Formed & Transformed: A Clay Making Workshop

Interested in picking up a new hobby? Curious about the ancient art of pottery?

We’ve partnered with the Gardiner Museum to bring back this immersive 9-week workshop, where beginners will learn the foundations of pottery — from kneading and prepping the clay to painting and glazing. This is a chance for community members to learn more about the clay making process, explore the medium, and create works inspired by their individual and our shared histories. Facilitated by Tamirah Taylor-Soloman, this program will culminate with participants’ inclusion in an exhibition at the Gardiner. Space in the program is limited, and priority will be given to participants who self-identify as Black.

Registration is free, and closes April 14.

Workshop Schedule

Workshops will run weekly from April 23 until June 18. All workshops will take place on Wednesdays from 6:30 – 8:30pm, either at Nia Centre for the Arts (524 Oakwood Ave) or, if the date is starred, at the Gardiner Museum (111 Queens Park).

Wednesday, April 23, 2025
Wednesday, April 30, 2025
Wednesday, May 7, 2025
Wednesday, May 14, 2025
Wednesday, May 21, 2025
Wednesday, May 28, 2025
*Wednesday, June 4, 2025
*Wednesday, June 11, 2025
*Wednesday, June 18, 2025

Meet Your Facilitator

Tamirah Taylor-Solomon (b. 2000 Toronto, Canada) is an Afro-Caribbean multidisciplinary creative and designer. Utilizing her skills to share explorations of various mediums like clay, oil paints and wood, her interests fall within themes of spirituality, identity and biology. She is a pottery instructor currently leading BIPOC youth classes in Toronto and a student at OCAD U studying Industrial design. Tamirah has exhibited work at Worth gallery, Sort of a Studio, It’s OK* Studio, ADA Slaight Gallery and has been apart of an annual live painting event hosted by Friends of Kensington highlighting the theme A World Without Oppression.

About Community Arts Space

Community Arts Space (CAS) is a series of collaborations with community partners and local artists rooted in the real and metaphorical ability of clay to transform. It builds on the Gardiner Museum’s long-term commitment to working within and beyond our gallery walls to connect people through clay and re-envision the roles and responsibilities of a museum to its communities. In recent years, CAS has adopted the framework of year-round community collaboration programs. Unified by an annual theme, these community collaborations are centered on clay-based workshops and feature guest artist talks, gallery visits, demonstrations, and presentations, providing community collaborators an opportunity to engage with the Gardiner Museum in multiple ways.