Workshop of Pentecost 2026

Aniana Heras (Spain)

Between Lightness and Complexity · Mixed Techniques

In this hands-on workshop, artist Aniana Heras offers insight into her artistic practice, creative process and approach to form-making. Participants will learn to build complex and expressive shapes, using her coil technique, to build the foundation of their piece. Alternatively, the base form can be made using slab construction or on the potter’s wheel. The initial form is then combined with additional techniques to transform it into a unique object. This process balances between careful planning and improvisation. No prior experience is required, though some familiarity with clay is beneficial. This workshop is an invitation to explore the clay combining experimental and technical work. It is a space for discovery, exchange and the development of individual visual language, navigating the dynamic tension between control and freedom.. Aniana Heras is a Spanish artist who combines various techniques to create pieces that are both light and complex. Largely self-taught, her sculptural practice often emerges from improvisation, guided by the act of making itself. Through her work, she explores notions of timelessness, balance, and contrast—tradition versus innovation, function versus form. Her work questions both material and meaning, drawing inspiration from traditional Spanish ceramics, contemporary sculpture, architecture, and design.

Course Program

Day 1 – Brief introduction of all participants: their experience with clay and their expectations for the course. – Presentation of the instructor’s work / BIO. – Presentation of the instructor’s creative process. – Beginning of the preparation of pieces on the wheel: slabs, circles, forms, and coils that participants will work with the following day.
Day 2 – Sketching / drawing concepts. – Sharing and discussion of the sketches: are they feasible? – Beginning work on the pieces. 
Day 3 – Working on the pieces throughout the day. – Sharing results and discussion of what has been learned.

Instructor: Aniana Heras (Spain)
Location: Poterie d’Ependes, Route du Petit-Ependes 3, 1731 Ependes–Fribourg. Bus connection (TPF) to/from Fribourg.
Materials: Please bring an apron or work smock.
Languages: English and Spanish Participants: Minimum 7, maximum 10
Dates: Pentecost weekend, May 23–24–25, 2026
Schedule: 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., with a lunch break
Course fee (3 days): CHF 500.– + firing of finished pieces according to current rates
Accommodation: Optional. Several bright but simple rooms for one or two people are available, with shared bathroom facilities.
Room reservations can be made here