Hand building makes pots without a wheel, and it covers three methods that have been used for thousands of years: pinching a lump into a form, coiling ropes of clay into a wall, and joining flat slabs. Between them they make almost anything a wheel can and several things it cannot.
Pinching
A ball of clay opened with a thumb and thinned between thumb and fingers, turning as you go. It is the simplest way to make a bowl and the best way to learn what clay does under pressure. The limit is size: a pinch pot is bounded by what fits in your hands, though two joined at the rim make a hollow form that can be opened and worked further.
Coiling
Ropes of clay laid on top of each other and joined, then smoothed inside and out. Coiling builds large and asymmetrical forms that a wheel cannot, and it does so slowly and controllably. The join between coils is the weak point, so each is scored, slipped and blended rather than simply stacked, and the wall is built in stages so the lower part firms enough to carry the upper.
Slab building
Flat sheets of even thickness cut and joined, which is how boxes, tiles and any angular form is made. Evenness matters more here than anywhere: uneven slabs dry at different rates and the joins tear. Slabs are usually assembled at soft leather hard, firm enough to stand and soft enough to join.
What clay to use
A grogged body, for all three. Grog reduces shrinkage and cracking, which matters more in hand building than on the wheel because hand-built forms are thicker and have more joins. A smooth throwing body can be hand built and is less forgiving of thick sections and long drying.
Questions people ask about hand building pottery
What are the hand building methods?
Pinching, coiling and slab building. Between them they make almost anything a wheel can and several things it cannot.
What clay is best for hand building?
A grogged body. Grog reduces shrinkage and cracking, which matters because hand-built work is thicker and has more joins.
Do I need any equipment?
Almost none: a serrated kidney for scoring, something to smooth with, and a way to roll even slabs if you are slab building.