Flights of Fancy at Maine Potters Market

Beginning June 1, Maine Potters Market displays a new collection of pots by Nancy Button. These pots reflect the joy of flight and the excitement of playing with the textures of the natural world.  

Working with her favorite oak tree outside the studio, Nancy slaps a cut slab of clay against the tree, brings the impressed clay back inside, and shapes it into a vessel. 

Feather textures are stamped into clay in diagonal and circular meditative movements. As the birds awaken the trees, Nancy shares the feeling that Emily Dickinson expressed: “Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul…”

The resulting pots are the product of a time before summer bursts forth in all its busy glory. They are a reflection of that quiet time, when freed from the constraints of production, Nancy can encourage the seeds of new ideas to bear fruit.  

ABOUT NANCY BUTTON – Nancy’s mother found her passion for potting when she was young. Thanks to her, from an early age Nancy lived with pots handmade by many different potters. As a young adult there was nothing she wanted to do more than follow along the same path, and so she did. Nancy is one of the founding members of Maine Potters Market.

It’s Hog Heaven at Maine Potters Market

Each spring, Barb Loken’s dad would get a special permit from the city of Minneapolis so he could bring home a small piglet. Then for the next six weeks, he would carry the pig around to different elementary schools and teach children about farm animals. He loved to show off the intelligence of the pig, which could hit several different locks with its snout in order to open its feed box. At this point, a flag would snap up that proclaimed, HOGS ARE BEAUTIFUL!

And so they are! For May, Barb has created a whimsical menagerie at Maine Potters Market. There are flying pigs, piggy banks, swine cups, trough dishes, and many other imaginative piggy characters to cheer the heart as we wallow our way out of Mud Season. 

Opening reception Friday May 3, 5 to 8 pm.

ABOUT BARB LOKEN – Barbara Loken has been an artist/potter for over forty years. Her work includes watercolors, batiks, wood block prints, silk-screen work and both functional and non-functional work in clay. After college, Barb studied at the International School of Art in Salzburg, then traveled and lived in Italy, Jerusalem, Jordan, and Israel. She and her husband Neal lived and studied in Japan before returning home to set up Loken Pottery. Barb taught art at Hall-Dale High School in Hallowell for twenty years.  She now works full time in the studio with Neal.

Fourth Annual “Flaws for a Cause” to Benefit Cultivating Community’s Growing Access, Growing Communities Project

Maine Potters Market hosts their fourth annual “Flaws for a Cause” sale to benefit the local sustainable agriculture organization, Cultivating Community, on April 15^th, 2013 – April 30^th, 2013.

This year, Maine Potters Market focuses its support on Cultivating Community’s Growing Access, Growing Communities program. The program supports and strengthens local communities by making locally grown food available to low-income consumers. Last year, this initiative at farm stands and farmers’ marketsput over $101,000 worth of healthy food on the tables of more than 4,000 low-income Maine families. Most of the farm stands are situated where lower-income people live, work, shop, and learn. Convenient pick-up schedules for Community Supported Agriculture Shares (CSA’s) and the ability to accept SNAP and WIC benefits as payment, coupled with a matching grant on benefits that doubles the amount of healthy food that low-income families can afford, makes this program a win-win for all.

For these two weeks only, Maine Potters Market’s usual stock of fine pottery, handmade in Maine will be augmented with many unique, functional, slightly flawed pieces. This sale is a fantastic time to find beautiful handmade tableware at a price everyone can afford! Test pieces and discontinued styles are also available only at this annual sale.  It is a good idea to shop early for best selection. This is also a great time to sign up for a CSA share. Maine Potters Market will have CSA location information available at the store all during the Flaws for a Cause Sale.

In the spirit of cooperative support and to help promote access to local foods and tableware, Maine Potters Market is proud to support Cultivating Community’s program through the proceeds of their fourth annual “Flaws for a Cause” sale. By offering perfectly usable, slightly flawed pots at very affordable prices, Maine Potters Market not only helps put local food on the table of low-income Mainers, but also makes it possible for those families to enjoy that food served in locally produced, fine handmade pots.

Fall Foliage on Casco Bay: New Leaf and Wave Inspired Stoneware by Gail Kass

For the month of October, member potter Gail Kass has made a fresh batch of striking ikebanas and one-of-a-kind leaf and wave motif serving pieces which mirror the ever changing fall foliage on Casco Bay. These hand-formed, artful clay objects are seasonally themed and glazed in shades of forest green, auburn, mustard, and mahogany. “These pots emerged from my immediate surroundings,” states Kass. She enjoys the spontaneity of creatingthese intimate, sensual pots: throwing them loosely on the wheel, and then sculpting them immediately afterward, stretching and carving them from ridged, thrown disks while wet. Kass has also made an assortment of mugs and everyday pieces in her traditional landscape and seascape motifs available for the duration of her fall window display.

