Weekend Event Features 13 Shenandoah Potters Guild Members and Free Demonstrations  

Winchester, VA 5/28/15…The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley (MSV) and the Shenandoah Potters Guild are teaming up to host a pottery show and sale at the MSV from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, June 4 and 5. Admission to the show and sale is free.

According to MSV Adult Programs Coordinator Courtney Beach, 13 guild potters will participate in the third annual Pottery Show & Sale at the Museum. Beach notes that along with featuring displays of handbuilt and wheel-thrown pottery available for purchase, the event offers visitors the opportunity to meet expert potters and see a wide range of pottery styles.

With more than 40 members and roots dating to the late 1980s, the Shenandoah Potters Guild was established to promote pottery as an art form and to raise awareness of the Shenandoah Valley’s pottery heritage.

Along with displays of contemporary pottery, the MSV event will include demonstrations by guild members. At 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, Deidre Morgan and Lin Hausknecht will demonstrate how to throw clay on a pottery wheel. At 1:20 p.m. and also on both days, Cathy Wolneiwicz and Sally Myers will demonstrate the art of handbuilding pottery. The demonstrations are free and will take place on the patio adjacent to the MSV Reception Hall.

Event attendees will have the opportunity to converse with a variety of guild members, including several who have more than 30 years of experience creating pottery. Participating Shenandoah Valley potters include: Alice Boysen, Lin Hausknecht, Annegret Kilby, Arline Link, Deidre Morgan, Sally Myers, Karen Ridings, Aurelie Schmid, Heather Scott, Steve Wilson, Cathy Wolneiwicz, Joan Wood, and Wendy Zaidman.

The show and sale will take place in the first floor of the Museum. Those interested in complementing their visit to the weekend pottery show may also wish to consider visiting the MSV Shenandoah Valley Gallery, where the MSV’s impressive collection of Shenandoah Valley pottery is on view. Including more than 40 objects, the display details the Valley’s centuries-old pottery tradition and includes many rare pieces made by several of the region’s most prominent early potters. Special 15-minute gallery talks focusing on regional pottery will be offered in the Shenandoah Valley Gallery at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday (gallery admission applies).

There is no fee to visit the Pottery Show & Sale and enjoy the demonstrations. Regular admission rates apply to visit the galleries and the MSV’s Glen Burnie House and Gardens.

A regional cultural center, the MSV is located at 901 Amherst Street in Winchester, Virginia. The MSV includes galleries, the Glen Burnie House, and seven acres of gardens. The galleries and exhibitions are open year-round; the house and gardens are open April through December. Admission is $10 or $8 for seniors and youth ages 13 to 18. General admission is always free to youth ages 12 and under and to MSV Members. Thanks to sponsorship from Howard Shockey & Sons, Inc., admission is free to all every Wednesday. During the weeks between Memorial Day and Labor Day, the MSV is open free of charge each Wednesday until 8 p.m.  Additional details are available at www.theMSV.org or by calling 540-662-1473, ext. 235. –END–