Hand-building
Shape your own piece from raw stoneware clay, pinching, coiling and smoothing it into a bowl or small vessel. Pieces are dried, glazed and fired twice after the session.
COBA · Pottery
Pottery at COBA
Regular hand-building workshops at COBA, Nation Towers. Join one of our open sessions, or book pottery of your own for a private group, a celebration or your team.
About
Two hours with clay
Pottery at COBA is a slow, hands-on way to spend an afternoon or evening. There is no screen between you and the material, and for a couple of hours that is the whole of it. No experience is needed. Every session is guided from start to finish, and everyone leaves having made something of their own.
Sessions are led by Irina Dyachenko, the ceramicist behind Aesthii, a hand-built stoneware practice in Abu Dhabi. All clay, tools, aprons, glazes and kiln firings are included.
Two ways to work
Ceramic painting
Paint a ready-made bisque piece, such as a vase or bowl, with ceramic glazes in your own design. A relaxed option that works well for larger groups and themed events.
Regular workshops
A place at the table
Hand-building workshops run at COBA on a regular basis, in small groups of up to eight people, so everyone gets time and attention. Book a single place and come on your own or with a friend. New dates open as each one fills.
Next workshop
Feelings in Form, a hand-building workshop
Monday, 12 October 2026 · 6:00 to 8:00 pm · 350 AED per person
Book a session
Pottery for your group
Every format below can be booked on a date that suits you, as a hand-building session or, for groups, ceramic painting. Tell us about your group and we will shape the session around it.
Private workshops
A session reserved for you and the people you choose: friends, family, a couple, or a small group who want the table to themselves. The pace, the piece and the time are all arranged around you.
Corporate events
A team session that gets everyone off their screens and working with their hands. Suitable for team building, offsites, client events and national occasions, held at COBA in Nation Towers.
Private events
Birthdays, bridal and baby showers, anniversaries and other celebrations. Guests make or paint a piece together, and each one takes home a keepsake from the day.
Personalisation
Pieces can carry names, initials, dates, a colour palette or a company motif. A good fit for gifts, team keepsakes and events built around a theme.
How booking works
- 01
Enquire
Share your preferred date, the number of guests and the occasion.
- 02
Choose the format
Hand-building or ceramic painting, plus any personalisation or theme.
- 03
The session
Everything is prepared before you arrive. Two hours, guided throughout.
- 04
Collect
Pieces are glazed and fired, then ready to collect from COBA.
Good to know
- Do I need any experience?
- No. Most people at the table are working with clay for the first time.
- What is included?
- Clay or a bisque piece, tools, aprons, glazes, guidance and all kiln firings.
- When can I take my piece home?
- Hand-built pieces are ready in about three weeks, painted pieces in about two.
- Can the pieces be used for food?
- Workshop pieces are made for display and gentle handling, not for the oven or dishwasher.
Plan a pottery session
Pricing and group arrangements for private, corporate and personalised sessions are shared on request.
Enquire now
Your guide
Irina Dyachenko is the ceramicist behind Aesthii, working under the idea that objects carry feeling before they carry function.
COBA · Nation Towers Mall, First Floor, Abu DhabiPottery sessions led by Irina Dyachenko, Aesthii