Ceramics festival Stoke on Clay is inviting everyone to meet the potters.
The independent celebration of the trade that made Stoke-on-Trent famous has seen scores of visitors view exhibits across five venues.
Now a special weekend has been organised to bring exhibitors together and to allow visitors to get insights into their work.
Festival co-director Eleni Brammer said: “We have attracted contributors from around the UK and beyond and the public has reacted with great enthusiasm.
“Our launch attracted over 250 people, and footfall has been consistently high. Unlike many festivals, almost all exhibits are for sale and many exhibitors are reporting brisk business.
“But we also know people want to find out more about the names behind the art and our Potters’ Weekend will give people both an insight into how the exhibitors make their wonderful creations and allow the exhibitors to come together for their own special event.”
The Potters’ Weekend takes place on Saturday and Sunday, 5th and 6th October.
There will be artists at the Spode Museum and Stoke Minster and three special demonstrations to enjoy.
Peter Larkin will be demonstrating the traditional art of creating stemmed pots on the potter’s wheel at the Spode Museum, Stoke town centre, from 11am on Saturday October 5.
Having first encountered clay at Wedgwood’s Barlaston factory, Peter went on to work in smaller studios and to teach at Newcastle College and Staffordshire Polytechnic.
Known as the Goblet Guy. he now creates functional stoneware in his own workshop in Stoke-on-Trent.
Jon French will discuss his work, life and travels at Stoke Minster, Glebe Street, Stoke, from 2pm on the Saturday. Aged just 16, Jon moved from Southern England to begin an apprenticeship with Wedgwood. Having learned his trade, Jon became a Wedgwood Ambassador, creating pottery for royalty and travelling the globe.
Following 30 years with Wedgwood, Jon struck out alone and established a studio at Middleport Pottery. He is now based at Potclays, Brickkiln Lane, Etruria, a Sroke on Clay sponsor. Jon continues to create pieces hand thrown on the potter’s wheel and shares his passion by running pottery classes.
Ceramic modeller and designer Nathan Smallman will demonstrate his craft at Stoke Minster on Sunday, October 6.
Based at the Roslyn Works, Longton, Nathan is known for incorporating painting into his pottery, particularly through his ‘Potteries Skyline’ pieces. During the demonstration, he will be decorating one of his signature Pot Banks, which features a tealight inside. He will showcase his technique by sponging on coloured bricks and tiles using underglaze oxides, offering a glimpse into the creation of his distinctive works.
To register an interest in Potters’ Weekend events, please go online to www.stokeonclay.com/potters-weekend.
Stoke on Clay began on September 7 and runs through to October 19. The festival is a huge undertaking for the four volunteer directors,
Paul and Eleni Brammer, Jan Roberts, and Simon Drakeford, who were drawn together through a combined passion for ceramics. They work alongside festival coordinator Caroline Kisielewicz.
Along with the Spode Museum and Stoke Minster, Stoke on Clay events are being held at the Brampton Museum, Newcastle-under-Lyme, the Clay College, Middleport and Lost and Found Projects, Burslem.
ENDS
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