Potters

The Country's Largest Community of Potters . . . Carrying on Tradition!

“Ceramic forms are the oldest record of human activity. I like being part of that conversation.”

- Beth Gore

I was especially drawn to clay during my Art Education training in college, and have been a fulltime potter for 28 years. I’ve had some kind of art project in the works since the day I was old enough to grip my first crayon. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a degree in Art Education,
I taught elementary school Art and then went to work as a decorator at a large pottery. The owner asked me to help with the books due to my experience in various office jobs during college, and the business grew so fast I never got out of the office. Wanting to get back to the creative process, I moved to NC in 1987 to open Cady Clay Works with my husband. As a child I spent weekends and summers in dusty basements and garages, trailing my parents who were searching for rustic antiques long before they became fashionable. I grew up surrounded by simple objects such as sturdy, well-made, unpretentious furniture and Red Wing crocks and jugs. Everything in our house was meant to be used. I have never drawn a distinction between art and craft, as I think both should enhance daily life, and enrich our simplest daily tasks. I love working in clay because it can be such an unpretentious medium, one that appeals to our senses in a visual as well as a tactile way, and one that every person can relate to. Our plastic reproduction, cyber-sophisticated world needs hand-made objects such as coffee mugs or graceful pottery vases to link humans back to the natural world. After spending several years on the “fringes” of the creative process; teaching children, doing pottery bookwork and glazing pieces thrown by my husband, I am making time to hand build with clay, which I have always loved. I like the organic, asymmetrical, often serendipitous forms that start with a simple slab of clay. The cool feel of clay in one’s hands and the joy of manipulating it toward the idea in one’s mind is restful and therapeutic, and the idea that a creation of mine may be on earth long after I’m gone seems like a magical connection to the future.

Potter:Beth Gore

Address:3883 Busbee Rd, NC 27341

Phone:910-464-5661

Email:cadyclay@yahoo.com

Studios:

Cady Clay Works

Beth Gore

Dinnerware

Bottle

Ava Dinnerware

Rooster

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Seagrove Potters

Posted 2 days ago

“IT IS AN HONOR TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO ENHANCE PEOPLE’S LIVES THROUGH OUR CREATIONS IN CLAY.”
- BEN OWEN III Ben Owen Pottery
Ben Owen III (b. 1968) is an American studio potter working in Seagrove, North Carolina. Born into a traditional pottery family, he was first introduced to clay by his grandfather when he was eight years old. Ben’s natural talent and unusual level of interest led to an apprenticeship with his grandfather and father by age 13. Through high school, he carefully studied the shapes, glazes, and traditions of the Owen aesthetic and learned to appreciate the history and legacy of generations of craft. During college, Ben’s interest in form, design, and color piqued; and he began to forge his own unique path in clay. Through technical exploration and academic influences, Ben’s clay vernacular began to evolve. Travels in the US attending workshops and conferences along with a fellowship in Japan, extended his continued research. He has said, “My approach to working in clay is inspired by many influences. Tradition and vision merge to forge the future, as I honor the historic Owen aesthetic while creating a new, unique body of work. Culture, blended with influences in nature, inspire my work. With studies in China, Japan, Australia and Europe, as well as in the university setting, I have continued to create a unique identity from culture and nature.” Ben’s recent passions have included glaze creation and experimentation. “For some pots, I use a four-chambered wood kiln with a firing process of up to four days. The prolonged exposure to ash and heat develops a wide range of color and texture on the clay. Other glaze techniques have evolved in a gas or electric kiln with a precision in temperature control to manipulate the finish. Some pieces are re-fired to develop layers and depth on the finish.” Works created by Mr. Owen are included in numerous museum collections including the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC; The International Folk Art Museum in Santa Fe, NM; The Schein-Joseph International Museum of Art in Alfred, NY; and The Mint Museum of Craft and Design in Charlotte, NC. Over the past decade, Ben has addressed the needs of designers and collectors to create custom works to be installed in a series of premier hotels and public spaces including the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Tokyo, Japan; Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary, NC; the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Boston, MA; and Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City, UT. Many of these vessels are much larger in scale and carefully designed to enhance the hotels’ stunning interiors. Mr. Owen has received many awards and honors, including North Carolina Living Treasure, 2004; and induction into the North Caroliniana Society.

Seagrove Potters added 4 new photos.

