The Village Potters’ co-founder Sarah Wells Rolland was recently named Feature Potter for the Western North Carolina Pottery Festival. Her work will be featured at the festival, which takes place in Dillsboro on Saturday, Nov. 7, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. The rain-or-shine festival costs $5 per adult to attend, and children under 12 years of age are admitted for free.
Visit thevillagepotters.com for more information about Rolland’s local presence. Check out wncpotteryfestival.com for more information on the 11th annual festival.
Here is the full release from the Village Potters:
The Village Potters’ co-founder Sarah Wells Rolland has been named Feature Potter for the 2015 Western North Carolina Pottery Festival. The festival, which features more than 39 master potters from all over the Eastern United States, will celebrate its 11th year on Saturday, November 7 in the walkabout village of Dillsboro, NC.
Each year the festival showcases a featured potter, and this year that artist is Sarah Wells Rolland. Rolland has been making pottery for almost 30 years, and makes one of a kind, large decorative pieces for the home and very unique, functional pieces for everyday use. The word “graceful” is often used when describing her forms, and her work can be found in collections across the globe. Recently, Rolland has been working on ceramic wall bas reliefs, working with soft clays and a palette knife, a technique she has developed that evolved out of painting with oils. She co-founded The Village Potters Gallery, Studios and Teaching Center with her husband George in 2010 and devotes much of her time mentoring and teaching aspiring emerging potters. She will be demonstrating on the wheel at the festival making large, altered pieces. She will be exhibiting and selling her work as well.
Festival hours are 10:00am-4:00pm, rain or shine. Admission is $5 per person, with children under 12 admitted free. All attendees will receive a ticket for a day-long raffle, and a silent auction from 10am-1pm will benefit a local charity that provides meals to families.
For those wishing to make a weekend of it, a preliminary event, the Seventh Annual WNC Clay Olympics Competition will take place on Friday, November 6. This lively event runs from 1:00-3:00pm and pits 20 potters against one another to see who can make the largest cylinder, widest bowl and best piece while blind folded. A wood kiln will be opened at 2:00pm on Saturday, and Raku demonstrations will be held throughout the day at Tree House Pottery.
For festival information, call (828) 631-5100 or visit www.wncpotteryfestival.com
The Village Potters are Sarah Wells Rolland, Judi Harwood, Melanie Robertson, Lori Theriault, Karen Dubois, and Dearing Davis. They comprise an intentional Collective of potters who share a commitment to nurturing each other’s success. They are a fully equipped Pottery housing each of their working professional studios, and The Village Potters includes three showrooms exhibiting and selling their fine, contemporary ceramic art. The Village Potters Teaching Center offers ongoing classes for adults, and demonstration and hands-on workshops.
The Village Potters is located in Riverview Station, in Asheville’s historic River Arts District at 191 Lyman Street, #180.
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