Ronnie Blackburn
Ronnie started taking pottery classes at Isothermal Community College in 2005 and has worked out of Allen Griffin’s studio in Shelby since 2009. Ronnie loves using the different techniques to develop a piece of pottery. His specialties are coil and slab built pieces. The majority of his work is one of kind pieces.

Jenny Cartee
Jenny Cartee had her first experience with pottery in 2001 during her senior year at Gardner-Webb University. After graduating, she worked as an apprentice at Rising Sun Pottery in Lincolnton, NC. She now works from her home in Boiling Springs, NC. She focuses on functional pieces that can be used in cooking and entertaining. Her work is fired in an electric kiln and is oven and food safe. She sells at various craft and pottery sales in the area.
http://www.jennycarteepottery.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/JennyCarteePottery

Barbara Chadwick
Barbara Chadwick is originally from Toronto, Canada. She grew up in the Midwest. She received her BFA from Indiana University, Bloomington and MFA from Ohio University, Athens Ohio. Barbara was an artist in residence at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and invited to participate in an international ceramic symposium in Germany. She has had the privilege of showing at some of the finest craft shows in the country, including the Smithsonian Craft Show and Cherry Creek. Her work has been included in various publications including Ceramics Monthly, Southwest Art and these books: “Teapots, Makers and Collectors”, “500 Cups” and “The Ceramic Design Book”. Barbara is fulltime Faculty at Gaston College, Dallas NC. She instructs all levels of Ceramics, Three Dimensional Design and Sculpture. Barbara hand-builds her pieces with porcelain, constructing teapots, vessels and architectural forms often incorporating highly decorative surfaces. She fires her work in an electric kiln to cone 6.
http://www.chadwickdesign.blogspot.com

Kiowa Cilone
Kiowa has been working in clay since 1993. She graduated from Appalachian State University with a degree in fine arts, concentrating in clay, fibers, and sculpture. After teaching pottery for 10 years at Isothermal Community College, she opened her own teaching studio, Good Earth Pottery Studio in Forest City, NC.
http://www.goodearthpotterystudio.com/

Brian Dukes
Brian is originally from Upstate, NY but has lived in Cleveland County since 2003. He takes pottery in Forest City at Good Earth Pottery Studio. Brian enjoys transforming clay into one-of-a-kind faces and fantastical animals. Brian also paints murals and draws in his spare time. Brian and his wife Violet, reside here in Shelby.

Kimbrell Frazier
Kimbrell has had a life-long interest in art and was taught from an early age by her mother and several private instructors. At age 9, she was invited to exhibit her watercolors with the local artists guild. She chose a career in business, rather than art; but after 20 years in the textile and apparel industry she left her job to recreate her life. In January 2001, Kimbrell ventured into business as a full-time potter selling her work to more than 90 galleries and shops in 35 states. In 2009, she was commissioned by Carolinas Medical Center to create 2 oversized platters for permanent installation in the Lincolnton facility. Working with clay satisfies her creative instinct, coaxing it into pottery with simple lines that reflect her worldview. With so much mass production in modern life, there is special joy creating handmade functional art; each item designed to co-ordinate with the others, yet each one unique, showing the human touch. http://www.frazierpottery.com/

Vickie Gill
Vicki Gill established Bluegill Pottery in 1997. Her forte is thrown and handbuilt stoneware clay. Firing takes place in oxidation and on occasion in an atmospheric kiln. The tactile impression is as important to her as the visual impression, so carving and texturing methods form a common thread throughout the body of work. A desire to use and master techniques such as carving and development of rich surface color and texture was influenced by Eastern pottery. Everyday use of handmade work was another important part of a tradition that appealed to her. Her studio has been located in Gastonia since 2004.
http://www.bluegillpottery.com
http://www.bluegillpottery.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/bluegillpottery

Allen Griffin
Allen lives in Gastonia and has a studio in uptown Shelby. He is a graduate of Appalachian State and is a retired teacher from Ashbrook High School in Gastonia. Originally trained as a painter and art educator, Allen has slowly moved to clay as his major medium and credits several potters as an influence in his work. Those potters include Bob Shepherd, Joan Byrd, Keith Lambert, Doug Knotts, and Tim Stiles. Much of Allen’s signature work contains faces and experimentation is his philosophy. Being identified with the Cleveland County pottery community is a big thrill for him. Allen also teaches continuing education pottery at Gaston College.

Corine Guseman
Corine has been making pots since 1987. The impressions and carvings on her pottery are forged from memories of her youth, surrounded by the beauty of the canyon lands, the desert rock formations and ancient Indian art in Utah. Her work is subtle, quiet and thoughtful, reminiscent of nature at rest. Corine was an affiliate artist at the McColl Center for Visual Art in Charlotte, recipient of a Mecklenburg Arts and Science Council’s Regional Artist Grant and a founding member of Buffalo Creek Gallery in Shelby, NC. She currently works at the Cleveland County Arts Council as the Visual Art & Education Coordinator. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dedmond-Pottery/316128150250?ref=ts&fref=ts

Vicki Warrick Halloran
Born in Shelby, North Carolina, Vicki received a Bachelor’s Degree in Art with K-12 Teacher Certification from UNC Charlotte in the late 70's. She studied with Tom Mason, Eric Anderson, Don Byrum, Edwina Bringle and Martha Strawn. Prior to college, she studied art with Ford McDonald for five years. "It was always my dream to retire and make pottery". Vicki has worked with Allen Griffin in his Uptown Shelby studio since 2003. Vicki's work is also available at Pisgah Forest Pottery in Arden, North Carolina. As owner of a small collegiate clothing and school supply business (unfortunately not yet retired), she spends as much time as possible happily playing in the mud. Vicki and her husband Danny, a Kansas native, reside in Shelby.

