Candace Bell

Candace makes mostly functional pottery with a whimsical flair: mugs, bowls, vases, jars, tumblers, plates, platters, pitchers, and teapots. 

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She creates texture and interest using slip, carving, and by altering forms. While most of her current work is fired in an electric kiln using green, brown, blue, and red glazes, she likes to fire some of her work in a wood kiln to achieve special glaze effects and to accentuate the texture and form of her pieces. 

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Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/BellMountainPottery

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Bob Campbell

Bob Campbell got his first touch of love with pottery when he saw a PBS show of a Japanese potter who went through the entire process of digging clay, throwing pieces, firing and glazing. ​"I had done some painting, some drawing, some stained glass, some candle making, some photography, etc. and just thought I'd like to give pottery a try," he says. He made the remark to his wife, who decided that for his 50th birthday she would surprise him with the gift of his first round of classes held at a local Roanoke elementary school with instructor Phil Weaver. ​"That was 27 years ago," Bob states with a smile, "and I don't plan on stepping away from the wheel or the slab roller any time soon.

The feel of the clay is most rewarding." Bob shares about what makes clay so appealing to him as an art medium, "I am primarily tactile and then visual, so clay meets those needs. It's really the therapeutic benefits above a certain look or style that keeps him mired in the clay. "Aesthetically," he explains, "the beauty is in the process." Rather than having a definite shape or goal in mind when he sits down at the wheel, Bob says he prefers to let the work evolve as he handles the clay. "I don't always know when I cut a piece of clay and sit at the wheel exactly where I want to go," he shares, "This keeps mystery in the process for me." Perhaps it's the willingness to "go with the flow: that give his work a balanced and fluid style. 

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Stephanie Duston

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Instagram: @oddfoxpottery  Website: oddfoxpottery.com  

I first started taking ceramic classes in 2012 and have been pursuing ceramics as my major hobby since 2015. I use both wheel throwing and hand building methods to make functional and decorative pottery. Having a tactile feel to my work is important, so I often try to use matte glazes. My background is heavy in soil and geology, which also influences the feel and structure of my work. Carving clay reminds me of exploring the face of a fresh soil pit, with gradiens of color blending into each other, albeit you generally don't find the bright colors I use in a soil profile! I have recently begun to teach hang building classes in Blacksburg, VA at the YMCA, which is a joy. My work is available online and can be found at local and regional craft shows. 

Stephanie H. Firestone - Sculptor and Painter

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Instagram: @stephaniefirestone7012      Facebook: Stephanie Firestone Sculpture   website: www.stephaniefirestone.com

Phone: 703-635-6139 

I ran a full-service graphic design studio before returning to fine art which was my major in college. After decades of working on the computer, clay was a welcoming medium! I started back into art with functional pottery; and have since then revisited sculpture and painting. Clay is still my medium of choice but I have added mixed-media to my work. I find the combinations to be fascinating and compelling.

As a sculptor of the human figure, I switch between soft realism and angular cubism. Influences for me are the study of the human figure, the colors of the Southwest, architectural wonders such as the Notre Dame Cathedral, and textiles. My paintings typically are light abstracts.

Rebecca Fowler

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Pottery is a passion for me. When I am in my studio creating, time doesn’t exist, hours pass with no concept of how long I have been working. I am at total peace with the clay and my creator. This journey with clay began in 2008, I had become a caregiver for my Mom and it was suggested that Pottery would be a stress reliever. I took one class and was hooked. I joined the BRPG in 2011 after taking Private Art Classes and many Pottery classes and seminars. I choose to do mostly functional pottery because I want my pieces to be touched and used on a daily basis. I love painting in underglazes because it is similar to water colors in the flow and translucent qualities. I hope to have many years to enjoy and explore clay.

Cole Franz

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In her home workshop, Cole makes pottery that is mostly functional, round and striped. Her pieces are exclusively for sale at the BRPG annual show and sale.

Nell J. Fredericksen

Sugar Grove Studios

(540) 365-7400

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.      website: www.nellfredericksen.com

The natural world, the beauty that I see in everything around me flows both consciously and subconsciously through all my designs.  I love taking the raw materials and making them “move” with my hands into the shapes and textures that I picture in my mind.  That, plus the play of colors on those shapes with different glazes, produces pottery that is both decorative and functional.

