Opening Night at the Italian Cultural Centre

Opening at the Italian Cultural Centre May 8, 2025

The Fraser Valley Potters Guild celebrated the opening of their 50th Anniversary Juried Show at the Italian Cultural Centre, 3075 Slocan St, Vancouver, with a well-attended evening of wine, treats, and lots of pots. One hundred and twenty-nine people came out to see the show! The Guild wishes to thank the Italian Cultural Centre for hosting them in their beautiful space. We are especially grateful for the assistance of curator Angela Clarke, for all of her help, and juror Dr. Carol E. Mayer for her well-trained eye and insightful comments. And, finally, we would like to thank all of the artists—members of the Guild—who submitted their work and who helped to make the event a success. The show really shines in the gallery space, especially during the daytime, when the large windows let in such wonderful light.

Eleven members were recognized with awards. In the student category, Claudia Zilin Shen won the Award of Merit for her Pain of Becoming--Embrace. Honorary Mentions were awarded to Eloisa May Uy for Come Feast (interactive); Duncan Ryans for his Wood and Soda Trio, and Eva Ediger for her Still Life. In the Members category, John Young won the Award of Merit for his Soda-fired Blue Vase, and Willa Downing for her Rearranged Landscape. Honorary Mentions went to Lisa Warren for Protoform; Jean Paull for Yours affectionately; Kennedy Snider for Sweet-Scented Bedstraw; Gloria Han for Sisters in Celadon, and Ying-Yueh Chuang for Plant Arrangement in Hybrid Plate. Congratulations to all for your outstanding work!

The exhibition continues until June 8—Tues-Fri 10-6, Saturday and Sunday 10-4.

Wood Fire December, 2024

From December 4 to December 11, FVPG members conducted a wood fire at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts. On December 4, members glazed their pots; on the 5th, the kiln was loaded, and, on December 6 and 7, everyone participating took a four-hour shift stoking the kiln. The kiln was opened on December 11, when treasures were revealed. A crocodile line of rapt potters conveyed the work from the kiln to waiting tables amidst many oohs and ahs. Later, the kiln shelves were carefully ground and re-covered with kiln wash, and the completed work was admired. The firing was followed by a Holiday potluck, which gave members a great opportunity to socialize and share results. On another positive note, the FVPG was able to contribute $210 to a local foodbank from members’ donations.

In addition to the wood fire, a sawdust firing was conducted, which produced many beautiful results. The opportunity to engage with these fascinating alternative firing methods is one of the most valuable aspects of FVPG membership. Thank you to Cheryl Stapleton for organizing the complex glazing and firing schedules, to Linda Ward for organizing the sawdust firing, and to all the members who helped make this event a great success!

We wish you all a very happy holiday season and look forward to seeing you all in 2025!

Top row: unloading the kiln in a crocodile line—lots of oohs and ahs! Bottom left: grinding those gnarly kiln shelves; right: admiring the wonderful results.

Two beautiful results from the sawdust fire by Linda Ward

FVPG Celebration of Art in Clay

The Fraser Valley Potters Guild is pleased to present Celebration of Art in Clay featuring the work of eighteen members including Giovanna Cameron, Susan Johnston, Linda Ward and 15 others.

The exhibition will take place from November 3 to 24, 2024, and will be open Thursday to Sunday, 10am to 4pm at 12160 Beecher Street South Surrey (Crescent Beach), BC.

We hope to see you there!

What a Party! Soda Fire 2024

From June 5 to June 11, 2024, the FVPG held a soda fire at the Shadbolt Centre. We had spectacular weather, beautiful gardens, camaraderie, and fantastic results! Thanks to everyone who helped out with glazing, loading, spraying soda, and unloading. Following the unloading, everyone pitched in to help grind, clean, and re-kiln wash the shelves. We all admired the results and discussed specific glaze effects and pieces. We were treated to a pizza party, with pizza-maker extraordinaire Giovanna Cameron (wo)manning the wood-fired pizza oven, with members all contributing amazing salads and desserts. What a great way to finish up the year! We wish everyone a productive summer and look forward to seeing you back in September.

Opening kiln, admiring results, Giovanna Cameron at the pizza oven, and members grinding the shelves.

The People's Choice Award Winner Announced!

On April 22, the winner of the People’s Choice Award for the FVPG exhibition Clay 2024—Passionate About Clay, held at the O’Connor Group Art Gallery in the Chilliwack Cultural Centre in Chilliwack was announced!

The winner is (drum roll please. . . .)

Pat Schendel, for her Flower Within a Flower, a spectacular piece with multiple components and crystalline glaze.

The Runner up was Sue Johnston, with Horned Goat Jar, and third place was Sue Schellenberg, with her work Otters.

To note, the Door Prize winner of 2 little bunnies on a rock- donated by Bruna Sbranchella,  was won by Lily Ligocki.

Pat Schendel reported that there were many lovely comments in our Guest Book.  “Awesome!, Just gorgeous!, Absolutely Stunning!, Lovely, playful, skillful work, Exquisite – very enjoyable! First rate, great show. Fantastic! Most impressive, Lovely work and display, Great variety, Bright & Cheery, Love, love, love!!!, Exceptional display!, Impressive displays!, Beautiful show – so many techniques!, Inspiring – Congratulations to All!, Interesting! Thought provoking., So much talent!”

 Additionally, 15 show pieces and 33 Mug wall items sold during the show, making it the best show ever.

Congratulations to everyone for an excellent show!

Pat Schendel, Flower Within a Flower, winner of the People’s Choice Award.

And The Winners Are. . .

The award winners for the FVPG Passionate About Clay have been announced:

Top row: John Young, Duncan Ryans, Jean Paull

Middle Row: Richa Kabaria, Lily Ligocki

Bottom Row: Holly McKeen, Pat Schendel, Ted Driediger

Juror and well-known ceramic artist Heather Dahl, has presented the following members with these awards:

STUDENT CATEGORY

Award of Merit

Richa Kabaria – “United Diversity”

Honorable Mention

Duncan Ryans – “Wooden Muse”

OPEN   CATEGORY

Award of Merit

Ted Driediger – “Large Bottle”

Pat Schendel – “Flower within a Flower”

Honorable Mention

Holly McKeen – “Crystalline Platter”  

Jean Paull – “Home is where I worry”

Lily Ligocki – “Awakening the Tiger”

John Young – “Lidded Canister”

Congratulations to all!

The People’s Choice Award will be announced on April 22.

Stay Tuned!

Clay 2024--Passionate About Clay

The Fraser Valley Potters Guild will showcase members’ beautiful work in an exhibition Clay 2024—Passionate About Clay, in Chilliwack, BC.

The exhibition will be held in the O’Connor Group Art Gallery in the Chilliwack Cultural Centre, 9201 Corbould Street, Chilliwack, from March 20 until April 20, 2024. There will be a reception open to the public from 1 to 3pm on March 23. Hope to see you there!!!

Krista Cortese Workshop January-February 2021

The Fraser Valley Potters Guild Members enjoyed an online workshop with Krista Cortese on Sunday, January 24 and Sunday February 7, 2021. The course demonstrated how to build and bisque molds using slabs. The following workshop used the molds to create forms. It was a great way to work together virtually in the studio, and Krista was an excellent teacher. The workshop was well-received by all.

Garden bowls by Krista Cortese