Advancing Glazes
Master your glaze chemistry to make your artist skill meet your artistic vision.
Course Overview
The ceramic artist strives to create glaze surfaces that, as a component of concept and content, enhance form through texture and color. The beauty of ceramic glazes comes from subtle nuances of chemistry. The intermingling of silicate bonds, crystallization, and kiln atmospheres dictate the qualities of the glaze. A fundamental understanding of the principles and properties involved in glaze science is essential if the ceramic artist can exert any control in the successful outcome of the work.
Advancing Glazes will take an intensive approach to the study and analysis of glazes. Students will research the nature of glaze effects, surfaces, and colors. The focus of the course is to provide students with technical and empirical knowledge about the composition, application and fired effects of ceramic glazes and ultimately, to aid them in making better-informed decisions as they strive to realize their vision.
**We ask all students regardless of experience or education to complete Understanding Glazes before enrolling Advancing Glazes – see perquisite information below**
Sample Video
Course Outline
- Hic Sunt Dracones – We have to go backwards to go forward
- Introduction to Special Effect Glazes and Colors
- Review, Renew, Refresh
- Subtleties of Stull-Pt 1 – The Subtitles of Glaze Calculation
- Subtleties of Stull-Pt 2 – Fluxes and Performance
- Subtleties of Stull-Pt 3 – Glaze Durability
- Subtleties of Stull-Pt 4 – Temperature and Sculpture Glazes
- Subtleties of Stull-Pt 5 – Thermal Expansion
- Subtleties of Stull-Pt 6 – Phase Separation
- Subtleties of Stull-Pt 7 – Zinc
- Iron, Man – Iron
- Heavy Metal – Copper
- Color Me Mine – Nature of Color
- Color-ants – Function of Color
- FX – Special Effects
Course Announcements
Now enrolling in January 2025 Session​
Email us today to reserve your spot! info@ceramicmaterialsworkshop.com
**Advancing Glazes Prerequisite**
We require all students to complete all of the lectures and lab experiments of Understanding Glazes before enrolling in Advancing Glazes. This requirement is in place to establish the foundation that is used extensively in Advancing Glazes class. The concepts in Understanding Glazes are paramount and are built upon in Advancing Glazes and are key in excelling in our Advancing Glazes class. Self-guided Understanding Glazes students will be asked to provide copies of their completed lab experiments.​
Enrollment
Choose from 2 great learning options!
Full Course Experience Option
$600
Next class with Matt’s expert guidance begins January 1st.
If you want to experience the full course:
The next class session begins January 1st but you can enroll now to get early access to the lectures to get a head start!
Full experience course includes:
- Matt’s expert guidance for 4 monthsÂ
- Work directly with Matt on project of your choosing
- 15 total – 1 to 2 hour on-demand lectures
- Curated lab experiments for your specific project
- Live bi-weekly online Q&A discussions on Wednesdays 2pm and Thursdays 8pm EST (NYC time)
- Early, immediate access to the Lectures Only Advancing Glazes course to get a head start until the class begins.
- Access to Course Discussion pages to ask questions
- Supplemental Readings
- Downloadable copies of lecture notes
- Patreon option for continued access
- Certificate of Completion
- Course perquisite: Completion of lectures and lab experiments from Understanding Glazes are required to be completed before enrolling in Advancing Glazes. Self-guided Understanding Glazes students will be asked to provide copies of their completed lab experiments.
- Cost:Â $600 (free 3 month payment plan available)
- Email us to enroll
Self Guided Option
$30/month CMW Membership
You can begin right now. Enroll and start learning today!
 If you want just the self guided lectures:
You can start RIGHT NOW!
Self Guided includes:Â
- 15 total – 1 to 2 hour on-demand video lectures
- Certificate of Completion
Cost:Â $30/month for as long as you want or need
Note this options does not include labs or live Q&A discussions
Instructor
Meet Your Instructor Matt Katz
Matt Katz has been teaching for years at world class institutions including The New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University, Rhode Island School of Design and Harvard University.
Course Reviews
What Students are Saying
★★★★★
“You both have totally changed my ceramics, I am having the best year ever! Best thing I have done in my career was to take your courses.”
~
Ellen M. – Student, Advancing Glazes – July 2021
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to Your Most Pressing Questions
Science? Are you going to make me learn chemistry?
Yes! Glazes are chemical reactions, and to understand them, we have to understand chemistry.
Have no fear, part of how we teach is to craft information to make it relevant and understandable for you.
But I’m an artist. Science doesn’t apply to us. We use materials differently.
Science always applies. Yes, artists have a special approach to how we think about and use materials. We have to be considerate of what it going on in our materials. Ceramics is a scientific process, even if the result is art.
The ceramics community is wonderful, but is also filled with rumors and speculation about how things work. That information is often wrong or misleading, that can lead to work not surviving the making process. We use the best information and research to teach you how your materials REALLY work. All of our teachings are backed up by research and data, no rumors or speculation.
I live in Country X, can I participate?
We’ve taught people on every continent except Antarctica (Still no kilns down there, last we heard). The great thing about glaze chemistry is that it is universal. You may have different materials, than we do, but it makes no difference to how glazes work.
I work at temperature X, is this class relevant to me?
Yes, we talk about glazes as a whole. All firing temperatures are interrelated. We’ll teach you all of the hows and whys of all glazes.