Susan Horowitz's Meditations in Clay
for the Days of Awe

The Days of Awe, the period from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur, the Jewish High Holidays, are a time of reflection and T’Shuvah, returning to one’s true self, aligned with the Divine.  Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is observed with food and images that are round and whole, much as pots thrown on a wheel.

The pots featured through September 30 reflect Susans's desire to return to her original connection to clay and the experience of creation: the spiritual practices of attuning herself to the clay, centering it on the potter’s wheel, being sensitive to the give and take of her hands and the material. Susan has made covered jars, vessels that are containers; reflections of the vessels that attempted to hold God’s light. She has made assorted small bowls and tea bowls, some glazed outside her regular palette. They don’t come in matched sets, but are pots that she enjoys making and using.

L’Shanah Tova! Wishing you a happy and healthy New Year.

You are praised

Who rolls out the rough, raw clay of the universe

Into delicate vessels of light

Homage to Portland, our City by the Sea

We celebrate Portland this month with fantastic pieces inspired by the city's beautiful landscape. This dedicated window of work by Jackie Hickey will be on display through August 29. 

Portland, Maine is a city that never forgot its roots: You can still find architectural wonders, peruse the working waterfront, and walk down cobblestone streets. As a testament to Portland's rugged, natural beauty, member potter Jacqueline Hickey has created a delightful line of inspired pots which reflect the city's fine landscape and connection to the ocean. 

Detailed with blue and green glazes and completed with fish, shell, and urchin markings, Hickey's Portland infused pottery is a wonderful way to experience and celebrate the city's rich history. Joined by the likes of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Hickey is one of many artists inspired by Portland. Opening "My Lost Youth" with: "Often I think of the beautiful town / That is seated by the sea" Longfellow seeks to share his reverence and love of Portland. It is Portland's strong connection to nature, the ocean, and its hard-working citizens that never ceases to spark creativity, industry, and imagination. You are invited to join Jacqueline Hickey and Maine Potters Market as they pay tribute to our fair city.

Garden Party: Essential Tableware
for Summer Dining

 Just in time to welcome the warmth of summer and celebrate outdoor dining in Maine, Betsy Levine of Prescott Hill Pottery has handcrafted a line of tableware to adorn your patio or picnic in style. Highly recommended for wedding dining and outdoor celebrations, this fresh collection is bursting with vibrant accents and earth tones that Betsy has designed to reflect the joy of a lovely summer afternoon luncheon.

Betsy's unique craftsmanship ensures that each component of her Garden Party line is a work of art.  Pieces are wheel thrown and then hand drawn with an incised leaf motif.  The inside is lined with a buttery yellow glaze, the green glaze is hand painted on the outside, and a band at the top edge is left bare to interact with the atmosphere in the kiln. Betsy employs soda firing in the production of this line, which ensures that each piece has its own character. The flame and vapor in the kiln creates a faint orange-peel glaze texture on the raw clay and enhances the green glaze. The result is reminiscent of sunlight falling on leaves. Betsy Levine’s “Garden Party” collection is a fantastic way to sustain the delight of summer all year long.

ABOUT PRESCOTT HILL POTTERY – Betsy Levine joined Maine Potters Market last year. She is known for her elegant and earthy, feminine and strong creations that are finished in soft, yet vibrant earth tones, echoing our connection with the past.

Maine Potters Market Celebrates Renewal

Maine Potters Market is pleased to announce member Beatrice Gilbert’s Spring display, “Renewal,” on view now through May 29th.

Springtime on Beatrice Gilbert’s North Yarmouth farm heralds significant changes, growth, and renewal. From the birth of new lambs to the re-emergence of plant life, Gilbert shares her excitement for this season and for the revitalization of Earth and self as she returns to the wheel after a year-long hiatus nursing a repetitive-motion injury. During this break from throwing pots, Gilbert kept her hands busy quilting. Maine Potters Market is thrilled to celebrate spring and to welcome Gilbert’s vibrant pottery and quilts back to their front window exhibit. This May, you will find a fantastic juxtaposition of simple designs and vivid colors to adorn your table, delight your senses, and inspire your spirit during this beautiful season of renewal.

