North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC, Names Lindsey Lambert as Center’s New Director

The board of directors of the North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC, are pleased to announce the hiring of Lindsey Lambert as the center’s new executive director. He will officially start at the beginning of June.

Lambert is the former director of the Brock Historical Museum and College Archives at Greensboro College, a position he held for over a decade, and he is the current board president of the North Carolina Museums Council (NCMC), an all-volunteer 501(c)(3) organization comprised of several hundred museum professionals across the state.

Lambert has a BA in History from NCSU and a MA in Public History from Appalachian State University. On NCMC’s board, he has previously served as nominating chair, treasurer, and vice president. He comes to the Pottery Center with a solid array of museum, technical, networking and grant writing skills, as well as a youthful energy and a sound appreciation of pottery and its traditions. Mark Hewitt, current president of the Pottery Center’s board, says, “It is good news that the Pottery Center has someone so capable to direct its activities, and we expect his tenure to coincide with increased visibility for the Pottery Center, its mission, and all the potters of North Carolina.” Lambert was born, raised and still resides in Randolph County.

Of the Pottery Center, Lambert says, “Working collaboratively we can help the Pottery Center to better realize its full potential of promoting public awareness and appreciation of the history, heritage, and ongoing tradition of pottery making in North Carolina. In addition to serving as the Pottery Center’s director, I am also becoming a member at the Sustainer level because I support the center’s mission and feel that it is important to support it financially as well as through my work.”

Hewitt also says, “Thanks must be given to the tireless Board members and advisors who wrote grants to Z. Smith Reynolds and the John Hanes Foundation that provided funds for the position. Thanks go also to the members of the search committee for identifying our new director. There are many fine people working on behalf of the Center, and we are delighted to have Lambert leading such a talented and dedicated team.”

Currently on display until July 27 is an exhibit entitled “Big Red: Chrome Red and Other Red Glazes of the North Carolina Piedmont.”

Exhibitions are made possible through the generosity of our membership, the John W. & Anna H. Hanes Foundation, the Mary and Elliott Wood Foundation and the Goodnight Educational Foundation. This project was supported by the N.C. Arts Council, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources, with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts. Thank you!

The mission of the North Carolina Pottery Center is to promote public awareness of and appreciation for the history, heritage, and ongoing tradition of pottery making in North Carolina. The Center is located at 233 East Avenue in Seagrove, NC. Hours of operation are Tue. – Sat., 10am – 4pm.

For more information, please call 336/873-8430 or visit (www.ncpotterycenter.org).

NC Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC, Offers Popular Fundraiser – Potter’s Palette 2 – May 4, 2013

Rembrandt, Van Gogh, and Jackson Pollack have nothing on the potters of North Carolina. Can you buy an Old Master canvas? I didn’t think so. But you can buy a fabulous painting, on a 12” x 12” canvas, produced by one of the mighty potters of North Carolina!

Work by Mark Hewitt

Not only can you get a great painting to enjoy in your home, but when you bid on one, you’ll also be supporting the North Carolina Pottery Center.

We’re very excited about our upcoming fundraiser, The Potter’s Palette 2, and invite you to mark your calendars and come to the Pottery Center for this exciting auction on Saturday, May 4, 2013, from  4–7pm.

Last year’s event was entertaining, and the canvases were superb. We plan to raise more money and have more fun this year! There will be live music, a buffet, and beer and wine. Many of the painting potters will attend as featured guests.

Eck McCanless working on his piece

Tickets for the event will be $15.00 per person or 2 for $25.00. Don’t miss the excitement!

Potters, in case you didn’t already know, are very creative people, and can paint beautifully, as well as make fabulous pots, so, who knows, you might end up with a painting that becomes an Old Master!

We’ll be posting images of all the canvases and further details online prior the event.

Work by Fred Johnston

Please RSVP by Apr. 30, 2013. Call the Pottery Center at 336/873-8430 (Tue.-Sat., 10am-4pm). All the details and images of works can be see at (www.ncpotterycenter.org).

