EARTH🜃 WATER🜄 FIRE🜂 AIR🜁 AETHER◯

For the Slovenian version please click here.

A journey through the alchemical elements, natural cycles, materials, symbols and the inner world.

We are opening the first mystical school of ceramics, where traditional ceramic knowledge meets an exploration of materials, natural cycles, symbols, mythology, traditions and the human inner world.

Each month introduces a new theme connected to a particular element, a stage of the natural cycle and the traditional calendar. Alongside theoretical exploration, we enter into practical work with clay, water, fire, metals, ash, minerals and plants.

The sessions will take place regularly for three hours each week and will be complemented by field trips, material gathering, firings, and additional sessions led by guest teachers specialising in sacred geometry, art-based approaches to healing and mediumship.

The first session will take place on Thursday, 5 November 2026, from 17:00 – 20:00.

NOVEMBER · LISTOPAD

ELEMENTS: EARTH AND AETHER

WORKING WITH THE LAND OF OUR ANCESTORS

We open November with an offering to the land of our home and our ancestors.

We explore the earth from which we come — its geology, minerals, clay layers and traces of human presence. We explore our relationship with the land on which we currently live and work, as well as our relationship with the lands of our ancestors. We gather earth from places connected to these lineages and use it as a medium.

RITUAL AND INTENTION

We begin the school year with a dedication and ritual in which we express gratitude to the earth, to the place we come from, and to the generations who came before us. This intention is then transferred into the material and becomes part of our first ceramic work.

CERAMIC EXPLORATION

Clay becomes the central material of the month. We explore:

* different types of clay and their geological origins,

* plasticity, shrinkage, and drying,

* the structure and texture of clay,

* additions of sand, minerals, and other natural materials,

* forming from solid volumes,

* coiling and slab building,

* modelling,

* impressing and taking impressions from natural structures,

* local earths and their properties,

* the basic principles of drying, firing and material transformation.

Special attention is given to the traces of the hands — the object as a record of human touch.

A GIFT TO THE EARTH AND OUR ANCESTORS

We create small ceramic objects as offerings of gratitude to our ancestors, the earth and the places from which we come. At the same time, we create objects for December gift-giving — gifts in which, beyond usefulness, emphasis is placed on intention, story and a personal relationship with the recipient.

DECEMBER · GRUDEN

ELEMENT: WATER

STRUCTURING WATER, THE WINTER TRANSITION

If November is the month of earth, December is the month of water. Water is what awakens clay, softens it, and allows it to move. We explore it as a physical substance, as a carrier of memory, and as a symbol of transition.

LOCAL SPRING WATERS

We bring waters from different springs and places into our exploration. We observe their differences, compare them, and use them in the preparation of clays and glazes. Water also becomes a carrier of intention. Before beginning practical work, we explore how our relationship with a material may change when we bring conscious intention and attention into it.

CERAMIC EXPLORATION

We focus on techniques in which water is an essential part of the process:

* slips,

* plaster moulds and slip casting,

* applying and layering liquid clay,

* preparing clay bodies,

* recycling clay,

* exploring different consistencies,

* water as an ingredient in glazes.

EVERGREEN PLANTS

We incorporate evergreen plants as symbols of life that persists through winter. Their needles, branches, fruits, and structures are used for impressions, textures, surface marks and decoration; their ash becomes a raw material for glazes.

WINTER SOLSTICE

At the Winter Solstice, we pause to explore practices of ancient cultures that marked the longest night and the rebirth of light. We hold a solstice ritual connected with fire, darkness, light and our intention for the coming cycle.

WOLF NIGHTS · DREAMS

As December comes to an end, we prepare for the period of the Wolf Nights or Sacred Nights. Between Christmas and 6 January, each participant keeps a dream journal. We observe dreams as a language of symbols and the subconscious — not as something that must be interpreted according to a predetermined key, but as material for personal exploration.

JANUARY · PROSINEC

ELEMENT: METAL

WORKING WITH DREAMS · DIVINATION

January is a time of turning inward. The material of the month is metal, while our inner theme is the dreams of the Wolf Nights — understood as a form of divination for the coming year — and their transformation into form.

