Turning Earth Hoxton, London's original open-access ceramics studio, offers flexible monthly memberships and comprehensive pottery classes for all skill levels.
Where it all started. Our Pilot Studio is located under railway arches, in Hackney's vibrant Kingsland viaduct and numerous transport links, between Hoxton and Haggerston.
Situated in two expansive glass fronted arches, it boasts a modern, inspiring workspace, and remains Turning Earth's creative cradle.
The studio offers a flexible membership designed for those who can work independently, having completed at least one beginners' course. Once you become a member, you can enjoy the freedom of creating at your own pace, with the ability to use the studio for up to 15 hours a week, choosing times that fit your schedule. This flexibility accommodates both casual hobbyists and dedicated artists looking for a welcoming and professional space to hone their craft.
Beyond the technical facilities, the studio fosters a warm, creative community, providing an inspiring environment where ceramicists of all levels can explore, create, and refine their skills.
Have a look at our gallery of studio images, or pop in for a visit during our opening hours and see it for yourself.
Experience the satisfaction of working with clay through our comprehensive ceramics courses. Whether you're a beginner eager to dive into pottery or an experienced artist seeking to refine your skills, we have a course for you. The possibilities for creativity in pottery are endless, and with clay, the only limit is your imagination.
Courses for All Levels
No matter where you are in your artistic journey, our thriving community of makers and artists is open to everyone. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned pro, our membership provides the resources, space, and support you need to nurture your creativity.
With membership, you'll have access to our studio during open hours (up to 15 hours a week), a dedicated personal storage shelf (around 90cm x 45cm x 45cm), expert technicians to assist with firing, and the use of high-quality equipment. Additionally, you'll receive up to 30 litres of set-temperature firings per month. The only additional purchase required is clay, available at affordable prices on-site.
As a studio member, you’ll enjoy exclusive access to a wide range of benefits designed to enhance your artistic journey:
There's always a technician on site to advise members on how to use the equipment, and on the best way to carry out a project. This isn’t structured teaching, as such, but if you want advice on technique they’ll be happy to make suggestions. If you are a bit rusty, don’t worry, you are not on your own!
If you would like private tuition to learn a new process then you can get discounted tuition from Turning Earth teachers or technicians. This costs £30 an hour for one person or £45 an hour for two people.
Glazes are ready-mixed by our staff with test tiles, so you can see how they will look on different clay bodies. Our technicians are on hand to pack the kilns, so you don’t need to worry about that.
Yes, anyone can sign up, as long as they are responsible in the studio. If you are a complete beginner, we recommend you take an introductory class, but after that, you are welcome to become a member and keep practicing at your own pace. There’ll be people on hand to help you. Everyone has to start somewhere and you’ll be amazed at how quickly you’ll improve.
Turning Earth membership is for people aged 16 and above. We cannot have younger children alone in the studio due to the risks inherent in using raw glaze chemicals, sharp tools, and electrical equipment.
Turning Earth is not set up to accommodate professional potters in the studio. Having one or more production potters in the studio would tie up our equipment and make it difficult for others to have access. We want to make sure that facilities are always available for our members whenever they choose to visit. If you are a full-time or professional maker wanting a fully equipped space to run your business then please look at joining In Production, our professional studio in Leyton. It has been designed especially for career makers as so many of our hobbyists have taken their practice to the next stage after spending time at Turning Earth.
Whether you’re looking to master your craft, or just put your hands in some clay and make something, Turning Earth will allow you to work at a pace that suits you. Come whenever suits you, whether your free time is on a Sunday afternoon, or a Thursday lunchtime, or if it changes from week to week.
Turning Earth offers monthly membership instead of hourly or daily rates because every piece you make goes through several steps and takes weeks to complete. You are given your own personal storage areas on-site to store your clay and work-in-progress between visits.
Turning Earth membership is for everyone—inquisitive beginners, off and on hobbyists, and experienced artists. There’ll always be someone on hand in the studio to answer your questions. But if you’d rather have something a little more structured, we run regular classes as well.
Turning Earth is set up for part-time use. This is how we keep costs down for everyone, because this way we can all get the cost benefits of hot-desking and equipment sharing. If we had full-time potters in the space it would tie up the facilities and it would give less value to our part-time members. For this reason, the maximum time a member can use in a week is 15 hours.
We don’t expect that all our members will want to use the studio as much as this. But even if you used it for less than half of that time, you still get great value from Turning Earth. If you come for 5 hours a week, for example, £245 a month still works out at around £12 an hour, compared to the £18 an hour of limited access you might get at other studios.
Our experience is that the equipment provided is plenty for the number of members, as people tend to come and go organically and use the studio at different times. However, on the rare occasion that all of our wheels are in use at a certain time, it would be useful if you could limit your use of that process to 3 hours. If this ever becomes an issue we'll purchase more wheels, but you’ll really help us out by being aware of it and being flexible.
Clay is available for purchase at a discounted price. We also have basic tool kits and throwing bats available. If you want to add additional storage space, this can be bought for a small monthly add-on fee.
The overground stations are the closest options for easy access, with a direct, short walk to Whiston Road.
The closest buses that stop near the studio are:
The buses above stop very close to Whiston Road, with just a short walk to to the studio.
We are very close to the Cycle Superhighway Route 1 (CS1). CS1 runs from Tottenham to Liverpool Street, largely following quieter streets and dedicated cycling paths parallel to Kingsland Road (A10).
Bicycle racks are available at the studio.
There is no parking available at the studio, however some Pay & Display parking can be found in the area.
Access: Ground level, Wheelchair access
Our Learning Hub is located just opposite the main studio gates, on the other side of the road (Laburnum Street).
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