ABOUT FIRED EARTH POTTERY – After starting a career in finance, Beatrice Gilbert now leads a life full of creativity that is grounded in nature. Gilbert became a full time artist in 1998 and creates beautiful pots; simple in form and vibrant in color.

Coming up: Flaws for a Cause Sale to Benefit Cultivating Community’s
New American Sustainable Agriculture Project

Maine Potters Market will host our third annual "Flaws for a Cause" sale benefitting the local agriculture organization, Cultivating Community April 15th- 30th.

Inspired by the story of a porter who cherished her cracked pot for its ability to water the flowers along the path as she trod from her local well, Maine Potters Market is thrilled to help Cultivating Community's New American Sustainable Agriculture Project (NASAP) with our third annual "Flaws for a Cause" sale.

Cultivating Community is an organization dedicated to supporting and strengthening communities by growing food in school gardens, community plots, and by partnering with local farms. In an effort to reconnect people to the land, and to prepare youth leaders and new farmers, Cultivating Community's NASAP will use the proceeds raised by Maine Potters Market to draw upon the experience and knowledge of immigrant and refugee farmers and fund them; helping feed their families and start their own farm-based business.

NASAP strengthens the local food system of Maine by selling the produce to restaurants and grocers, at farmers markets, and through CSA shares. Additionally, NASAP recently received a federal grant which allows farmers to accept food stamp debit card payments for CSA shares and at farmer's markets.

It is in this spirit of cooperative support and buying local at the most basic level that Maine Potters Market has again chosen Cultivating Community as the beneficiary of their "Flaws for a Cause" sale.

April 15-30, Maine Potters Market will be brimming with unique, functional (slightly flawed) but perfectly usable pieces. Apart from these two weeks, Maine Potters Market sells only first quality pieces.

This sale is a fantastic time to find beautiful pottery at great prices! Test pieces and discontinued styles will also be available. Shop early for best selection!

Coming up: End of Winter sale!

You can tell spring is just around the corner...
And to help ease your last weeks of winter, The Maine Potters Market is going all out! You get 15% off all in-stock pottery from March 1st to the 20th. Plus, starting March 1st, we are open until 8 on Saturdays.

This is a great month to spend some time in th Old Port. In addition to our End of Winter Sale, there are also some great events happening nearby:

First up is Maine Restaurant Week, March 1-10. You'll find many participating restaurants in the Old Port, offerng three-course dinners for $20 ($), $30 ($$) or $40 ($$$), and specials on lunches and breakfasts as well!

The Portland Flower Show is March 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 with the Opening Night Gala on the 7th and the Plant Auction on the 11th at the Portland Company Complex, 58 Fore St.

The Maine Boatbuilders Show is March 16-18, also at Portland Company Complex, 58 Fore St. It's a yearly gathering of the finest fiberglass and wooden custom boat builders on the East Coast discussing and selling their work. Sailboats, powerboats, canoes, kayaks, rowing boats, and boating equipment.


AND DON'T FORGET –
Spring ahead March 11th. 
We're looking forward to seeing you!

It's Valentine's Month at the Maine Potters Market

Did you know that the Maine Potters Market has a great selection of gifts, large and small, that can help you celebrate this day? Come and visit our newly arranged store! From wall pieces to lovebird vases to porcelain jewelry, you will find lots of gift ideas at The Maine Potters Market.

Shop for a Cause Day

On Saturday, December 3rd, help support two charities chosen by our local merchant community by shopping downtown in the annual Shop For a Cause Day.

Participating stores pledge to donate a portion o their sales to the selected charities: The Center for Grieving Children and The Portland Police department’s Explorer Post Program.

The Center for Grieving Children, based in Portland, Maine, serves more than 4,000 grieving children, teens, families, and young adults annually through peer support, outreach, and education. Offering our services at no charge, for as long as people need them, the Center’s mission is to provide loving support that encourages the safe expression of grief and loss and fosters each individual’s resilience and emotional well-being. The Center reaches individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds, and relies on financial contributions from individuals, businesses, foundations, United Way, and special events. For more information, call (207) 775-5216 or visit www.cgcmaine.org.

Portland Police department’s Explorer Post Program secures grants to train under 21 individuals who are interested in a law enforcement career and give them the opportunity to work with the department for 8 to 12 weeks. They are in a polo shirts uniform and use radios on the police frequency. The department has had them walking ”beats” in the Arts District this past August and September and has proven effective in reducing problem behaviors on the street while providing a positive response from visitors. Funds raised for this program could help expand the hours and the downtown area covered.

