The Bluffton University ceramics class welcomed Ada High School, Lima Senior High School, Lima Central Catholic and Findlay High School from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for the third annual Pottery Olympics on Saturday, Nov. 23.
Pottery Olympics is an event for high schools to bring students and teachers to have fun with ceramics and do competitions in different areas of ceramics to gain points and win a ceramic trophy for their school. Even though there was only one first-place trophy, each school was given a smaller Pottery Olympics trophy for their participation in the event.
“The Pottery Olympics gives Bluffton University the benefit of inviting high school students into Sauder Visual Arts Center to show them what we have to offer in the visual arts and ceramics in particular,” said Ralph Steiner, ceramics professor. “It also gives the opportunity for our students to share what they have learned in class this semester and in turn the chance to mentor younger artists in the ceramic media.”
The schools competed in nine different games to receive points. Tallest cylinder, a tea set, a kiln guardian sculpture, blindfolded throwing, rapid-fire bowl challenge, smallest 5 bowls, longest pulled handle, tallest slab construction and no hands throwing, were the main areas of competition between the schools.
The first challenge was the tallest cylinder game included three different smaller competitions within it, and the only restrictions were for all the cylinders to have a bottom. Each school had a team of five students who were given 15 minutes to create individual cylinders as tall as they could out of 3 pounds of clay. The team was then scored by the cumulative heights of each of the individual cylinders.
The second small competition asked each school to pick one student to throw a cylinder as tall as they could in 10 minutes with 8 pounds of clay. The last game was for anyone. All students from each school could attempt to create tall cylinders while sharing 15 pounds of clay with each other. A student from Findlay pulled the tallest individual cylinder at 15.5 inches.
Another student from Findlay also won for creating the most elaborate kiln guardian. The kiln guardian game challenged the schools to create sculptures of grotesques, animals or caricatures. The sculptures could also be made throughout the day and was also voted on by the participants.
Kiln guardians are placed on or near a kiln, and the superstitious potter’s myth is the belief that the kiln guardians protect and bestow good fortune for a successful firing and a good outcome for the ware inside but all in all, it is just fun to be part of.
Some of the other games for the schools to complete in were making a tea set and the tallest slab construction.
The tea set lasted during the few hours of the olympics, and any of the students from each school could have chosen to participate in this. The set could be thrown or hand built and it had no restrictions on the amount of clay they could use.
The final product was then voted on at the end of the olympics by the participants, but they could not vote for themselves. Ada High School took the win for the tea set ensemble along with the tallest slab construction.
The tallest slab construction was a team effort and also a day-long event. The structure made was required to free stand for one minute once the judge was notified. The objective was for the structure to be as tall as possible.
To accomplish that goal, good slip and score joinery must be used. Structures were encouraged to have deliberate aesthetic elements and additions that were considered when judged along with the height.
Lima Central Catholic had a student winner for the smallest bowl.
“It was so minuscule it was almost non-measurable so we didn’t even try,” said Steiner.
Some of the schools came into the event with experience while others improved along the way. Lima Senior students made some of their first pots on the wheel while being helped by some of the Bluffton University ceramics class students.
“I hope the students have gained some confidence in their skills and abilities through helping the younger students develop those same skills,” Steiner said. “And of course it is always nice to have a bit of fun.”
Steiner also hopes that the Bluffton University ceramics students who were part of experiencing this event gained some organizational and management skills through the process of planning and facilitating the event.
“Some of the most enjoyment comes from watching the Bluffton University and high school students interact, observing the pride, and sometimes the amazement the novice students have when they make their first pots along with the laughter and smiles,” said Steiner.
