Go to a museum, sculpture garden, or another place with public art to find large public sculptures. Make drawings of them and observe the different styles you see. Try designing a unique sculpture! 

Career

Find some sculptures and public artworks near you.

Watch this short clip and see how the railroad changed history. Brainstorm some ideas for new forms of transportation you would like to see developed. Be creative!

Find out how railroads impacted history. 

Try your hand at pottery by enrolling in a class at your school or local community college. 

Education

Take a pottery or ceramics class.

Potters

Operate production machines such as pug mill, jigger machine, or potter's wheel to process clay in manufacture of ceramic, pottery and stoneware products.

Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Realistic

Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.

Artistic

Second Interest High-Point

Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

Conventional

Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.

Investigative

Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.

Enterprising

Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.

Social

First Interest High-Point

Third Interest High-Point

Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed

Potters, Manufacturing

Miscellaneous Production Workers

Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic

Production Occupations

Other Production Occupations

Press thumbs into centers of revolving clay to form hollows, and press on the inside and outside of emerging clay cylinders with hands and fingers, gradually raising and shaping clay to desired forms and sizes.

Adjust wheel speeds according to the feel of the clay as pieces enlarge and walls become thinner.

Mix and apply glazes, and load glazed pieces into kilns for firing.

Position balls of clay in centers of potters' wheels, and start motors or pump treadles with feet to revolve wheels.

Raise and shape clay into wares such as vases and pitchers, on revolving wheels, using hands, fingers, and thumbs.

Prepare work for sale or exhibition, and maintain relationships with retail, pottery, art, and resource networks that can facilitate sale or exhibition of work.

Smooth surfaces of finished pieces, using rubber scrapers and wet sponges.

Design clay forms and molds, and decorations for forms.

Move pieces from wheels so that they can dry.

Pull wires through bases of articles and wheels to separate finished pieces.

Examine finished ware for defects and measure dimensions, using rule and thickness gauge.

Perform test-fires of pottery to determine how to achieve specific colors and textures.

Maintain supplies of tools, equipment, and materials, and order additional supplies as needed.

Verify accuracy of shapes and sizes of objects, using calipers and templates.

Operate drying chambers to dry or finish molded ceramic ware.

Start machine units and conveyors and observe lights and gauges on panel board to verify operational efficiency.

Adjust pressures, temperatures, and trimming tool settings as required.

Operate pug mills to blend and extrude clay.

Operate jigger machines to form ceramic ware, such as bowls, cups, plates, and saucers.

Air cleaners

Air compressors

Ball mills

Banding wheels

Carving spatulas

Carving tools

Ceramics kilns

Clay cutters

Clay extruders

Clay mixers

Clay presses

Cleanup tools

Conveyor feeding systems

Dial calipers

Digital scales

Dipping tongs

Drying ovens

Dust masks

Electric kilns

Fettling knives

Gas kilns

Grinding wheels

Hake brushes

Handheld sprayers

Hole cutters

Insulated gloves

Kick wheels

Kiln glasses

Kiln gloves

Lace tools

Laptop computers

Layout templates

Mold trimming knives

Oxyprobes

Personal computers

Portable pottery wheels

Pottery molds

Pottery wheels

Precision rulers

Pug mills

Pyrometers

Raku tongs

Safety glasses

Scoring tools

Slab rollers

Slip trail applicators

Spray booths

Spring scales

Texturing brushes

Thickness gauges

Tile cutters

Triple beam balances

Inventory control software

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Outlook

Potter/Railway Engineer

<p>The team visits a Maori museum and executive chef Kate Fay before interviewing dub and hip-hop musician Tiki Taane. On the way to Coromandel, the team interviews potter and railway engineer Barry Brickell, and horse trainer Tina Fagan. Finally, they head to Gisborne, where they spend time with organic winemakers Geoff & Nicola Wright.</p>

Barry Brickell

Potter/Railway Engineer

Videos

Barry Brickell

Milestones

Education

Career

Career Roadmap

My work combines:

My work combines:

Art

Engineering

Building Things

Interviewed By

Falling Forward