Lincoln County Historical Association Receives North Carolina Museums Council’s Award of Excellence for Book “Valley Ablaze: Pottery Tradition in the Catawba Valley”

On March 24th and 25th, as part of the Annual Conference in Raleigh, NC, the North Carolina Museums Council presented a slate of awards to individuals and institutions that exemplify excellence in the museum community around the state. Award recipients come from museums of all sizes, budgets, and geographic locations around the state.

The awards program is a long-standing part of the annual meeting to recognize, encourage, and promote excellence within the activities of the museum community and organizations in related fields of interest. This year, NCMC awarded four Awards of Excellence, two Awards of Special Recognition, the Emerging Professional Award, the Professional Service Award, the Dennis T. Lawson Memorial Award, and the William T. Alderson Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Lincoln County Historical Association of Lincolnton, North Carolina received an Award of Excellence for the book “Valley Ablaze: Pottery Tradition in Catawba Valley,” by Jason Harpe and Brian Dedmond, with photography by Melanie Dawn Crouse.  Designed and published by Nathan W. Moehlmann of Goosepen Studio & Press, in Conover, North Carolina, Valley Ablaze is a 242-page hardcover volume that chronicles the rich pottery tradition in the Catawba Valley region of North Carolina from the late eighteenth century to the present.  Traditional and contemporary alkaline-glazed forms and wood-fired groundhog kilns come alive in full color photographs mixed with vintage images of potters and their work.

With a foreword by Dr. Charles “Terry” Zug, author of the acclaimed Turners and Burners: The Folk Potters of North Carolina, and contributions from Scott Smith, Jeff Pruett, and Barry Huffman (all noted scholars and authors of Catawba Valley pottery in particular and North Carolina’s ceramic tradition in general), Valley Ablaze spotlights over 1,000 pieces of masterfully crafted utilitarian forms from the Catawba Valley’s earliest documented potters in the late eighteenth century to the face jugs of Burlon Craig, the nationally-recognized folk potter from Lincoln County who kept this pottery tradition alive from the 1960s through the early 1980s.

Also showcased is the work of contemporary potters who directly or indirectly learned traditional methods of production from Burlon Craig, such as Charles Lisk, whose pieces are sought nationally by collectors and exhibited in museums across the country, and Kim Ellington, who was featured in the NC Museum of Art’s exhibition and catalog The Potter’s Eye. A new group of potters who are continuing the tradition while adding their own unique and special adaptations to utilitarian forms are also thoroughly documented, most for the first time.

The NCMC began in December 4, 1963, when 35 museum professionals met in downtown Raleigh at the Sir Walter Raleigh Hotel and proposed the establishment of an organization that would connect colleagues throughout the state and promote their institutions regionally and nationally.

NCMC’s current mission is to enhance public education by improving the administrative, interpretive, and collections practices of museums, historic sites, science centers and related facilities in North Carolina; and to stimulate public support for the work performed by these facilities.

This year marks 50 years that the North Carolina Museum’s Council has provided a unified voice for museum’s and museum professionals in North Carolina.

To learn more about “Valley Ablaze: Pottery Tradition in the Catawba Valley,” visit (www.valleyablaze.com), and for more information on the North Carolina Museums Council, visit (www.ncmuseums.org).

North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC, Offers New Potters Directory and Redesigned Website

The North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC, is very happy to announce the completion of the new Potters Directory on our redesigned web site (http://www.ncpotterycenter.org/directory.html).

A big thank you goes to our web designer, Kris Julian, who has done an outstanding job. He’ll soon add a mapping function which will show an overview of all the member listings on a Google map with the ability to get directions.  No need to ever get lost finding your favorite pottery again!

