Mike Helke received his B.F.A. in ceramics from the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. He is the Sales Gallery and Exhibitions Assistant at NCC, where he also maintains a studio. He makes pottery that features surfaces covered with elaborate line drawings and text. His work will be exhibited at the Blue Clay National, at the Yeiser Art Center in Paducah, Kentucky, and at the Ceramics Biennial 2006 at the New Hampshire Institute of Art in Manchester, New Hampshire. Helke recently received the 2006 Red Wing Collectors Society Foundation Award.