FROM DREAM TO SCULPTURE

We translate the content of our Sacred Nights dreams into ceramics. We do not create literal illustrations of dreams. Instead, we search for their symbolic language:

What remained in the body?

Which object, animal, place, or person keeps returning?

What was the strongest feeling?

How can the invisible become visible?

From these questions emerge sculptures, reliefs and symbolic objects.

METAL IN CERAMICS

We explore the relationship between clay and metals:

* metal oxides,

* iron,

* copper,

* manganese,

* cobalt and other ceramic colourants,

* metallic effects in glazes,

* reduction and oxidation.

We also explore the alchemical symbolism of metals and their historical connections with planets, the body, character, and transformation.

PREPARING FOR FEBRUARY

We conclude January by preparing for carnival season and making masks. We explore the mask as an object of transformation: Who am I when I hide my face? Who might I become when I change it? Who am I without a mask?

FEBRUARY · SVEČAN

ELEMENT: EARTH

EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL WORK WITH THE MASK · TRANSFORMATION

February is the time of carnival — a transition between the end of winter and the beginning of spring. It is a time when the ordinary order of things is temporarily turned upside down, identities are hidden behind masks, and we allow ourselves to become someone or something else. We explore the psychology of the mask — its role in ritual, theatre, society and personal life.

The central question of the month is: Which masks do I wear? Which do I want to put down? Which do I want to put on?

This month, the element of earth is represented by stones and crystals, which we explore through clay and glazes.

MASK AS A CERAMIC OBJECT

We create ceramic masks and facial forms.

We explore:

* the proportions of the human face,

* the inner and outer surfaces of the mask,

* masks from different cultures,

* the protective, ritual, and theatrical functions of masks.

We understand the mask as a threshold between the human being and the archetype.

TRANSFORMATION

Each participant chooses a figure, animal, ancestor, natural force, or symbol into which they wish to transform their mask. Along the way, we learn to distinguish between a decorative symbol and one that carries personal meaning for its creator. With our masks, we enact a great cosmic drama.

WE EXPLORE:

* making a mask directly on the face,

* building with clay,

* relief modelling,

* textures,

* perforations,

* incorporating crystals.

We use the masks as objects of transformation. A mask may represent something we wish to release, something we wish to explore, or a quality we consciously wish to embody. At the same time, we prepare for the March Equinox and the great wood firing.

MARCH · SUŠEC

ELEMENTS: FIRE AND EARTH

EQUINOX · THE COSMIC EGG

March is the month of fire and earth. During March, we fire in the Venera wood kiln, while exploring the earth element through the ash of trees.

ASH AS AN ALCHEMICAL MATERIAL

We collect branches from trees pruned during this season, dry them, and prepare them to create our own ashes.

WE EXPLORE:

* different types of wood,

* the origin and preparation of ash,

* distinguishing between different ashes,

* ash as a flux,

* preparing ash glazes,

* reduction firing of ash glazes.

We understand ash as the material memory of a tree — what remains after fire has transformed organic matter.

SPRING EQUINOX

We prepare for the equinox firing in the Venera wood kiln. We shape our objects with the shared fire in mind. We explore kiln preparation, loading, atmosphere, the influence of ash and wood and the unpredictability of a long firing.

EASTER · THE COSMIC EGG

At the end of March, we explore the symbolism of the egg as an image of beginning, birth, and the great cosmic egg. We create ceramic eggs using moulds and also explore the symbolism of the hare — its associations with fertility, spring, cyclical time, and, in various symbolic systems, the Moon. Seeds and a written intention for the coming growth and harvest may be placed inside the egg or an accompanying object. The egg thus becomes a small vessel of the future: what is hidden within the earth waits for the right moment to awaken.

APRIL · MALI TRAVEN

ELEMENTS: WATER AND AETHER

RAIN · SEEDS · LIFE

April brings together water and aether. After the fire of March, we turn once again towards water — specifically the water that falls from the sky and comes directly into contact with our environment.

APRIL RAIN

We collect rainwater and observe its origin, its journey and its contact with the earth. We use the water as a material in the preparation of:

* clays,

* glazes,

* ceramic experiments.

We also explore the concept of intention and a symbolic relationship with water as a contemplative practice — observing how our relationship with a material changes when we give it greater attention.

