Working a pottery wheel at the College's Davidson's Pottery Studio, a student can look up at any time and glance through the window at the Connecticut River flowing by.
It is a magnificent vista and one of the things students say makes the studio, which lies just across the Ledyard bridge in Vermont, a special place.
"It's really great, especially on nice days," said Paul Graeve '96, who has worked at the studio since his Freshman Spring. "It kind of feels like you're off-campus."
Graeve -who spends much free time working on his own projects -is among the five or six workers at the studio who have the job of helping students get started on the pottery wheel.
He works under Karen Williamson, who came to the College in 1977 to take over the studio, which itself had only started up again in 1975 after being discontinued in 1968.
The studio is one of the three student workshops at the College. The other two are a Woodworking shop and a Jewelry Studio, both located in the basement of the Hop.
A student needs no experience before getting started at the studio.
"It's made for beginners. Karen is really good with helping people start off," said Laura Lutsk '95, who spends roughly four hours a week at the studio.
Williamson likens learning to use the pottery wheel to a person's first experiences riding a bicycle. It takes a lot of practice but then you never forget how to do it, she said.
She said it is very different from the kind of learning to which Dartmouth students are accustomed.
"Most Dartmouth students are used to reading something and understanding it right away," Williamson said. She said learning on the wheel is a more gradual process.
"She's one of the most kind people I've met," Graeve said. "She's an amazing teacher too."
The number of students using the studio can vary from term to term, but it is usually filled to capacity, which means 10 to 15 students work regularly on mastering the art of pottery.
"It really depends on the weather. During the winter, it's a little slower because people are a little wary of making the trek across the river," Graeve said.
But those who do take the time to walk across Ledyard bridge can eventually make anything from bowls to teapots to entire table settings.