Merry Madness

Come to our Welcome Reception
for New Member Betsy Levine
and take 15% off all in-store work!

Maine Potters Market will host a welcome reception for new member Betsy Levine on November 4, 2011 from 5pm-8pm. Also in celebration, Maine Potters Market will feature a 15% off sale of all in-store pieces from November 4-6, 2011.

Adding even more variety to Maine Potters Market, Betsy Levine of Prescott Hill Pottery in Liberty, Maine, shares her interest in artifacts, historical records, and symbols, which adorn her beautiful pottery for us to enjoy. For Betsy, making tableware, storage jars and vases expresses spirit in a language as ancient as the first pots. Her elegant and earthy, feminine and strong creations are finished in soft yet vibrant earth tones, echoing our connection with the past.

Completed wood-fired and soda-fired stoneware and porcelain pots are as beautiful as they are useful. Maine Potters Market invites you to help them welcome Betsy Levine to Portland.
 

ABOUT BETSY LEVINE – Betsy established Prescott Hill Pottery in 2005, upon her move to midcoast Maine. In addition to being a unique and gifted professional potter, Betsy also brings a wealth of experience in graphic arts to Maine Potters Market, and is a major talent behind their newly re-launched website.

“Now We’re Cooking!”
Pottery Designed for Cooking and Serving
by Jacqueline Hickey

Maine Potters Market celebrates the fall harvest with Jacqueline Hickey’s new window, “Now we’re cooking!” October 10, 2011 through October 30, 2011

Specifically designed to share and delight in the process of preparing, cooking and serving locally grown and harvested food, “Now we’re cooking!” celebrates Maine’s rich farm culture and locavore movement. Pieces include batter bowls, oil and vinegar sets, mortar and pestles, honey pots, utensil holders, platters and more. Just in time for Portland’s famed Harvest on the Harbor, “Now we’re cooking!” will adorn your table and countertops with grace and local style.

ABOUT JACQUELINE HICKEY – Jacqueline Hickey established Happy Valley Potworks in 1983 and has been making functional pottery for over 30 years. Her often whimsical creations are playful, highly textured, and brightly glazed.

“Waves and Leaves” by Gail Kass

Maine Potters Market announces their latest window “Waves and Leaves” by Gail Kass, on display through October 9, 2011.

Drawing inspiration from her studio window’s view, Gail Kass explores the constant motion of water and her ever evolving garden. Mimicking the symmetry, patterns and uniqueness of Hosta and the changing tides, “Waves and Leaves” mirrors and echoes nature’s beauty and perpetual flux. Each piece is a snapshot of evolution; thrown on the wheel and then again on the work table. Kass has intentionally left the throwing marks on these pots and has used a swirling spiral as an integral part of her design. “Waves and Leaves” is a perfect complement to the fall season and a beautiful homage to summer past.

ABOUT GAIL KASS – Gail Kass has been searching for that elusive “perfect pot” since the early 70’s. Working from her home in a quiet cove of Casco Bay, Kass enjoys creating tranquil landscapes and seascapes on her pots.

“Clay Barns” by Cedar Mountain Potters

In a fantastic diversion from the typical clay pot, stein or bowl, David Orser of Cedar Mountain Potters has drawn from his own personal experience of renovating his 200 year old farmhouse in Parsonsfield to create a stunning series of clay barns. Orser states, “I have always found delight in studying and making work that has at its roots a tradition that is not easily seen in practice today.” The original genesis of these clay barns came from Japanese clay tomb figures and buildings call Haniwa. With Haniwa in mind, Orser looked at the architectural language of early America and began to create. The end result harkens back to the struggles and basic way of life that created a new breed of pride and resiliency that characterizes and sustains us as Americans today. “It is with a mixture of joy and reverence for the old, and sadness, as I witness the disappearance of these beautiful objects and ways of life from our current landscape.”  Orser’s “Clay Barns” will be in display until September 18, 2011. Be sure to stop by Maine Potters Market before they are gone.

Betsy Levine brings her wood- and soda-fired pots
to the Maine Potters Market

Maine Potters Market announces our newest member, Betsy Levine. Working in Liberty, Maine, Betsy joins the ranks of Maine Potters Market’s 12 current members, adding even more variety to the pottery we offer. 