Hickory Museum of Art in Hickory, NC, Offers Book Signing and Panel Discussion for VALLEY ABLAZE: Pottery Tradition in the Catawba Valley – Feb. 17, 2013

The Hickory Museum of Art, in Hickory, NC, along with authors Jason L. Harpe and Brian Dedmond and photographer Melany Dawn Crouse, will host a book signing on Sunday, Feb. 17, 2013, from 2-4pm, for “VALLEY ABLAZE: Pottery Tradition in the Catawba Valley”. Collectors and authors Dr. Allen and Barry Huffman, author and collector Dr. Robert Hart of Hart Square, and Catawba Valley potter Kim Ellington will lead a panel discussion, with slide presentations, on Catawba Valley pottery and the significance of “Valley Ablaze”. A book signing will follow the presentations, and refreshments and social hour will be held in the Hickory Museum of Art’s Second Floor Coe Gallery. Harpe, Dedmond, and Crouse will raffle a dozen special commemorative pieces of Catawba Valley pottery at the end of the reception. Visitors are encouraged to tour the museum’s current exhibitions “A Tribute to Will Henry Stevens (1881-1949)” and “DISCOVER FOLK ART: Unique Visions by Southern Self-Taught Artists” in the Hickory Museum of Art Collection.

Designed and published by Nathan W. Moehlmann of Goosepen Studio & Press, in Conover, NC, “Valley Ablaze” is a 242-page hardcover volume that chronicles the rich pottery tradition in the Catawba Valley region of North Carolina from the late eighteenth century to the present. Traditional and contemporary alkaline-glazed forms and wood-fired groundhog kilns come alive in full color photographs mixed with vintage images of potters and their work.

With a forward by Dr. Charles “Terry” Zug, and contributions from scholars Scott Smith, Jeff Pruett, and Barry Huffman, “Valley Ablaze” spotlights over 1,000 pieces of masterfully crafted utilitarian forms from the Catawba Valley’s earliest documented potters and face jugs of Burlon Craig, nationally-recognized folk potter from Lincoln County who kept this pottery tradition alive from the 1960s through the early 1980s.  Also showcased is the work of contemporary potters who directly or indirectly learned traditional methods of production from Burlon Craig, and a new group of potters who are continuing the tradition while adding their own unique and special adaptations to utilitarian forms.

The book signing, presentations, and reception will be held at the Hickory Museum of Art, 243 Third Avenue NE, Hickory, NC, on Sunday, Feb. 17, 2013, from 2-4pm. The event is free and open to the public.  The Museum is open on Sundays from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.

The retail price of the “Valley Ablaze” is $49.95. For the Hickory Museum of Art panel discussion and book signing event, the book will be available at the discounted price of $45.00, including tax. The dozen special commemorative pieces of Catawba Valley pottery will be raffled at the end of the event. Raffle tickets are free with a book purchase or available for sale.

For more information, including ordering copies of the book, payment methods, and upcoming book signings, please visit the “Valley Ablaze” website at (www.ValleyAblaze.com) or contact us via e-mail at (info@valleyablaze.com). You can also visit our “Valley Ablaze” Facebook page.

Visit the Hickory Museum of Art at (www.hickorymuseumofart.org) for information to learn more about museum’s location, exhibitions, and special offerings.

Donna Craven Pottery in Asheboro, NC, Presents Holiday Open House – Dec. 15, 2012

The Donna Craven Pottery in Asheboro, NC, will present its annual Holiday Open House on Dec. 15, 2012, from 9am to 5pm. On hand will be wood-fired, salt-glazed, functional and decorative works by Donna Craven.

Craven began working as a journeyman potter in the Seagrove, NC, area in 1996. She sent years working day and night with various artists and studios in the Seagrove community. She built her first groundhog kiln in the spring of 2001 with help from her father and friends and held her first kiln opening later that year.

Craven’s pots are wood-fired and salt glazed. Wood firing gives the pots a rich surface that is a reflection of the earth based materials. The kiln is fired to cone 12 (2450 degrees F) in about sixteen hours with an overnight preheat. The oxygen content of the kiln is “reduced” early on in the process; when the correct temperature is achieved, salt is introduced, and the temperature regained before a crash cooling process.

