On my recent visit to Asheville in North Carolina, my brother-in-law took us on a tour of the River Arts District. It had been 2 years since I had visited and like all my return visits to Asheville there was something new to see, this time the RAD appeared to have extended further along the railroad and the banks of the French Broad, and the Graffiti artists had begun to make their mark on the newly occupied buildings.
My brother-in-law also kindly offered to introduce me to some of the potters he had been working with for his Empty Bowls fundraiser event for MANNA Foodbank which serves communities across Western and Northern Carolina. Empty Bowls is an annual event, now in its 18th year, which,
"celebrates community, art, and collaboration, while bringing awareness to the very real problem of hunger in Western North Carolina." MANNA Website
Almost every part of the event is donated, the space, beverages, and food, which is soup, and each ticket holder gets to keep the locally made bowl, that they use for the soup. 400 in total are made, a shared collaborative enterprise of local ceramic artists. There is also a collectors corner where attendees can purchase local pieces, and 100 percent of proceeds from this go directly to MANNA.
This was also an unexpected opportunity to explore some of my thinking with respect to, Asheville, and the influence of place on ceramics. In particular I was curious to find out if the potters I spoke to would refer to the Black Mountain College, Appalachian pottery and the clay geology of the area. I also wanted to see what their reaction would be when I mentioned I was from Stoke-on-Trent, what would people know about the place and its history. In fact, nobody mentioned the Black Mountain College, Appalachian Pottery, or clay geology, although if I had had more time I am sure I could have explored this further. The personal, however, is very much present, when potters talk about their work, and why they had started to work with clay it appears to be a life changing choice. Asheville is an attractive, tolerant place to live and this seemed really important to those I talked to.
There is also space for craft practice in Asheville. Odyssey Clayworks, set-up by Brian McCarthy, in the centre of the River Arts District, provides a shared space for potters, including kilns and wheels. It also runs classes. The word the "community" is prevalent in Asheville, it appears in marketing and the word often pops up when you are chatting to people. It is also important to Odyssey Clayworks and probably why they are happy to support Empty Bowls.
"The spirit and programs of Odyssey are based on the philosophy that every individual's creative capacity is greatly enhanced by a generous community and challenging instruction. We believe that within each individual lies the potential for creative development."
Next door to Odyssey is High Water Clays, where we luckily found Brian McCarthy on his lunchbreak, who was happy to talk to us. High Water Clays is where Brian's relationship with Asheville and eventually the RAD began, as it was the first company he established when he found his way to Asheville, in 1979 after a Tornado hit his Texas home. When he move to Asheville, Brian needed income to supplement his pottery making and started mixing clays, which he eventually turned it into a successful company. Brian was one of the first people involved in the redevelopment of the area that would eventually be known as River Arts District, by setting up Odyssey Studios. At first the RAD was not the arts and crafts tourist attraction it is now, but the new occupants started getting people interested in the neighbourhood with art strolls. Those art strolls still continue and the RAD is is now a regular stop off for tourist buses.
Admittedly, my conversations in the River Arts District, were impromptu, and short, not at all empirical. However, people were not aware of Stoke-on-Trent and its history, apart from Brian, however they had knowledge of manufacturers like Spode and Wedgwood. Brian and Idiscussed what he saw as the more formal approaches to European studio ceramics, compared with the abstract American, he said that they had just had a visit from, John Leach, Bernard Leach's grandson. We also talked about local community engagement in ceramics, Brian said all high schools in the area have kilns. He referred to East Fork Pottery, a production line manufacturer, in downtown Asheville, which also skills veterans, and is run by Alex Matisse, Henry Matisse's grandson.
On reflection, I may have found little justification if any for my suppositions about Asheville ceramics and place, however, my unexpected stop at the Odyssey Clayworks studios, was particularly appropriate and apt, for my research. Odyssey a poem by Homer, is also the term used to refer to a long trip or journey, in which many things can happen, which is what research is all about, its about embracing the unexpected and dropping the suppositions.
