Get in shape! Pottery display gives taste of festival

By Melanie Tucker
of The Daily Times Staff

The first-ever all pottery show in Tennessee is set for June 7 in Townsend, but local potters are giving us a sneak peak of the talent throughout the month of May.

Several of the artists have pieces on display at the Blount County Public Library. Artists like Marion Schlauch, who has been perfecting her trade for the past 35 years. She and her husband moved to Walland in 1978 from New York.

Schlauch said her interest in pottery was the result of taking a ceramics class in college. She taught art to elementary and junior high students for a while but decided she enjoyed the solitude of her own art studio over noisy classrooms. She has been making a living at her craft ever since.

Her specialty is functional pottery -- platters, bowls ,etc. She likes altering the shapes and uses bright colored glazes.

David Grant, another potter from Maryville, creates wood-fired pottery pieces. This technique gives the finished piece an earthy look.

"He is distinctive," Schlauch said as she pointed to the various pottery on display at the library. "He uses crushed beer bottles to melt onto his pieces."

Most of the potters who will be at the pottery festival are from right here in the Smoky Mountains region, including North Carolina.

"About all of us are professional potters," Schlauch said. "It is a craft that has maintained its popularity over the years."

More than a mug

Another of the artists who has work on display is Joe Frank McKee of Dillsboro, N.C. He uses a low-fire technique to creates his pottery and then places it inside the kiln until it reaches 1,600 degrees. He then takes the pottery out and places horsehair on it, causing it to carbonize and create lines. He does the same with feathers, Schlauch said.

"Those become permanent to the pottery," she said. "He will be demonstrating it at the pottery festival."

One local potter will be bringing a treadle pottery wheel and showing how it works. Another potter specializes in stamping, while another likes to carve designs into her art.

Schlauch said some people think of flower pots and coffee mugs when they think of pottery. "There will be some of that but there are so many other pottery techniques," she said. Sculptures and even pottery jewelry are being showcased at the Townsend event.

Bailey featured

The featured potter at the festival will be Hugh Bailey from Knoxville. He creates whimsical animals and wind chimes. He has 50 years of experience and worked as a graphic designer for 41 years at the University of Tennessee.

The idea for this first-ever pottery show came after Schlauch had been participating in a similar show in North Carolina. Potters here loved the idea and have been planning this one for over a year now.

Organizers have no idea how this event will go over with people here. Schlauch said this will hopefully be something to build on for years to come. This first one will include live music, barbecue and even a children's tent where youngsters can try their skills at a potter's wheel.

"It will be kind of neat to have an all pottery show," this artist said. "Because you know the people that come love pottery. They came for us."