Experiment with layering a variety of colored papers and weaving patterns to create a textured composition. Then, discover how to play with geometric shapes in ways that create a bold graphic look. 

Note: This activity takes place indoors and is on a first-come, first-served basis, while supplies last.

HANDS-ON HOUSTON is a free drop-in event held on the first Saturday of every month. Each month, a teaching artist or guild demonstrates a craft related to the current exhibitions. Community members of all ages are welcome to come any time between 11 AM and 3 PM and participate in a 30-minute activity. Materials are provided. This program supports HCCC’s mission to advance education about the process, product, and history of craft. Learn more here.

Note: This activity will take place outdoors and is on a first-come, first-served basis, while supplies last.

HANDS-ON HOUSTON is a free drop-in event held the first Saturday of every month. Each month, a teaching artist or guild demonstrates a craft related to the current exhibitions. Community members of all ages are welcome to come any time between 11 AM and 3 PM and participate in a 15 – 20-minute activity. Materials are provided. This program supports HCCC’s mission to advance education about the process, product, and history of craft. Learn more here.

HCP’s mobile education unit, Flash Drive, which is a repurposed ambulance transformed into a working camera obscura, will also be on site from 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM. Visitors are invited onboard to observe the environment through large and small camera obscuras to learn about the science and history behind the development of the camera as we know it today!

Note: This activity will take place outdoors (weather permitting) and is on a first-come, first-served basis, while supplies last. In case of rain, the activity will be moved indoors.

HANDS-ON HOUSTON is a free drop-in event held the first Saturday of every month. Each month, a teaching artist or guild demonstrates a craft related to the current exhibitions. Community members of all ages are welcome to come any time between 11 AM and 3 PM and participate in a 15 – 20-minute activity. Materials are provided. This program supports HCCC’s mission to advance education about the process, product, and history of craft. Learn more here.

Visitors of all ages are invited to:

–Watch craft demonstrations by a variety of Houston-area artist guilds and community groups
–See the exhibitions on view: Designing Motherhood, In Residence: 17th Edition, and Ceramics in the Environment
–Visit the resident artists’ studios
–Enjoy food and refreshments from food truck and Coffee.

PARTICIPATING GROUPS

• ALMAAHH – Advocates of a Latino Museum of Cultural and Visual Arts & Archive Complex in Houston, Harris County
• ClayHouston
• Contemporary Handweavers of Houston
• dosido
• Gulf Coast Woodturners
• Houston Book Arts Guild
• Houston Calligraphy Guild
• Houston Metal Arts Guild
• Islamic Arts Society
• Knit at Night Guild (KANG)
• Machine Knitters
• Polymer Clay Guild
• PysankaHTX
• Quilt Guild of Greater Houston
• Texas Association of Original Doll Artists
• Texas Basket Weavers Association
• Texas Electric School Bus Project
• Urban Harvest
• Woodworkers Club of Houston
• Zine Fest Houston

Please note: The HCCC parking lot will be blocked off for demonstrations, but street parking is available nearby. Craft Community Day replaces Hands-on Houston in March. HOH will resume in April!

Each day, from 10 AM – 1 PM, participants can experiment with different materials, tools, and techniques, through hands-on activities demonstrated by teaching artists and volunteers.

Families are also invited to spend time in the galleries, sketching, looking at art, and talking with experienced docents. Visitors can explore the current exhibitions, Designing Motherhood and In Residence: 17^th Edition, as well as our resident artist studios, to gain insight into the inspirations and artistic processes of working artists.  HCCC Spring Break is free and open to the public!

Hands-on activities require about 25 minutes to be completed. Activities will take place outdoors (weather permitting) and are on a first-come, first-served basis, while supplies last. Families and children ages three and up are welcome to participate. Materials are provided, and teaching artists and volunteers provide step-by-step instruction.

Hands-on Activities

As part of a grassroots effort by artists and craftspeople in cities and towns across the country to feed the hungry in their communities, Empty Bowls Houston is implemented locally by Houston-area ceramists and artists working in various media, the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, and the Houston Food Bank.

For a minimum $25 donation, attendees have the pleasure of selecting a bowl from thousands of one-of-a-kind, hand-crafted bowls, donated by Houston area ceramists and craft artists, and receiving a simple lunch. The empty bowls serve as a reminder of all the empty bowls in our community and around the world.

Pottery, woodturning demonstrations, and live music will be featured at the event. For more information, visit Empty Bowls Houston.

To get first dibs on bowls, check out the Empty Bowls Preview Party on March 21st.

DONATE BOWLS
Make and donate bowls to help provide food for better lives! Bowls can be dropped off March 10 – 21 at the Ceramic Store (check website for business hours) or March 11 – 21 at HCCC during public hours (Tuesday – Saturday, 10 AM – 5 PM).

While you’re at HCCC, enjoy these other activities during our Day of Clay!
You’ll find family fun, artist demonstrations, exhibitions, and unique holiday shopping at this free day of activities celebrating the ceramic arts.

**Hands-on Houston: Clay Ornaments (indoors), 11 AM – 3 PM**
Embrace the holiday spirit by decorating an air-dry clay ornament with metallic embossing powder and unique designs.

**Ceramics in the Environment Opening Reception (Craft Garden), 3:30 – 5:00 PM**
Enjoy refreshments while you explore site-specific ceramic sculptures created by students from the MFAH’s Glassell School of Art.

**Holiday Pop-up Sale (indoors), 10 AM – 5 PM**
Find more great shopping inside HCCC at the Holiday Pop-up Sale.

Family units are beautifully diverse, each with their own unique composition and story. Celebrate the essence of family and the bonds that unite us by creating a miniature representation with customizable, wooden peg dolls. Through painting and accessorizing, bring these simple wooden figures to life, using paint, felt, and other materials to make them resemble the people you cherish the most.

Note: This activity will take place indoors and is on a first-come, first-served basis, while supplies last. Each group will be given a limited amount of wooden peg dolls.

HANDS-ON HOUSTON is a free drop-in event held the first Saturday of every month. Each month, a teaching artist or guild demonstrates a craft related to the current exhibitions. Community members of all ages are welcome to come any time between 11 AM and 3 PM and participate in a 15 – 20-minute activity. Materials are provided. This program supports HCCC’s mission to advance education about the process, product, and history of craft. Learn more.