Deep within the earth lie the elements for making amazing artwork. These raw materials, ranging from humble soil and sand to glamorous gold, silver, and gemstones, hold within them the potential to transform into magical objects. In the tranquility of their studios, artists bring these elements to life using the power of their hands, their creative energies, and the incandescent heat from kilns, forges, and torches.

Every potter starts with the same ingredients - clay, minerals, sand, and water - yet each approaches these materials differently. They draw personal inspiration from the world around them to create one-of-a-kind pieces that express who they are, ranging from stylized artwork to household items. Jeanette Zeis, a member of the Oregon Potters Association (OPA) says, “Hand a ball of clay to five people and you will get five different items in return.” After an artist forms the clay and decorates it, extreme heat from their kilns transforms it into something unique and extraordinary.

Firing ceramics in a kiln creates a special magic and every ceramic artist has their own preferred firing method. Amy Fields works with a team of potters to stoke a wood-fired kiln and observes, “I take fancy mud, form it, fire it in a wood kiln for 30 to 100 hours, and transform it into stone. Minerals in the wood-ash melt and fuse with the clay leaving a memory of the path of the flame throughout the kiln.” Each piece is a unique and unexpected surprise, allowing the kiln to ultimately determine the final surface decoration. Other potters fire with either a gas or electric kiln, for a shorter period of time, but that experience still produces its own magic. For JiMin Lee, the “...uncertainty about firing that I cannot control, makes me wonder and keeps my motivation. Uncertainty leads to curiosity, and is my biggest fear but also my biggest motivation.” Mindy Beauchamp, another OPA member, adds that firing “... is about your idea coming together as a whole through the process.”

The alchemy of metalworking brings together makers of fine jewelry, metalsmiths, and metal sculptors via the Creative Metal Arts Guild (CMAG). What all of these artists share in common is the love of transforming metal through shaping, heating, bending, and hammering metal to forge and fabricate their work. Where they differ is the types of metal and/or stone they use, as well as their design style, forging process, and the types of masterpieces they create. Even though the materials and heat used may be the same, each metal artist brings their own personal inspiration and creative expression to the transformation process.

Jeweler Tai Vautier says of her work, “My unique style is inspired by ethnic tribal adornments from around the world and the intricate textures found in nature.” Madeleine Moore, another member of CMAG adds, “I chose jewelry as my medium because of its accessibility, and because of the intrinsic visual delights and lasting qualities of gold and silver.” Not everyone in CMAG is a jeweler though. K.L. Wollons, who creates wall sculptures from new and reclaimed metals, explains that the material “gives the compositions an aesthetic of permanence while also allowing them to evolve over time”.

Whether with clay or metal, talented artists transform the ordinary into the exceptional. Starting on Friday, April 19th through Sunday, April 21st, artists from OPA and CMAG will be joined by artists from 4 additional craft guilds to present and sell their work at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland, Oregon. This three-day event - Ceramic Showcase + Gathering of the Guilds - will bring together 300 Pacific Northwest artists working with clay, metal, glass, wood, fiber, and beads under one roof. Please note: This show is in a new exhibit hall this year – Hall D!

Hours for the show will be Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The six guilds participating in the show are the Oregon Potters Association, Creative Metal Arts Guild, Pacific Northwest Glass Guild, Guild of Oregon Woodworkers, Portland Bead Society, and Portland Handweavers Guild.

To learn more about Ceramic Showcase + Gathering of the Guilds, please visit nwguildshowcase.com.