VESSELS FOR GROWTH

We create ceramic vessels for planting herbs and seeds. We follow their growth over the coming months.

FIRING UNDER THE PINK FULL MOON

We prepare works for firing under the April full moon, connected with themes of water, growth and awakening. We also explore the relationship between lunar cycles and traditional calendar practices.

THE CALL OF THE EARTH

As part of a symbolic ritual, we turn towards the earth, seeds and the ancestors of the place. We hold a seed-blessing ritual in which each participant formulates their own intention for the coming growing cycle.

MAY · VELIKI TRAVEN

ELEMENT: EARTH

BLOSSOM · VITALITY · SCENT · ASH

May brings the height of spring growth. The theme of the month is the flower — its structure, colour, scent, symbolism and transience.

THE BLOSSOM AS A FORM

We explore the flower as an architectural structure:

* symmetry,

* repetition,

* spiralling,

* layering,

* seed structures,

* petals and organic textures.

We create ceramic flowers, relief forms, and sculptures. The flower may become an object, an ornament, or a sculpture in its own right.

THE BLOSSOM AS IMPRESSION

Fresh and dried plants become starting points for:

* impressions,

* textures,

* negatives,

* moulds,

* surface patterns.

We do not simply attempt to reproduce a flower — we explore the principles of its growth and structure.

FLOWER ESSENCES AND ASH

We also explore traditional human relationships with plants through scent, extracts, and symbolism. Flower essences and plant materials are approached as sources of inspiration and experimental materials, while for glazes we focus primarily on mineral ingredients, plant ash, and other safe ceramic materials. A special place is given to the ash of plants and trees as an ingredient in glazes.

MAY FULL MOON

Selected works are prepared for firing in the Venera kiln under the May full moon. After firing, we observe how the fire has transformed the materials we gathered throughout spring.

JUNE · ROŽNIK

ALL ELEMENTS

SUN · LIGHT · COMPLETION OF THE CYCLE

June is the month of integration. Earth, water, fire, air and aether meet. After eight months of exploring materials, nature, symbols and the inner world, we return to wholeness.

SUMMER SOLSTICE

We conclude the school year at the Summer Solstice, when the solar cycle reaches its peak. We prepare a great final wood firing in the Venera kiln. This time, the objects we have created throughout the year are placed into the fire as the culmination of the entire journey.

ALTAR OF EARTH AND LIGHT

Together, we create a ceramic altar dedicated to nature and light. It may bring together objects created throughout the year:

* earth and stones,

* water,

* seeds,

* masks,

* plants,

* ash,

* symbols,

* sculptures,

* objects connected with fire.

The altar becomes a temporary spatial composition connecting all the elements of the school year.

SUNLIGHT AND WATER

We explore traditional and symbolic practices connected with the sun, light and water. We prepare water exposed to sunlight as part of a contemplative experiment — not as a scientific claim about “water memory” or “water information,” but as a way of observing the relationship between light, time, intention and ritual.

HERBS OF SUMMER

We bring characteristic summer plants into our ceramic work: St. John’s wort, yarrow, and chamomile. We explore them as:

* impressions in clay,

* textures,

* motifs,

* inspiration for forms,

* plant-ash materials,

* sources of traditional symbolism.

For glazes, we use only materials that are suitable and safe for the intended firing temperature and purpose of the finished object.

CULMINATION

The Summer Solstice is a moment to pause and look back.

What have we learned from the earth?

What have we changed through water?

What has fire transformed?

What have we discovered about ourselves through the process?

And what will we carry forward?

The final ritual firing becomes the shared fire of the entire year.

For further information and registration, please contact us at studio@anjaslapnicar.com.

Date
5th November 2026 – June 2027, weekly meetings, 3 hours / week, 17:00 – 20:00

Location
Studio Anja Slapničar,
Tržaška cesta 36,
1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia →

Price
1.600€ for the full school year, 8 months

Payment can also be made in 8 monthly instalments of 210€ per month

Registration is confirmed with the payment of the fee or the payment of the first instalment.

In case of cancellation we keep 20% of the workshop fee that has already been paid.

More information and registration at studio@anjaslapnicar.com →

For the Slovenian version please click here.