Christine Bell 
Darlene Malcolm-Moran enjoys marbling a variety of clays and layering her glazes on the simple clean forms she throws. Beauty, form, function, and fine craftsmanship are equally important to every piece of pottery she has created since graduating from Sheridan’s College Ceramics/Design in 1976. Her functional stoneware pottery is a pleasure to use and is food, oven, and dishwasher safe. Darlene has been involved with the Guild for many years and currently teaches a very popular advanced class.
In 2016, our Guild was honoured to be approached to work on a fundraiser with the City of Peterborough for repairing the Cenotaph and to go towards veteran’s services. On this day of Remembrance, we would like to thank all of those volunteers who helped create the Trilliums made in memory of those who fought and died from the Peterborough area in WWI.
During our “planting” of these Trilliums at the Peterborough Cenotaph (this was done in April 2017 to mark the 100th anniversary of the battle of Vimy Ridge) we were assisted by local cadets. One of our volunteers overheard their commanding officer commenting that one of them had specifically requested to be able to deliver one directly instead of passing it on to the next in line. The officer was asked for permission to speak with her directly and the young cadet was sent over. The volunteer asked her who in her family had fought in the war that made this a special thing for her and she replied that it was her Grandfather. So the young cadet was asked if she’d like to plant the Trillium she had carried over. It was an incredibly moving moment.
“We make pottery that is both functional and decorative, and some pieces that are primarily decorative. Carole has been a potter since 1979 and John began making pieces in 2000. Most pieces are thrown and we also do hand building and extruding. We were accepted into the KPG Juried exhibition at the Peterborough Art Gallery in the fall of 2018”.
Lillian also plays a vital role, as a volunteer and key founder of the guild. Last year she was recognized with a Lifetime Honorary Membership award.
Maureen began working in pottery about fifteen years ago, after taking some courses offered at her local visual arts center. She enjoyed both the medium and the company of other potters. Over time, she realized that pottery was stress reducing and offered opportunities for creativity. Maureen now has her own small home-based studio where she prefers wheel work to create functional pots (bowls, plates and mugs). She has taken courses in pottery at the Haliburton School of the Arts and has taken advantage of the great workshops and courses offered by the Kawartha Potters’ Guild.
Ginny’s Practical Pots
“I have been admiring and collecting pottery for over 45 years. Three years ago, I decided to try my hand at creating my own pottery. I quickly realized that it’s not as easy as it looks! I am following a journey of learning, creating and experimenting. I have gone from being completely surprised at how well something has turned out, to becoming more confident at designing and decorating my own pieces. I am having a great time crafting unique, functional items for everyday use.
I am looking forward to learning more decorating techniques, experimenting with new designs and skills, and incorporating them into my own creations.”
Our friends over at the Artisan’s Centre of Peterborough (based in Peterborough Square), are having their Artisanity Show and Sale this coming weekend, November 1 – 3 at the Knights of Columbus Hall (317 Hunter St. West, Peterborough). The show opens Friday from 4-8 and is open both Saturday and Sunday from 10-4. There are 28 different artisans in this show, and a number of them are from our guild. There will also be wood turned pieces, weaving, gourd work and other textiles. This is always a lovely show, not to be missed!
With my functional pottery I combine contemporary design and decoration within a historical context in an attempt to bring a sense of ceremony and humanity into the
user’s everyday life. My One-of-a-Kind vessels push the boundaries of form and function but as with the functional work retain the marks of the maker, the process and the fire.
Soda Firing highlights all of the handcraft processes and leaves a visual imprint of flame and soda vapour movement within the kiln. When all goes right in this potters
world the imprint of the fire animates the ceramic surfaces and breathes life into my
work.”
We love Dan’s soda fired pottery! You can find his works and those of other potters at our upcoming Holiday Pottery Show & Sale starting Nov 30th!
We had a really fantastic workshop with Wayne Cardinalli on October 20th. Wayne brought tools, tricks, tips and pots for us to discuss, and admire. He is a very effective speaker leaving many of us with much to think about with regards to where our pottery goes from here. There were experienced and fairly new potters in attendance and everyone enjoyed themselves and got something from the day. Wayne talked about wheel throwing, hand building, surface decoration, tools, the ergonomics of throwing and wedging and the passion needed to make great pots. You can see more of Wayne’s work here.