For Betsy, making tableware, storage jars and vases expresses spirit in a language as ancient as the first pots. Her interest in artifacts, historical records and symbols is directly reflected in her pottery. Elegant and earthy, feminine and strong, Betsy’s work is finished in soft yet vibrant earth tones, echoing this connection with the past. She states, “Placing marks on a surface feels like a profound act of humanity.” The completed wood-fired and soda-fired stoneware and porcelain pots are as beautiful as they are useful.

Tom Huber, Potter and Glassmaker Featured

Maine Potters Market is exhibiting Tom Huber’s exploration in glazes from June 13, 2011 through July 3, 2011. Huber brings his unique perspective and creativity to pottery via his experience with a wide range of glazes and firing techniques. Huber states, “A Potter’s glazes are true glass.” In his upcoming exhibit, Mr. Huber explores the many glaze variations and techniques a potter employs as well as the opportunities and constraints afforded in adhering glazes (glass) to clay vessels. Some techniques include: Starving the glaze for oxygen, growing crystals in the glaze, causing the glaze to crackle, coloring the glaze with metal oxides, or flowing several glazes together. Huber’s pieces will exhibit different glaze techniques, styles and uses. Experienced pottery buyers and novices alike will revel at the versatility, beauty, and functionality of his artwork. All items are handmade at Huber’s Newfield studio and are characterized by his signature style: giving classical forms a contemporary expression.

ABOUT TOM HUBER – Tom Huber is the founder/owner of Symmes Pond Pottery. Growing up he enjoyed playing in the mud, playing with fire and being surprised at the outcome from his ventures. Today, Huber is a potter who still plays in the mud, with fire and is surprised. He lives with his wife, Melody, their dog, cat, various chickens, turkeys and bees in Newfield, ME.

Susan Horowitz's "Pots for a Cause - Made for Japan" Benefitting Japanese Earthquake Relief Efforts

"Made for Japan" is the newest installment of Susan Horowitz's "Pots for a Cause" series in which special pieces are inspired, designed, and sold for a particular cause. "Made for Japan" will benefit Japanese relief efforts from the devastating earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011. Horowitz's "Made for Japan" window display and designated pieces is featured at Maine Potters Market from Monday, May 23, 2011 through Sunday, June 12, 2011.

Inspired by the work of Japanese potters Shoji Hamada and Soetsu Yanagi, Susan Horowitz celebrates the traditions, crafts, resiliency, and culture of the Japanese people. "Made in Japan" will feature vases for Ikebana, the art of Japanese flower arranging, as well as Maneki Neko, or Lucky Cats. The vases have a pin frog, known in Japanese as kenzan, which make it easy to create simple yet elegant displays. Maneki Neko have a long history in Japan. They can often be found as simple rooftop decorations or as beckoning cats at Japanese restaurants. These pieces incorporate Yanagi's concept of "Minegi" (Folk Art), which treasures, encourages and promotes handmade items above their commercial, less unique counterparts. These pieces also harken Japan's history of rebuilding, recovering from devastation, and producing some of the finest quality items found around the world.

ABOUT "POTS FOR A CAUSE" – For over twenty years "Pots for a Cause" has benefitted numerous groups that work to end world hunger, improve the water quality of Casco Bay, better the lives of children in Chinese orphanages, and support Mainers living with HIV/AIDS.

ABOUT SUSAN HOROWITZ – Susan Horowitz has been a potter for forty years. She established Ash Cove Pottery in 1985 and believes deeply in the connection between herself and the users of her pottery, as well as the great influence and importance of handmade wares in one's everyday life. The beauty and grace of Maine's natural landscape are reflected in her work.

Barbara Walch's Pinchpots Featured

The Maine Potters Market, 376 Fore Street in Portland's Old Port, showcases the work of Barbara Walch during the month of May. The display features her signature pinch pot designs that are both practical and beautiful.

Walch established her pottery amidst beautiful perennial gardens in Thorndike, Maine. She says, "My work is meant to stimulate the imagination and the viewer's sense of fantasy while reflecting details of the natural world through organic forms and colors. It renews our sense of connection to nature, using the nature of the clay itself to reflect the textures of sand and stone, the colors of earth and sky and the forms of leaves and gourds." A long time Maine Potters Market member, Walch prides herself in making pots that "serve to connect our daily activities of eating and socializing with those essential details of the natural world.

Barbara Walch's newest pottery, on display in May, is sculptural yet functional, proving that there's more to dinner than just food! The art of dining, eating and entertaining, setting a unique table, and adding interest to food are the themes that Walch explores with this work.