Centering

Posted by Alicia King May 17, 2008

Yesterday, I went to a pottery studio to try throwing for the first time. Under tutelage, I wasn't bad. The instant the instructors stepped away, things got wonky.

I've never wrapped my knees around a wheel before. Wrapping my mind around the effects of centrifugal force on my little tea mug was tough enough, let alone considering how to maintain the structural integrity of the whirling white glob in my hands.

Centering

The first lesson in pottery is Centering. In pottery terms, this is how one ensures that the unformed clay is in the exact center of the spinning wheel. The palm of one hand is providing firm strength and stillness, while the outer edge of the other hand is guiding the top of the clay downward.

The position of the two hands in this act made me think of Tai Chi’s “Jug of Life” position. Perhaps that’s not such a strange analogy, on further consideration.

When clay is perfectly centered on the wheel, you can curl your hands around the outside of the whirring unformed object-to-be, and feel no wobbling, no distortions, nothing but smooth roundness and a solid, firm base for your work of art.

Staying Centered

It turns out, my personal pottery challenge is not in getting the clay centered, but in keeping it centered as I work the form into a new shape. I can create the base of the peice. Trouble begins when I start pulling at the edges to bring them higher.

In yoga, this is similar to the transition of taking the meditative awareness generated in Sukhasana (Easy Pose) and maintaining it as you lengthen and straighten your spine in Tadasana (Mountain Pose).