[ksasser]

We have a studio that is open to individuals who take classes. They are free to come in and use the space outside of class. I am trying to put together a list of "Studio Rules of Etiquette" just as a reminder to students (they range in age from teen to adult). This is what I have so far:
#1 Do not touch anyone else's work unless you have permission (This seems to be a big one that we have a problem with)
#2 Clean up after yourself. Leave your space cleaner than when you arrived.
#3 If you borrow someone else's tools, templates, etc. put them back where you borrowed them from.
#4 Watch your elbows, arms, bats, boards, etc. when placing items on the shelf. Please be aware of the other masterpieces on the shelf.


Anyone have any more etiquette rules I can add for an open studio? Thanks for any info!

[Dinah]

Perhaps some gentle guidelines promoting helpful *ways forward* comments on other peoples' work only if asked, of course. Weighing in with unhelpful and unasked for comments are so defeating in a big open studio atmosphere where folks are learning, taking some risks with techniques, and perhaps are only there to get comments and criticism from class leader(s).

[Lori]

At the risk of being called a smarty pants, I've pasted a copy of the 'Ten Commandments' we have posted in the studio at school. Not really earth shattering and I know there are other things that need to be addressed, but it does make everyone stop and think for a bit.

************************************************

The Ten Commandments for Potters

1. Thou shalt not make dust.
2. Thou shalt not pick up greenware by the lip, handle or other fragile area.
3. Thou shalt not touch projects that do not belong to thee.
4. Thou shalt put all supplies back WHERE THEY BELONG AND CLEAN THE AREA (Refer to Rule #1) before departing.
5. Thou shalt let stain dry thoroughly before glazing.

6. Thou shalt practice on the wheel at least once a week for more than 10 minutes and start projects at least 2 weeks before thou needeth them.
7. Thou shalt CARVE THY INITIALS OR MARK in the bottom of thy projects.
8. Thou shalt place glazed ware in kiln room on the proper shelf.
9. Thou shalt believe thy teacher that the silly pink glaze or stain on thy pot will fire blue.
10. Thou shalt trust thy teacher.

[Chris Campbell]

Great rules though I would move number 3 up to number 1 with BOLD capital letters.

[GEP]

I think it's really important to spell out the expectations in writing, you can never assume that people understand how to share a space. Making it funny and smart (like the Ten Commandments) is a great idea.

Having worked in a few group settings, it really matters that the person in charge sets a good example! If the person in charge is respectful, hard-working, and disciplined, then everyone else will try hard to match that. If the person in charge is lazy, sloppy, and disrespectful of others, everyone will conclude that this is ok.

In the community center where I teach classes, our studio guidelines are 6 pages long, and every word of it matters. We also have a studio manager who is amazing, we try hard to be worthy!

Just one suggestion for your etiquette list: No eating in the studio.

Mea

[clay lover]

GEP, on 18 May 2011 - 10:04 AM, said:

I think it's really important to spell out the expectations in writing, you can never assume that people understand how to share a space. Making it funny and smart (like the Ten Commandments) is a great idea.

Having worked in a few group settings, it really matters that the person in charge sets a good example! If the person in charge is respectful, hard-working, and disciplined, then everyone else will try hard to match that. If the person in charge is lazy, sloppy, and disrespectful of others, everyone will conclude that this is ok.

In the community center where I teach classes, our studio guidelines are 6 pages long, and every word of it matters. We also have a studio manager who is amazing, we try hard to be worthy!

Just one suggestion for your etiquette list: No eating in the studio.

Mea

[clay lover]

Hate to be a pessimist, but it is my experience that people who need signs telling them to clean up after themselves are the same people who won't clean up after themselves unless forced in some manner, if signs and friendly suggestions worked, they wouldn't be leaving the mess in the first place.
The best method we have found in the group studio where I work is a chart of all studio clean up jobs that rotates each month. Everyone has a job to do on that chart, once a week. That way if an area is a mess, you know who to fuss at. Repeated efforts to get adults to clean up after themselves have failed, but the boss isn't a hard a$ so people may just ignore all polite requests.

[ceramicfundamentalist]

i like to emphasize that "cleaning up after yourself" is not enough. clay dirt travels, whether it is through the air, on shoes, on tools/towels, etc. if each person cleans their own space then the studio will eventually become a disaster zone, because nobody wants to claim ownership of common areas. i tell my classes that the cleanliness of the entire studio is the responsibility of every student. if he/she sees something that can be made a little bit better then do it!

[Mossyrock]

It has been my experience that there are students who are extra considerate and really clean up their area...... and there are those that, at the most, give a cursory swipe and call it quits. Whichever type student, it is important to have the cleaning supplies (several bottles, sponges, towels, etc) readily available. If a student has to search for the supplies, or someone else is using the only bottle available, the space isn't going to be cleaned. A good inexpensive all-purpose cleaner....... put 1/4 cup vinegar, a tablespoon of Dawn dish soap in a quart spray bottle....fill with water.

Another 'etiquette rule'.....apply soap to brush before dipping in wax resist, then wash out well when finished. And, again, make sure there is soap handy to be able to do it. For the most part, students are more than willing to keep the studio clean ..... well, as clean as a pottery studio can be ....... but it's up to the studio managers to make sure the supplies are readily available.

[Ghilayne]

GEP, on 18 May 2011 - 10:04 AM, said:

Just one suggestion for your etiquette list: No eating in the studio.

Mea

Amen to this one! Mess aside, you never know what particles you could be ingesting. That may sound like the Disney elephant-child afraid of germs (except with me, chemicals!), but you can't be too safe.

