About this Event
A new statewide touring exhibition is bringing long-overdue attention to Georgia’s vibrant woodfiring tradition. The Contemporary Woodfire Potters of Georgia exhibition showcases a multigenerational collective of artists whose practices span folk pottery lineages, Japanese kiln traditions, and contemporary ceramic artistry—united by a shared devotion to the centuries-old craft of woodfiring.
The group includes some of the most influential names in Southern pottery, among them legacy potters with more than 30 years of firing experience such as Roger Jamison and Jon Brinley, as well as studio innovators including Stephen Hawks, Rick Berman, and Ron Meyers. Equally central to the movement are the next generation of fire chiefs and apprentices—Rebecca Wood, Kyle Jones, and Liz Bloodgood—and a rising cohort of internationally exhibited ceramic artists including Zuzka Vaclavik, Kimberly Shelton, Linda Suskin, Mark Johnson, and Joel Huff.
Woodfiring remains deeply rooted in Georgia’s cultural landscape, with kiln sites spread across small rural communities in Juliette, Farmington (Pickett’s Pottery), Midland (County Line Art Farm), Greenville (Primrose Flattop), Rabun Gap (Hambidge Center for the Creative Arts), Comer, and beyond. Potters often travel great distances and work through the night to participate in firings that range from short, traditional folk sessions—echoing the iconic Meaders, Gordy, and Hewell families—to multi-day Anagama and Naborigama firings inspired by the traditional Japanese practices.
A Spark Becomes a Statewide Movement:The idea for the current exhibition was born from overhearing conversations between potters Geoff Pickett and Kyle Jones, recalling how Pickett and Jeff Bishoff launched their own show over two decades ago—a seed that grew into the now-iconic Perspectives exhibition. With that history in mind, organizers approached a gallery director who enthusiastically embraced the concept of an updated exhibit. Fittingly, the chosen venue was among the first places Pickett and Bishoff exhibited in the early 2000s.The exhibition’s success quickly resonated throughout the pottery community, leading to invitations from respected institutions including The Folk Pottery Museum of Northeast Georgia, Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, LaGrange Art Museum, The Morean Center for Clay, Ology Gallery, and the Winterville Cultural Center.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, 980 Briarcliff Rd NE, Atlanta, United States
USD 0.00