References
History of Highwater Clays
Highwater Clays
Odyssey Clayworks
River Arts District Asheville
My brother-in-law also kindly offered to introduce me to some of the potters he had been working with for his Empty Bowls fundraiser event for MANNA Foodbank which serves communities across Western and Northern Carolina. Empty Bowls is an annual event, now in its 18th year, which,
"celebrates community, art, and collaboration, while bringing awareness to the very real problem of hunger in Western North Carolina." MANNA Website
Almost every part of the event is donated, the space, beverages, and food, which is soup, and each ticket holder gets to keep the locally made bowl, that they use for the soup. 400 in total are made, a shared collaborative enterprise of local ceramic artists. There is also a collectors corner where attendees can purchase local pieces, and 100 percent of proceeds from this go directly to MANNA.
This was also an unexpected opportunity to explore some of my thinking with respect to, Asheville, and the influence of place on ceramics. In particular I was curious to find out if the potters I spoke to would refer to the Black Mountain College, Appalachian pottery and the clay geology of the area. I also wanted to see what their reaction would be when I mentioned I was from Stoke-on-Trent, what would people know about the place and its history. In fact, nobody mentioned the Black Mountain College, Appalachian Pottery, or clay geology, although if I had had more time I am sure I could have explored this further. The personal, however, is very much present, when potters talk about their work, and why they had started to work with clay it appears to be a life changing choice. Asheville is an attractive, tolerant place to live and this seemed really important to those I talked to.
There is also space for craft practice in Asheville. Odyssey Clayworks, set-up by Brian McCarthy, in the centre of the River Arts District, provides a shared space for potters, including kilns and wheels. It also runs classes. The word the "community" is prevalent in Asheville, it appears in marketing and the word often pops up when you are chatting to people. It is also important to Odyssey Clayworks and probably why they are happy to support Empty Bowls.
"The spirit and programs of Odyssey are based on the philosophy that every individual's creative capacity is greatly enhanced by a generous community and challenging instruction. We believe that within each individual lies the potential for creative development."
 |
| Odyssey Clayworks shared space V McGarvey cc-by |
Next door to Odyssey is High Water Clays, where we luckily found Brian McCarthy on his lunchbreak, who was happy to talk to us. High Water Clays is where Brian's relationship with Asheville and eventually the RAD began, as it was the first company he established when he found his way to Asheville, in 1979 after a Tornado hit his Texas home. When he move to Asheville, Brian needed income to supplement his pottery making and started mixing clays, which he eventually turned it into a successful company. Brian was one of the first people involved in the redevelopment of the area that would eventually be known as River Arts District, by setting up Odyssey Studios. At first the RAD was not the arts and crafts tourist attraction it is now, but the new occupants started getting people interested in the neighbourhood with art strolls. Those art strolls still continue and the RAD is is now a regular stop off for tourist buses.
 |
| Highwater Clays cleaning station V McGarvey cc-by |
 |
| Highwater Clays clay chart V McGarvey cc-by |
Admittedly, my conversations in the River Arts District, were impromptu, and short, not at all empirical. However, people were not aware of Stoke-on-Trent and its history, apart from Brian, however they had knowledge of manufacturers like Spode and Wedgwood. Brian and Idiscussed what he saw as the more formal approaches to European studio ceramics, compared with the abstract American, he said that they had just had a visit from, John Leach, Bernard Leach's grandson. We also talked about local community engagement in ceramics, Brian said all high schools in the area have kilns. He referred to East Fork Pottery, a production line manufacturer, in downtown Asheville, which also skills veterans, and is run by Alex Matisse, Henry Matisse's grandson.
On reflection, I may have found little justification if any for my suppositions about Asheville ceramics and place, however, my unexpected stop at the Odyssey Clayworks studios, was particularly appropriate and apt, for my research. Odyssey a poem by Homer, is also the term used to refer to a long trip or journey, in which many things can happen, which is what research is all about, its about embracing the unexpected and dropping the suppositions.
 |
| Highwater Clays clay & glaze chemistry V McGarvey cc-by |
References
History of Highwater Clays
Highwater Clays
Odyssey Clayworks
River Arts District Asheville