Al Harris
Al attended college on the GI bill and graduated from Appalachian State University in 1957. Al was the art teacher at North Gaston High School for 17 years and retired in 1989. He also taught students at Cleveland Community College under Hal Bryant from 1994 to 1998. Al learned most of his hand building techniques from Frank Creech at Gaston College.  Almost all of Al’s pottery is hand built but sometimes he combines hand built with wheel thrown.

Indie Danielle Jones
As a graduate of the Savannah College of Art & Design, Indie "Danielle" Jones is a multidisciplinary artist who began exploring the world of ceramics in 2009. With her love of all things design, Danielle and her husband, Seth Jones, began their creative venture, The Mountains & The Sea, where she creates ceramic jewelry and decor of her own imagination. Not always being a friend of the wheel, Danielle enjoys exploring hand-cut and hand-built ceramics and has high hopes of one day conquering the spinning beast. http://mountainsandsea.etsy.com

Dorothy Houlditch
Dorothy has been exploring creativity through pottery since 2004. Concentrating on hand building, she finds traditional coil work to be especially intriguing. Dorothy enjoys making garden bells and large textured baskets with embellishments of leaves, faces and swirled or mountain laurel handles. She also makes tiles, quilt squares and serving vessels out of rolled clay slabs. Dorothy’s studio is located on her farm in upper Cleveland County, not far from the South Mountains.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Red-Feather-Pottery/372276426631?ref=ts&fref=ts

Michèle Hastings & Jeff Brown
Michele has been a creator of things as far back as she can remember. As a child, growing up in NH, a day didn’t go by that she wasn’t drawing pictures or cutting things into pieces and gluing them together...as my Memere would say, making some sort of a mess. Her first experience with wheel work was in the 9th grade. She was instantly in love. After high school, she raised a daughter and didn’t return to clay until 2001. She enrolled in continuing education classes at the NH Institute of Art. Jeff Brown was her first pottery teacher at the Institute. Fast forward ten years, she and Jeff are a couple making pots together in Seagrove, NC.
Michele enjoys making functional pots that are to be used and enjoyed on a daily basis... pots that make the ritual of eating and drinking more meaningful. Jeff is drawn to the natural earth qualities of clay: the smell, the look, the feel of its granular surface as it's stretched by the pressure of his fingertips. His fascination with texture and the pliable nature of clay leads him to examine not just the outside, or on the skin but inside, below the surface. He challenges himself by finding new ways to better express and use these elements in his work. Jeff finds the historical uses of clay, wood, metal, and stone valuable resources, but nothing speaks to him more clearly than the material itself and how it responds to manipulation. http://www.jeffbrownpottery.com/gypsypotters/Welcome.html

Susan Jones
Susan Jones is a Shelby native and a full time math instructor at Cleveland Community College. She got her first taste of making pottery as a student at Shelby High School while taking art from Ford McDonald. Years later, she attended the Contemporary Potters of Western North Carolina seminar at the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT). In this seminar, she tried throwing for the first time. While that first attempt was not particularly successful, Susan knew that she wanted to do more. She now studies pottery with Allen Griffin in Shelby and is in the studio in the evenings and on weekends as much as possible. Susan finds that working with clay, whether throwing or hand building, is excellent stress relief and therapy after teaching all day.  http://www.susanjonespottery.com

Jennifer Mecca
“My pots reflect the enjoyment I have for throwing, embellishing, creating and using. I enjoy creating each piece with its own unique character and personality, whether I change a spout, foot, rim, glaze color or decorative element. All of my pieces of wheel thrown are altered in some way. Because of the rich color I get from the glazes I use, I enjoy working with porcelain and white stoneware.” Jennifer received her MFA from East Carolina Univ. and teaches at Winthrop University and Gaston Day school. She works out of a studio at her home in Gastonia, NC.
http://www.jennifermeccapottery.squarespace.com/
http://www.facebook.com/lisa.oakley.14?ref=ts&fref=ts#!/pages/Jennifer-Mecca-pottery/122776534161?fref=ts

Ron Philbeck
I make pottery from red earthenware clay that is thrown on the potter’s wheel in a relaxed, casual manner. I enjoy creating pots that folks will use in the kitchen and home. After the pots are made they are coated in a white clay slip which is later drawn into with a sharp tool. The drawings originate in my daily journals and sketchbooks before making their way onto the pots. I enjoy the fact that these pots and drawings are an extension of who I am. They are fun and quirky, sometimes shaky and unsure and other times bold and confident. My hope is that the user will enjoy both the form of the pot as well as the images. My pots are used in homes all over the world. If you would like to learn more about me and my daily pottery activities please visit my website/blog.
http://ronphilbeckpottery.com
http://etsy.com/shop/RonPhilbeckPottery

