American Pottery Festival 
2012 marks the 14th annual American Pottery Festival at Northern Clay Center, an invitational exhibition and sale of pots from some of America’s top ceramic artists. The Festival is both NCC's annual fundraiser and a celebration of the pot, and it features great potters from across the United States—longtime favorites as well as artists new to NCC. The pottery ranges from serene to political, austere to highly decorated. The festival weekend will be filled with activities, learning, and sharing between featured artists, collectors, students, and hobbyists alike.

The Festival weekend will kick off with a Friday Night Preview and Benefit Party complete with great food, wine, and a first crack at shopping the Pottery Festival (tickets to this event are $25). The benefit sale will then run Saturday and Sunday, 9:30 – 5 pm and 9:30 – 2:30 pm respectively. Entrance to the benefit sale on Saturday and Sunday is $5, which includes admission to the slide lectures.  A full schedule of slide talks, workshops, demos, and panels held at NCC over the Festival weekend will be published May 1. 



Clay Collectors: The Adventures
The 2012 American Pottery Festival Collectors’ Adventures are designed to educate and immerse ceramic devotees of all backgrounds—from new buyers and teachers to long-time collectors and enthusiasts of all kinds. Taking part in the Collectors’ Adventures gives you the opportunity to be included in activities scheduled at NCC, as well as offsite special viewings of private collections and artists' studios in an intimate setting. Two Adventures are available:

#1: Thursday/Friday
Fee: $175
This Collectors’ Adventure begins Thursday evening, September 6, with a private party for collectors and visiting APF artists at the home of a local collector of ceramics and other art. Friday morning, the tour warms up at NCC with coffee, pastries, and a hands-on workshop with visiting APF artists. The group then travels to the Weisman Art Museum (WAM) for a special tour of their ceramic show, “A Personal View,” curated by Warren MacKenzie and WAM director Lyndel King. After a delicious lunch (provided with the tour), collectors will visit the homes of local private ceramic collectors in the Twin Cities to see collections, as well as to discuss issues related to displaying and inventorying a collection. The day will conclude with the Friday Night Preview Party and Sale—a great evening of food, wine, and music— and the first opportunity to buy Festival pottery.

#2: Saturday/Sunday
Fee: $125
Saturday morning will take you out of the Twin Cities to visit the studios of two local artists, where you can view their work along with their great collections of functional wares. Saturday afternoon, the tour returns to NCC for a lecture presented by collectors and geared towards other collectors and artists. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of developing relationships with and buying directly from artists vs. galleries, the protocol and expectations of both parties when artists sell directly to collectors, and, more generally, how collectors go about crafting their collection. Saturday evening, collectors are treated to a fun and casual BBQ at NCC with APF artists, event volunteers, board members, and staff. The weekend Adventure wraps up Sunday with a series of brief technical demos by APF artists in the morning, followed by the Sunday Special—closing demonstration and lecture by Michael Connelly. Post workshop, visit the galleries one last time to make final purchases!

Collectors’ Adventure fees do not include airfare to/from Minneapolis or to/from hotels,* but do include any entrance fees and transportation to and from the events listed above. Register online beginning May 1, or e-mail us with any questions. This has been a wonderful experience for participants in the past and we are thrilled to be able to offer the experience again this year!

*NCC has arranged for rooms at a special discounted price at the Renaissance Depot Hotel, which is not far from Northern Clay Center and is also near the Mississippi River, good restaurants, and the newly redeveloped river district and weekend farmers market.