Pottery classes in Berlin

A pottery class in Berlin is easy to find — and hard to find well. Few crafts have produced as many new studios in recent years as ceramics: between Kreuzberg, Neukölln and Prenzlauer Berg new workshops open constantly, and from the outside the offers look almost identical. The difference only shows at the workbench — in the group size, in the condition of the wheels, and in whether someone is standing next to you when the clay runs off centre for the third time.

What makes a good ceramics course

You won’t learn pottery in one evening, but a good class will show you in one evening whether this craft has a hold on you. There are two ways in: hand-building, where cups and bowls take shape without a machine using coil and slab techniques, and wheel throwing, which demands more patience and gives more back. For a wheel throwing class in Berlin a simple rule of thumb applies: more than eight people per teacher, and nobody really throws. Check whether firing and glazing are included in the price — the finished piece belongs to the course, not to the small print. And ask when you can collect your work: two firings take time, and serious studios will name a date. The scene here is thoroughly international, too — many studios teach in English, and every listing’s spec sheet shows the course languages.

How we choose

We don’t list every studio that offers a ceramics course. Every studio on this page has been visited, its prices, group sizes and materials have been checked, and each one carries an honest verdict from the curator. Anyone selling hen parties with prosecco pottery is not listed here. The criteria we decide by are laid out openly in How we curate.

Who it’s for

For everyone who wants to make something with their hands that lasts. Pottery in Berlin stopped being a niche hobby long ago — for many it is the weekly counterweight to the screen. A class also makes a fine gift: most studios issue vouchers, and what you give isn’t an object but a few hours of concentration and a cup that is crooked and gets used anyway.