The best ceramic classes in Singapore to make your own pottery

Those keen on picking up pottery but feel daunted by the out-of-reach locations of many studios now have an option right in the heart of town. Am I Addicted, a Korean pottery studio and vegan cafe, has opened at Capital Singapore. Tucked away in the mall's basement, this 6000 square foot studio is a spacious and swanky pottery playground catering to beginners and more advanced students alike. After you've worked up an appetite creating ceramic vases of all kinds, you can simply head next door to fuel up on healthy vegan fare. Think miso aubergines, grilled 'cheese' kimchi toast, tofu sticks, and a selection of refreshing and creative coffees and cold drinks. 

Carving out a tranquil space in Chip Bee Gardens is Ves Studio, a pottery studio co-owned and run by the promising young ceramicist Jeanette Adrienne Wee. She's trained in Japan and Australia and worked with the likes of respected artist Iskandar Jalil – and is now focused on supporting the growing pottery community here. Don't expect one-off classes at Ves though – true to her strict training in Japan, Jeanette prefers to help students build strong foundational techniques through longer courses. Sign up for four to six-week beginner classes to really grasp the basics of hand-building and wheel throwing before moving to more advanced classes. 

Tucked away in an industrial building in Geylang is the 8th Floor Creative Space, a studio-workshop where beginners and ceramic art enthusiasts alike can hone their craft. Helmed by artist Alvin Tan and his partner Shirley, the 8th Floor Creative Space provides structured lessons that impart basic to advanced techniques needed to shape both domestic and decorative objects on the wheel. Take a pottery crash course for $320, or take the leap with the 10 lesson pottery course for beginners ($599). You'll learn basic shapes like the cylinder and bowl, before moving on to more complicated pieces like vases and jars in phase two. 

Some Singaporean restaurants such as Le Binchotan and Osteria Art have sought out Mud Rock Ceramics for crafting their dinnerware. The same hands also moulded a commissioned tea set commissioned specially for Her Majesty the Queen of England. And if these two instances are not a clear indication of Mud Rock Ceramics’ aptitude in pottery, we don’t know what is. So learn from the pros with its five-lesson beginner pottery class at $315 per person, where you’ll learn the foundation of ceramics, including throwing, trimming, coiling, slab building and glazing.

While off the beaten path, Pottery Thow Kwang Industry is worth a visit for it is home to possibly the last surviving dragon kiln in Singapore. From tours around the premises to Peranakan dinnerware for purchasing, the venue draws visitors with its Sunday pottery workshops at $300 and $420 for modules one and two respectively. Stretching across 10 lessons, module one teaches you pottery basics such as wedging, centering and opening, and it is only during module two will you start making proper moulds. There’s also a one-off pottery sessions at $75, where you’ll get acquainted with the pottery wheel and bring home two fired pieces.

With the boast of eight kilns under its belt, Goodman Ceramic Studio is a fully functioning pottery studio for ceramic-crafting desires. Located in the art enclave of Goodman Art Centre, the spacious studio offers a range of classes that will benefit not only rookies, but also seasoned sculptors. For beginners, look to the basic throwing course at $680 for 10 lessons and basic hand-building course at $190 for four lessons, before moving up to the specialty lessons such as the learning how to dip-glaze your ceramics or making even bigger vessels.

What comes out of a family of potters? A pottery business, of course. The sister duo of Chua Soo Kim and Pasty Chua helm Sam Mui Kuang Pottery, located along Jalan Kelulut off Yio Chu Kang Road. Apart from being a retail outlet of pottery needs such as raw materials, kilns and other tools, the studio offers two courses: Hand Building and Wheel Throwing for ten lessons at $450 and $550 respectively. Classes are described to be well-paced and easy to follow, yielding a variety of ceramics that ranges from a simple cup to a teapot set.

The only guilt you’ll get at The Potters’ Guilt is perhaps making far too many beautiful ceramics. And it doesn’t help that the teachers there are incredibly nice, patient and helpful, as described by the students. Located on top of Pearl Hill Terrace, the craft service beckons you to its minimalistic studio, where you can begin your pottery journey with its weekly Pottery On Wheel course. At $480 per person, the eight-lesson curriculum for novice includes lessons in centering, throwing, trimming and glazing, yielding six to 10 fired pieces to bring home.

Kickstarting a pottery-sculpting lifestyle can be quite an investment. So if you’re little hesitant about the commitment, why not test the waters by trying out a single trial class at $60 with Urth & Pire? The two-hour class even allows you to bring home your completed piece. Now that you’re convinced this pastime is for you, follow this newfound pursuit with the beginner’s course that spans across eight lessons at $400. The course will teach you how to mould half sphere bowls, inverted cone-shaped bowls and cylinder forms like cups and mugs, of which you can bring up to eight pieces home.