper/transfer tape to stencils.

Month 8: Using vinyl stencils on bisque fired ceramic

Application methods and glazing over stencils.
Highly recommend having bisqueware ready before this class if you have vinyl stencils of your own to use.

Month 9: Firing

Tips and tricks to loading and firing work to help surfaces be the best they can be!

Month 10: Post-glaze firing techniques

Lustres and decals! Bling bling!

Month 11: Polishing glaze fired work & Q&A regarding what we’ve learned

It’s all about those details.

Month 12: Q&A regarding what we’ve learned

Write down some prior questions you may have before this class so we can have an open informal discussion. Think about everything we’ve learned, you’ve tried on your own, and be sure to share pieces you’ve made regarding what you’ve made during this course!

Register Here

Registration opens October 19th at 10am Central Time

About Didem

Didem Mert (she/they) was born and raised in Cincinnati, OH. Mert received their BFA (ceramics) from Northern Kentucky University in 2014 and MFA (ceramics) from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania in 2017. Mert has exhibited nationally in places such as The Clay Studio, AKAR, The Archie Bray Gallery, The Erie Art Museum, and over forty other venues. Didem’s work was published in Ceramics Monthly’s 2014 Undergraduate Showcase. Mert was awarded a first prize grant through the Three Arts Foundation in 2014. They were featured on the cover of Pottery Making Illustrated’s January/February 2016 issue. Mert was included on C File’s list of 15 Potters to Watch in 2016 and was featured on Architectural Digest’s 10 Ceramic Artists Giving Pottery A Modern Update. Mert led a residency at Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts during the summer of 2017 and (upcoming) 2025. They were honored as one of Ceramics Monthly’s Emerging Artists of 2018. Mert was a summer resident at the Archie Bray Foundation in 2018 and a visiting artist in 2024. Mert led a residency at Watershed Ceramics in the summer of 2017 and again in 2025. Didem currently lives in Sebastopol, CA and works as a full-time studio potter and workshop instructor.