Andrew Stephenson
Andrew Stephenson was born in Birmingham, England in 1972 and moved to the states with his family in 1979. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from East Carolina University in 1996. Shortly after graduation he moved to Asheville, NC to take a position as a resident potter at the Odyssey Center for the ceramic Arts. Andrew has always loved the folk pottery of England and especially the wood fired salt-glazed pottery of North Carolina, so when he was offered a two year apprenticeship with Matt Jones, a former apprentice of Todd Piker and Mark Hewitt, he jumped at the chance. During the apprenticeship he learned the forms and turning techniques that have been passed down from potter to potter since the days of Bernard Leach and Michael Cardew. Andrew also helped Matt fire his 300 cubic foot wood fired kiln and his smaller 100 cubic foot kiln fueling his love for wood firing. When Andrew was finished with his apprenticeship he bought a house in rural Rutherford County, received a grant, and built his own 300 cubic foot wood kiln and holds several kiln openings a year. Andrew continues the long tradition of wood firing in North Carolina and sells his work in galleries throughout the southeast. Andrew teaches pottery at Western Piedmont Community College in Morganton, NC and at John C Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. 
http://www.ajspottery.com/

Bill Stewart
In 1980 he began Stewart's Stoneware and Porcelain with his wife Holly. Their family has grown to include daughters Meagan and Simone. Presently, Bill works out of his studio in Waxhaw, North Carolina - creating distinctive pottery that is equally beautiful in both its decorative and functional (dinnerware, lamp bases, and much more) realizations. Bill Stewart's pottery may be found in fine shops, galleries and museums throughout the country, including the Smithsonian Museum Shop in Washington, D.C. Permanent collections include The Chrysler Museum in Norfolk, Virginia and the Roger Corsaw Collection of American Crafts at the Alfred Museum. His work has won many awards, including First Place at Blowing Rock's Art in the Park, Second Place at Greensboro's City Stage Celebration and numerous purchase awards from Wachovia, Banks of America, and many others. He is an exhibiting member of Piedmont Craftsman and Carolina Claymatters. http://www.stewartsvillagegallery.com/about.htm

Karen Stroupe
In 1999 I retired from the local Government. In the fall of 2001, I took my first ceramics class from Allen Griffin at Gaston College. It has been a wonderful journey ever since. My pottery leans more to the functional side, and my wish is that each piece be used repeatedly. Working with clay is an unending process of new discoveries and challenges, you face with each piece you make.

Michael Suttle
A native of Rutherford County NC, Michael Suttle brings contemporary life to an area known primarily for traditional styled pottery. Using bright vivid colors he stands out amongst earth tones. Beginning in 2009, Michael learned the craft under the teaching of Kiowa Cilone and John King. In the short period of time he has been creating pottery, he has developed his own signature style. All of the carving on his pieces is freestyle, lending to his preference of his works each being unique. To possess a work of Michael’s you can experience the joy of having a treasure unlike any other rather than a cookie cutter design.

Lin Venhuizen
"A Touch of Whimsy" Pottery is mostly handbuilt, featuring lots of texture and unusual shapes and designs. Most pieces are decorative and sometimes functional! Lin sells her pottery at the Carolina Pottery Festival, Piedmont Pottery Festival, Appalachian Potters Market, Tradition Turners Pottery Festival, Carolina Foothills Artisan Center in Chesnee, SC, and the Visual Arts Center Gift shop and Gallery in Rutherfordton. 

Verna Witt
Pottery began as a means to create functional vessels for everyday use. I now enjoy stretching the limits of the clay to reach beyond the functional to create works that challenge the senses in both form and texture. My current work draws from my career as a textile designer. What started as a simple button at the collar of a vase has evolved into endless possibilities of “dressing up” or “fastening down” clay. I continue to explore designing the “fabric” on the clay. Starting with the fabric, I then dress up the vessel. You may consider my pieces as “haute couture” or “ready ware” stoneware since all pieces are one-of-a-kind.

Tricia Woodland
I have been enjoying clay for the past 9 years. What started as a weekly pottery class, developed into a passion and love for the arts. I constantly try to find ways to share things about myself through my pottery. My pieces often reflect my love for the outdoors, my roots of growing up in the Chesapeake Bay area and even my faith. Having grown up and educated through the Church, I often find inspiration in bible verses, prayers and hymns. I like my pottery do be different, sometimes whimsical, yet functional. I received my BA Degree from Lenoir-Rhyne University and served in churches in Hendersonville and Cherryville as Director of Christian Education for 9 years. The past 12 years I’ve helped children in crisis and recruit and license foster parents. “I’m so happy that pottery has become a part of my life. Through the clay, I have been able to meet some of the coolest and most creative people. Through my membership at Buffalo Creek Gallery, Claymatters Guild and meeting other artists and pottery lovers, I had been truly blessed. Thanks, ya’ll!”