Nell has been a professional goldsmith/jeweler and potter for more than 28years.  She is an ACV Juried Master Artisan and Juried Round the Mountain Artisan.  She teaches a broad slate of Metalsmithing courses for the Floyd Center for the Arts in Floyd, VA

Judy Lackey

My name is Judy Lackey, potter and owner of Crooked Creek Pottery. ​

I focus mainly on functional pottery such as bowls, platters, lamps, vases and jars with lids thrown on the wheel and by using hand building methods. ​

My preferred glazes are those with deep blues and greens along with grays and brown tones. In addition, I construct structural, decorative pieces such as my white porcelain angels, my vibrant red Santa hats, and new this year, my unique, fun snowmen. ​

You can see my work at: https://crookedcreekpottery.square.site

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Elizabeth McAdams

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Instagram: @elizabethmcadamspottery          Facebook: @elizabethmcadamspottery

I am a North Carolina native that grew up on my family’s farm in Efland NC. I graduated with a degree in Studio Art at University of North Carolina Wilmington and a minor in Art History. My love of clay evolved from taking ceramics courses during college. After graduating I worked as a floral designer in Wilmington, NC, where I worked for a busy wedding florist from 2012 to 2017. To follow my passion for clay, I began taking classes at a local community arts center, Orange St. Pottery in Wilmington, NC and also joined the Coastal Carolina Clay Guild.

I decided I wanted to pursue my passion further and did a year long wood firing ceramics residency at Cub Creek Foundation under Director John Jessiman, in Appomattox,Va. during 2018. My time there was a catalyst for a deepened appreciation of pottery and furthering my exploration in clay. In 2019, I participated in the working artist program at Longwood University in Farmville, Va. I was a studio assistant at a small craft school, Sugar Maples, in Maplecrest, NY for the summer of 2019. From the fall of 2019 to fall of 2021 I apprenticed for potter Silvie Granatelli in Floyd, VA.

I recently moved into a studio space in the Floyd Center for the Arts to pursue my craft where I am also the Studio Manager of the community pottery center there. I strive to make work that serves the user with functionality through gracious lines and curves. My glaze choices emphasize texture and pattern. Forms are inspired by nature, fashion design, and classic shapes. It is my aim to create pieces that are functional as well as aesthetically pleasing.

Lee Niebuhr

Jim Privitera

(540) 985-8698

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.        website: www.stonewareclay.com 

Long before I started to work with clay I was a purchased many pieces from small studios and individual potters. I was always impressed with their skill at producing unique work. The gifts and collected work were attractive, functional and had character. In the late 90's I took a class in pottery and started on a journey that eventually led to Earthworks Pottery. Earthworks has two major functions: to teach classes in making pottery, and to sell the ware made at the studio. Potters seem to be a special group of people and the classes are always challenging and interesting. There is a gallery attached to the studio and it is open for browsing and sales. 

Susanne Sellars

susannesellars.com 

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I enjoy making a variety of pottery forms from bowls and serving platters, to animal themed tea pots (elephants, camels, giraffes, and llamas). ​I work on the wheel and handbuild both decorative and functional items. I particularly enjoy using a variety of finishing techniques including colored slips, glazes, and carving.​

Joanne Snyder

703-606-3906

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I have enjoyed making pottery off and on for over 40 years. It started with an adult education class in the mid 1970s. In between raising a family and working full-time, I found studios in Northern Virginia where I could take classes. After retiring and moving to Smith Mountain Lake, I discovered Earthworks in Vinton. Wheel throwing has been my main focus, but I have recently begun taking classes in hand building and I enjoy it a great deal. Although I am strictly a hobby potter, I continue to improve my skills and have found true camaraderie among the group of members of the Blue Ridge Potters Guild.

Barbara Wise

I began my journey with clay in 2004. I experiment with impressions in plates and bowls. For the last few years, I have been making lamps that look like stacked rocks, raku lamps and vases. My pottery is functional and decorative. Pottery has enriched my life in many ways and has become my hobby and passion.