[Lucille Oka]

If you want the 'students' to comply don't make light of the studio rules. If at the beginning of your workshops or courses you take the time to go over the rules with the students step by step explaining as you go down the list why and how it must be done, it will show the seriousness of the rules. Give everyone a copy of the rules so they can follow along. Point out the areas that you are talking about. Don’t make it funny, because it isn’t. If you don’t take it lightly they will hesitate to take the rules lightly also. While working in the studio they will check and tell the rules to each other. Students will actually do the cleaning jobs for other students if the need arises.

Post the rules around the studio in areas that apply. Correct the students if you see a rule being broken tell them the correct way to do it. Also set the example and let the students see you follow the rules.

[Idaho Potter]

I'm the clock watcher and call time on students--30 minutes before class ends. They know to get their work to a stopping point and clean up before heading home. Once a month everyone gets in on a FULL clean (vacuum; wet wipe down on shelves and horizontal surfaces; thoroughly brush scrub (wet) wedging and work table canvases). All spills are cleaned up immediately so mud doesn't become dust, and get tracked to other spaces--dust is a fact of studio life and an inherent liability if not handled properly. No food allowed, and water only is allowed in closed containers.

[ksasser]

Thanks for all the great responses!

[Denice]

ksasser, on 25 May 2011 - 02:07 PM, said:

Thanks for all the great responses!

The students should be taught how to clean at the end of each class, so they will have the skills to clean up after their free time. Idaho Potter and Lucille Oka comments reminded me of a grad student teacher I had that taught cleaning like a drill sargent. Several years later I stopped by the school and found the studio a clay covered mess with a over flowing sink, no one was teaching care, cleaning or maintenance. I suddenly felt grateful to my drill sargent teacher. Denice (Wichita, KS)

[Lucille Oka]

Denice, on 25 May 2011 - 06:29 PM, said:

ksasser, on 25 May 2011 - 02:07 PM, said:

Thanks for all the great responses!

The students should be taught how to clean at the end of each class, so they will have the skills to clean up after their free time. Idaho Potter and Lucille Oka comments reminded me of a grad student teacher I had that taught cleaning like a drill sargent. Several years later I stopped by the school and found the studio a clay covered mess with a over flowing sink, no one was teaching care, cleaning or maintenance. I suddenly felt grateful to my drill sargent teacher. Denice (Wichita, KS)

'Drill sergeant'? I like the sound of that. Yes it is how I run all of my classes from ‘K’ to Senior citizen and oddly enough one senior called me that once, but she cleaned up her space and made sure others did the same. Got stripes???

[AndyL]

How about. Use studio approved clays. I've seen classmates bring in clays that were the wrong cone, melted into puddles that took out both shelves and peoples pieces.

[Marcia Selsor]

Lori, on 18 May 2011 - 08:39 AM, said:

At the risk of being called a smarty pants, I've pasted a copy of the 'Ten Commandments' we have posted in the studio at school. Not really earth shattering and I know there are other things that need to be addressed, but it does make everyone stop and think for a bit.

************************************************

The Ten Commandments for Potters

1. Thou shalt not make dust.
2. Thou shalt not pick up greenware by the lip, handle or other fragile area.
3. Thou shalt not touch projects that do not belong to thee.
4. Thou shalt put all supplies back WHERE THEY BELONG AND CLEAN THE AREA (Refer to Rule #1) before departing.
5. Thou shalt let stain dry thoroughly before glazing.

6. Thou shalt practice on the wheel at least once a week for more than 10 minutes and start projects at least 2 weeks before thou needeth them.
7. Thou shalt CARVE THY INITIALS OR MARK in the bottom of thy projects.
8. Thou shalt place glazed ware in kiln room on the proper shelf.
9. Thou shalt believe thy teacher that the silly pink glaze or stain on thy pot will fire blue.
10. Thou shalt trust thy teacher.

I love it except it should be titled Pottery students. Potters don't have to obey teachers. Students do.
Marcia

[Pres]

Lori, on 18 May 2011 - 09:39 AM, said:

At the risk of being called a smarty pants, I've pasted a copy of the 'Ten Commandments' we have posted in the studio at school. Not really earth shattering and I know there are other things that need to be addressed, but it does make everyone stop and think for a bit.

************************************************

The Ten Commandments for Potters

1. Thou shalt not make dust.
2. Thou shalt not pick up greenware by the lip, handle or other fragile area.
3. Thou shalt not touch projects that do not belong to thee.
4. Thou shalt put all supplies back WHERE THEY BELONG AND CLEAN THE AREA (Refer to Rule #1) before departing.
5. Thou shalt let stain dry thoroughly before glazing.

6. Thou shalt practice on the wheel at least once a week for more than 10 minutes and start projects at least 2 weeks before thou needeth them.
7. Thou shalt CARVE THY INITIALS OR MARK in the bottom of thy projects.
8. Thou shalt place glazed ware in kiln room on the proper shelf.
9. Thou shalt believe thy teacher that the silly pink glaze or stain on thy pot will fire blue.
10. Thou shalt trust thy teacher.

For years I used the attachment for all of my studio classes-it was placed on the back of the syllabus. This was a generic set of rules for my Art studio, Animation studio and Ceramics studio so many of the terms are "generic" some of the rules may not make complete sense for Ceramics, but worked well when explained in the opening lectures.

Attached File(s)

•  Conduct and manners.doc (22.5K)
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[Benhim]

While in college I struggled less with what I'm supposed to be doing and more with interpersonal communications with socially inept artists

[Pres]

Benhim, on 30 December 2011 - 11:44 AM, said:

While in college I struggled less with what I'm supposed to be doing and more with interpersonal communications with socially inept artists

Amen!