Craven is well known for her larger pieces that are thrown and coiled with a one-inch extended coil. Her work is grounded in tradition, yet reflect her own influences that produce a combination of strength, simplicity and gracefulness that is undeniably unique. She frequently employs a taped decoration technique using manganese or a combination of crackle slips and ash glaze to achieve her effects.

Donna Craven Pottery is located at 2616 Old Cox Road, just outside of Asheboro, NC.

For info call 336/629-8173 or e-mail to (donnacraven@embarqmail.com).

North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC, Offers Free Admission for American Craft Week – Oct. 5 – 14, 2012

The North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC, “for people who love the potter’s craft” is supporting American Craft Week, Oct. 5 – 14, 2012. In honor and recognition of this important statewide craft the Center will have free admission during this time frame.

It is the mission of the North Carolina Pottery Center to promote public awareness and appreciation of the history, heritage, and ongoing tradition of pottery-making in North Carolina through educational programs, public services, collection and preservation.

The North Carolina Pottery Center is your first stop in exploring our state’s deep heritage in pottery. Located in Seagrove, one of the state’s key pottery centers, the North Carolina Pottery Center offers a variety of exhibits and activities that will delight the novice and enthusiast alike. Permanent exhibits trace the history of NC Pottery from the Native Americans to the present. Changing exhibits focus on topics of both historic and contemporary work by the state’s potters. Displays and information will help you find your way to the potteries of Seagrove and around the state.

The current exhibit on display during American Craft Week is “The Collector’s Eye II: Seven Perspectives”, which features approximately 140 pots from seven female collectors and contains examples of the very best of their collections. On Saturdays, a local potter gives day-long demonstrations in the Center’s Education Building.

The NCPC is a private nonprofit entity, funded primarily through memberships, grants, admissions, and appropriations.

The Center is open, Tue. – Sat., 10am-4pm. Admission (excluding free special events): $2 – adults, $1 – students 9th through 12th grades, Free – children through 8th grade, free – NCPC members. Handicap accessible. Groups and tours welcomed.

For further information and details call 336/873-8430 or visit (www.NCPotteryCenter.org).

 

 

 

Garth Clark visits North Carolina to discuss the Future of Traditional Pottery

Garth Clark is considered by many to be one of the great contemporary critics and writers in the field of ceramics.  South African by birth, he has lived in the US since the mid nineteen-seventies.  He ran galleries in LA and NYC with his partner Mark del Vecchio for thirty years.  He has been a prolific writer and advocate of ceramics in all its forms, and has lectured all over the world.  This affords the state of NC and its potters a unique opportunity to exchange ideas with one of our field’s brightest thinkers.

On Oct. 16, 2012, in Charlotte, NC (10am-3pm): Clark will deliver the keynote lecture in a symposium called “Traditional Pottery: Back to the Future,” presented by the Delhom Service League at the Mint Museum’s Randolph Road location.  After Garth’s lecture there will be ample time for audience participation. The keynote address will be preceded by shorter presentations by Matt Jones, Mark Hewitt and Charlotte Brown Wainwright. The symposium is organized by the Delhom Service League, an affiliate group of The Mint Museum devoted to the support and study of ceramics. Admission is $25 or $20 for Mint members and includes lunch. Reservations will be required.  Contact: Barbara Perry by e-mail at (bperry10@att.net).

On Oct. 18, 2012, in Raleigh, NC (6-8pm):  Clark will deliver a lecture on the subject of traditional pottery, its present and future, and host questions from the audience.  Event will be held at the Gregg Museum at NC State University, located at 2610 Cates Ave, 2nd floor Talley Student Center. For info call 919/515-3503 or visit (www.ncsu.edu/arts).

On Oct. 20, 2012, in Asheville, NC (2-4pm):  Clark will participate in a panel discussion moderated by Andrew Glasgow. Other panelists will include Mark del Vecchio (writer and gallerist), Mark Hewitt (potter), and Jean Mclaughlin (executive director of the Penland School of Craft).  The event will be hosted by UNCA and the Center for Craft Creativity and Design and held on the campus of UNCA. Exact Location TBA. For info call UNCA’s Art Department at 828/251-6559 or at (http://art.unca.edu/).

