Sophie Kang Min Yoon is a first generation Korean-American ceramic artist from Queens, NY. She received her BA in art education with a studio art concentration in ceramics from CUNY Queen College. Subsequently she has taught art within the NYC public school system and has assisted workshops in ceramics at numerous studios in the metropolitan area. She has been employed as a ceramics technician, studio manager, and production potter at several studios throughout New York and Long Island. She is the owner of Long Island Clay - Ceramics Studio in Huntington, NY which started operations in Jan 2025.
As an artist, Sophie K Yoon sees herself as working within her Korean artistic heritage while bridging the sensibilities and influence of the American experience. For her, this represents an articulated aesthetic composed of two distinct cultures—the historic norms of one and the contemporary of the other. Her passion is in alternative atmospheric firings, particularly wood firings. She seeks to find focus in a body of work which reflects and exemplifies her fascination with wood kilns and the aesthetic which resonates with her cultural and creative identity. In her work, she seeks to embody the duality between exercising control over the media and then welcoming the elements of chance that come into play in the process of altering the forms. Experimenting with the dichotomy of control and chaos—like the halves that render whole a moon jar—the forms she creates aspire to the essence of elegance and tradition while allowing for the fire to apply serendipitous moments to the surface—the act of relinquishing control. Creating a canvas to accommodate the interaction of clay and fire, her forms, whether altered or perfectly smooth, invoke the autonomy of the flame.
In this four day train kiln workshop. Participants and Sophie will work together to explore the excitement and potential of discovering a new kiln. This workshop will work with a variety of glazes, flashing slips, and loading techniques to mutually discover the potential of firing our train kiln as it relates to Sophie’s foundation of firing large wood kilns for a variety of atmospheric effects. Our approach to learning will be inherently collaborative and encourage participants to engage in active problem solving alongside experienced guidance to discover to avenues for creativity and expression.
Each participant should bring enough work to fill approximately 2 cubic feet of bisque fired cone 10 work. We also encourage students to bring a few extra “stuffer” pieces that are approximately 3x2x2. These are not priority pieces, but are easy to use to fill gaps in the kiln, and can be added if there is extra space. After registration participants will receive an email with a list of cone 10 clays and any extra information on the workshop.
5 Participant Maximum
Workshop Schedule:
Day-1:
Students arrived at Oki Doki Studio at 9:30 a.m. Grace will give an artist talk and discuss the group goals that frame the firing. The group will spend the day discussing glazing and loading strategies as they load the kiln together, and set a stoking schedule for the remaining two days of the firing.
Day-2 and 3:
Students work together during their agreed upon shifts to fire the train kiln. Learning about a variety of different stoking patterns, how to control the kiln, manage the coal bed, and how to reduction cool the kiln.
The kiln cools for 3 days after the firing. Students will return to the studio for opening day.
Day-4:
10 am students return to The Oki Doki Studio to open and unload the kiln, and have a group critique to digest the outcome of the firing. The group will clean up the kiln, and also talk about strategies for cleaning and finishing the fired work.
Learn more about Sophie by following her on instagram, @sophiekyoon.ceramics , or by visiting her website https://www.sophiekyoon.com/.
Sophie Kang Min Yoon is a first generation Korean-American ceramic artist from Queens, NY. She received her BA in art education with a studio art concentration in ceramics from CUNY Queen College. Subsequently she has taught art within the NYC public school system and has assisted workshops in ceramics at numerous studios in the metropolitan area. She has been employed as a ceramics technician, studio manager, and production potter at several studios throughout New York and Long Island. She is the owner of Long Island Clay - Ceramics Studio in Huntington, NY which started operations in Jan 2025.
As an artist, Sophie K Yoon sees herself as working within her Korean artistic heritage while bridging the sensibilities and influence of the American experience. For her, this represents an articulated aesthetic composed of two distinct cultures—the historic norms of one and the contemporary of the other. Her passion is in alternative atmospheric firings, particularly wood firings. She seeks to find focus in a body of work which reflects and exemplifies her fascination with wood kilns and the aesthetic which resonates with her cultural and creative identity. In her work, she seeks to embody the duality between exercising control over the media and then welcoming the elements of chance that come into play in the process of altering the forms. Experimenting with the dichotomy of control and chaos—like the halves that render whole a moon jar—the forms she creates aspire to the essence of elegance and tradition while allowing for the fire to apply serendipitous moments to the surface—the act of relinquishing control. Creating a canvas to accommodate the interaction of clay and fire, her forms, whether altered or perfectly smooth, invoke the autonomy of the flame.
In this four day train kiln workshop. Participants and Sophie will work together to explore the excitement and potential of discovering a new kiln. This workshop will work with a variety of glazes, flashing slips, and loading techniques to mutually discover the potential of firing our train kiln as it relates to Sophie’s foundation of firing large wood kilns for a variety of atmospheric effects. Our approach to learning will be inherently collaborative and encourage participants to engage in active problem solving alongside experienced guidance to discover to avenues for creativity and expression.
Each participant should bring enough work to fill approximately 2 cubic feet of bisque fired cone 10 work. We also encourage students to bring a few extra “stuffer” pieces that are approximately 3x2x2. These are not priority pieces, but are easy to use to fill gaps in the kiln, and can be added if there is extra space. After registration participants will receive an email with a list of cone 10 clays and any extra information on the workshop.
5 Participant Maximum
Workshop Schedule:
Day-1:
Students arrived at Oki Doki Studio at 9:30 a.m. Grace will give an artist talk and discuss the group goals that frame the firing. The group will spend the day discussing glazing and loading strategies as they load the kiln together, and set a stoking schedule for the remaining two days of the firing.
Day-2 and 3:
Students work together during their agreed upon shifts to fire the train kiln. Learning about a variety of different stoking patterns, how to control the kiln, manage the coal bed, and how to reduction cool the kiln.
The kiln cools for 3 days after the firing. Students will return to the studio for opening day.
Day-4:
10 am students return to The Oki Doki Studio to open and unload the kiln, and have a group critique to digest the outcome of the firing. The group will clean up the kiln, and also talk about strategies for cleaning and finishing the fired work.
Learn more about Sophie by following her on instagram, @sophiekyoon.ceramics , or by visiting her website https://www.sophiekyoon.com/.
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