COURSE DESCRIPTION: Ever wanted to build the board game you’ve been dreaming up — out of clay? In this hands-on ceramics course, you’ll design and construct your own game boards while learning core handbuilding techniques. We’ll start with wedging clay and move into coil building, slab building, and the pinch pot method, using each technique to bring a personal game concept to life in three dimensions. You’ll also learn foundational surface design skills — underglazing and sgraffito — to add detail, texture, and personality to your board, finishing with a full glaze application. This course blends creative problem-solving with technical skill-building. You’ll design a functional object with rules, strategy, and a story behind it. No prior ceramics experience is needed — just curiosity and a willingness to get your hands dirty.
INSTRUCTOR BIO:
Frankie Pittorf is an interdisciplinary artist creating work that centers around themes of identity, adolescence, and memory. Frankie’s work operates within a realm between past and present and investigates how childhood shapes Queer and Trans identities. Frankie received their BFA in studio arts from Syracuse University in 2022 with a focus on ceramics and jewelry.
Ana Popescu is a Romanian-American artist based in Providence. Working primarily in clay, she combines traditional ceramic processes with digital fabrication, architectural references, and a healthy obsession with ornament, history, and material experimentation. Before earning her MFA in Ceramics from RISD in 2025, Ana spent over a decade creating immersive installations, performances, and large-scale productions in New York City and beyond.
COURSE WITHDRAWAL & TRANSFERS: All enrollments are subject to our REGISTRATION & ENROLLMENT POLICIES.