 

 

 

9th Annual Hilton Homeplace Pottery Sale Takes Place in Newton, NC – Oct. 13, 2012

The 9th annual Hilton Homeplace Pottery Sale will be held on Saturday, Oct. 13, 2012, from 8am to 4pm at the old C.R. Hilton home place in the community of Blackburn, outside of Newton, NC.

A number of local potters connected to the Hilton family will be represented, including B. R. (Bob) Hilton, 4th generation potter of the Hilton family, Sybil Scronce Hedspeth of Pottery by Sybil, Judy Petrie of Carolina Cameo, and John Hilton, grandson of famed post-Civil War potter John Wesley Helton. A limited number of pieces will be available from Heather Hilton, Bob’s daughter, now a 5th generation potter from the Hilton family, and Irene Hatley, granddaughter of C.R. Hilton.

Bob Hilton, who resides at the home place, has renovated an old building on the property that he uses as a gallery full time. Nine years ago he decided to begin the annual sale to honor his heritage and share some of the long history of the Hilton family with others who are interested in pottery as traditional vessels. The Hiltons were known for usable, functional pieces, and Bob continues his work in that same tradition, as the family has for close to 150 years. The C. R. Hilton home place is about two miles from the original site of John Wesley Hilton’s pottery shop, who began the pottery industry for the Hilton family after the Civil War.

Sybil Scronce Hedspeth of Pottery by Sybil grew up in the Blackburn community and now lives and turns in Granite Falls, NC. Judy Petrie of Carolina Cameo applies clay slip in relief on traditional pottery. Judy began her craft more than thirty years ago on pieces turned for her by Boyd Shuford Hilton, Bob’s late father. John Hilton lives and turns in Lincoln County.

Light refreshments will be served. Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church will offer breakfast and lunch on the grounds, with proceeds benefiting mission work that the church supports. Live turning demonstrations will occur throughout the day.

The address is 4026 Old State Road in Newton, NC.

For directions, a map or any other information, go to (www.hiltonhomeplace.com), or call 704/462-1304.

 

 

 

Falling Rivers Gallery in Albemarle, NC, Presents 5th Annual Pottery Show – Sept. 28 and 29, 2012

Falling Rivers Gallery and the Stanly Arts Guild in Albemarle, NC, is honored to host “Celebrating our Pottery Harvest”, the 5th Annual Pottery Show at the Gallery, located at 119 West Main Street in Albemarle. The Show will be held on September 28th and 29th, Friday and Saturday. The hours are 10am-5pm on both days with an open reception held until 7pm on Friday evening. Potters from Stanly and surrounding counties will showcase their work and offer them for sale. For the past four years, the show has attracted pottery enthusiasts from across the state.  This year’s event includes returning potters as well as first-time participants.

“We are expecting to have a great selection of new work by our current members and visiting potters at this year’s show. As always, we want to expose the public to innovative new artists as well as bring new collections from their favorite local potters” states Nancy Lipe, Gallery Director of Falling Rivers Gallery. Unlike traditional pottery shows, this event is able to utilize the resources of the Gallery for checkout and wrapping.

“This show is fun for the potters as they can spend their time interacting with customers and each other, and also for the customers as they have a single checkout rather than having to pay each potter individually for purchases.  It creates a very laid-back atmosphere in this very beautiful Gallery setting” adds Bobbie Listerman from River Road Clayworks.

This year the Gallery will host pottery from eight area potteries including three potteries participating for the first time.

The Falling Rivers Gallery is the cooperative sales venue of the Stanly Arts Guild and is supported in part by the Albemarle Downtown Improvement LLC and the Stanly County Arts Council, and receives support from the North Carolina Arts Council, an agency of the Department of Cultural Resources, and the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes a great nation deserves great art.

More information can be found on our website at (www.fallingriversgallery.com).