A Brief History of the Blue Ridge Potters Guild
The Guild formed in 1996 with potters from the greater Roanoke area and New River Valley. The 19 original potters agreed that they wanted to share ideas and learning experiences, co-operative purchase of resources, and sales opportunity.
The guild now has over 75 members from the Roanoke Valley and surrounding areas including Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Lynchburg, Franklin, Floyd, Botetourt, and Wise Counties. Member experience ranges from those taking classes in community centers to professional potters with degrees in ceramic arts. All share a love of pottery and willingness to share their love of clay.
The Guild’s mission is to promote community awareness, understanding, and appreciation of ceramics. The Guild encourages artistic and professional growth among its members and promotes the craft of pottery to the public through programs, shows, and exhibits. The Guild provides educational opportunities for members and the public interested in pottery, such as workshops, shows and exhibits, scholarships, library donations, and gifts to educational programs.
Some well known VA potters have presented workshops in the past: Rick Hensley, Dan Finnegan, Donna Polseno, Ellen Shankin, Chris Gryder, Katherine Maloney, Steven Palmer, and Jake Johnson. Some smaller group learning opportunities are held in members' studios.
The Guild supports the community in clay explorations with scholarships to students and teachers for ceramic education.
Art teachers attend Guild workshops at no fee. Members can be found demonstrating at local festivals and teaching students in the school systems. Hundreds of hand made bowls are donated each year to help raise money to address hunger in Floyd, Smith Mountain Lake, and Ferrum.
The first annual Blue Ridge Potters Guild Show and Sale was held at Virginia Western Community College in 2000 with about 15 potters. As the show grew, it moved to Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke. It is now one of the largest all-pottery shows in Virginia, with 45-70 potters exhibiting their work.