“IT IS AN HONOR TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO ENHANCE PEOPLE’S LIVES THROUGH OUR CREATIONS IN CLAY.”
- BEN OWEN III Ben Owen Pottery
Ben Owen III (b. 1968) is an American studio potter working in Seagrove, North Carolina. Born into a traditional pottery family, he was first introduced to clay by his grandfather when he was eight years old. Ben’s natural talent and unusual level of interest led to an apprenticeship with his grandfather and father by age 13. Through high school, he carefully studied the shapes, glazes, and traditions of the Owen aesthetic and learned to appreciate the history and legacy of generations of craft. During college, Ben’s interest in form, design, and color piqued; and he began to forge his own unique path in clay. Through technical exploration and academic influences, Ben’s clay vernacular began to evolve. Travels in the US attending workshops and conferences along with a fellowship in Japan, extended his continued research. He has said, “My approach to working in clay is inspired by many influences. Tradition and vision merge to forge the future, as I honor the historic Owen aesthetic while creating a new, unique body of work. Culture, blended with influences in nature, inspire my work. With studies in China, Japan, Australia and Europe, as well as in the university setting, I have continued to create a unique identity from culture and nature.” Ben’s recent passions have included glaze creation and experimentation. “For some pots, I use a four-chambered wood kiln with a firing process of up to four days. The prolonged exposure to ash and heat develops a wide range of color and texture on the clay. Other glaze techniques have evolved in a gas or electric kiln with a precision in temperature control to manipulate the finish. Some pieces are re-fired to develop layers and depth on the finish.” Works created by Mr. Owen are included in numerous museum collections including the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC; The International Folk Art Museum in Santa Fe, NM; The Schein-Joseph International Museum of Art in Alfred, NY; and The Mint Museum of Craft and Design in Charlotte, NC. Over the past decade, Ben has addressed the needs of designers and collectors to create custom works to be installed in a series of premier hotels and public spaces including the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Tokyo, Japan; Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary, NC; the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Boston, MA; and Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City, UT. Many of these vessels are much larger in scale and carefully designed to enhance the hotels’ stunning interiors. Mr. Owen has received many awards and honors, including North Carolina Living Treasure, 2004; and induction into the North Caroliniana Society. ...

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Seagrove Potters

Posted 1 week ago

“I LIKE THE WAY LOCAL SEAGROVE AREA CLAY RESPONDS TO WOOD FIRING.”
- DAVID STUEMPFLE
David lives and works in Seagrove NC making wood fired pottery. Originally from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, David began studying pottery in high school. After a two-year apprenticeship, he spent many years as a journeyman potter working in different parts of the
country. He has lived and worked for more than 20 years in Seagrove - a community with a long and evolving pottery heritage. Seagrove is a small, rural community located in the state’s clay-rich central piedmont. It is the center of a community of over 100 potters, many of whom can claim a genealogy of several generations of potters. David works and exhibits in US, Europe and Asia. US/Japan Creative Artists Fellowship recipient, NEA/Central and Eastern Europe Visual Arts Fellowship recipient. Collections: Mint Museum of Art, Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park Museum, Museum of International Folk Art.
For more info about seagrove potters like David Stuempfle, visit DiscoverSeagrove.com
Seagrove potters are open year round. Plan your trip today!

Seagrove Potters added 3 new photos.

“I LIKE THE WAY LOCAL SEAGROVE AREA CLAY RESPONDS TO WOOD FIRING.”
- DAVID STUEMPFLE
David lives and works in Seagrove NC making wood fired pottery. Originally from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, David began studying pottery in high school. After a two-year apprenticeship, he spent many years as a journeyman potter working in different parts of the
country. He has lived and worked for more than 20 years in Seagrove - a community with a long and evolving pottery heritage. Seagrove is a small, rural community located in the state’s clay-rich central piedmont. It is the center of a community of over 100 potters, many of whom can claim a genealogy of several generations of potters. David works and exhibits in US, Europe and Asia. US/Japan Creative Artists Fellowship recipient, NEA/Central and Eastern Europe Visual Arts Fellowship recipient. Collections: Mint Museum of Art, Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park Museum, Museum of International Folk Art.
For more info about seagrove potters like David Stuempfle, visit DiscoverSeagrove.com
Seagrove potters are open year round. Plan your trip today! ...

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Dolly FarmerWe were in Seagrove recently. Went to Jugtown 100 year celebration.

1 week ago · 1

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Seagrove Potters

Posted 1 week ago

Seagrove Potters shared Ceramics Monthly's photo.

Our own Seagrove Potter, Takuro Shibata has made the cover of Ceramics Monthly!! Congrats!! ...

The latest issue of #CeramicsMonthly has arrived. This is our #workingpotter issue and on the cover, we have Takuro Shibata's (Takuro Shibata Studio Touya) large jar, handbuilt local North Carolina st...

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