Help Send Melanie to Penland!
Donation protected
Hi,
As some of you may know, I moved to Western North Carolina a year a half ago to live and work at Mountain Gardens . My time here has brought me closer to the earth—not just the plants and animals we share this planet with, but also the soil, the clay, and the minerals that make up a garden or a mountain. In spring of last year, I joined High Country Ceramics Arts, a community ceramics studio in Burnsville, where I’ve since spent most of my evenings and weekends, falling in love with the medium of clay.
This area of the country has an incredibly vibrant ceramics culture, in part due to the minerals and clay bodies that are found here, as well as the presence of cultural centers like Asheville and Penland School of Crafts. I feel grateful to have been welcomed into the ceramics community here, and...
I am honored and extremely excited to announce that I've been accepted for a work study scholarship for Penland 's Eight Week Spring Concentration in Clay this spring.
some recent mugs I made at HCCA
This is a special opportunity for me, and for many aspiring craftspeople before me— the Eight Week Concentrations are Penland's most in-depth educational sessions, on par with art school semester-long classes. They are often talked about here by local artists as a life changing experience. I've met many artists who came to this area to attend Penland sessions as young adults, and have been practicing their craft here ever since.
The course I'll be attending, Making Pottery, is taught by Terry Gess and will run from March 10 - May 3. Here is Terry's description:
"This workshop is devoted to the skills and techniques of making good pottery. We’ll explore and create using the potter’s wheel and handbuilding techniques. We’ll make lots of pots using wood, gas/salt, and electric kilns at stoneware temperatures with stoneware and porcelain clays. We’ll delve into clay/glaze chemistry, including instruction on simple ways to test glazes. We’ll investigate the long, rich history of pottery, visit nearby potters, and discuss ways of making a living as a potter. Whatever your skill level, the goal of this eight-week intensive is for you to discover, develop, identify, or refine the kind of pottery you want to make as your own."
Attending the Eight Week Concentration at Penland will give me 24/7 access to Penland's clay studios and equipment, new kiln atmospheres, and will help me refine my technique in ways that will allow me to throw faster and more consistently, skills that are crucial to production potters. I particularly look forward to learning about glaze chemistry, and hope to use what I learn in this course to help me develop new glaze recipes for HCCA, the community studio I go to in Burnsville. And perhaps more than anything— I'm thrilled that I'll be surrounded by the creative energy of other peers passionate about clay, as well as seasoned craftspeople. This will be my first serious step toward pursuing an arts education and a future in the arts.
photo of just some of Penland's kilns (taken from the internet)
Most of my time will be spent in the clay studio; the rest will be spent working 20 hours a week in the dining hall, as per my work study agreement.
While the work study scholarship I've received will cover the cost of my dorm, my meals, and some of my tuition, I will still be responsible for the remaining $3,680, as well as materials fees.
I already feel so lucky, for those who’ve mentored me in clay (big thank you to Linda Powell, Ruth Fischer Rutkowsky, Michael Rutkowksy, and everyone at HCCA), for those who helped in my Penland scholarship application, and for those who’ve purchased my pottery or even just shared words of encouragement. I feel lucky to have been accepted not only into Penland’s Eight Week Clay concentration, but also into the larger ceramics community here in Western North Carolina.
I am humbled by how much everyone’s help and support has gotten me to where I am now, and by how much more support I still need to get me to this next great step, Penland.
Should anyone wish to support me on my pottery journey, I now need all the help I can get!
Penland tuition is due January 15. $3,680 is a lot of money for someone who's been living off the grid for the past year and a half; I am fortunate to have some financial aid in this big step, but will need all the help I can get from those who are willing and able to give.
To anyone able to contribute in any way financially or by sharing this GoFundMe on social media, I will be sending out handmade cards while I'm at Penland to express my gratitude.
For those of you who are able to give $50 or more, I will be mailing you a work of pottery (cup, bowl, or mug) in addition to a handmade card.
Anyone able to contribute $100 or more will receive pottery that I made during my time at Penland (this may include *special edition!* wood fired, reduction, and/or cone 10 pottery that I’d normally be unable to make in HCCA’s electric cone 6 kiln), as well as a handmade thank you card.
Other ways to support me financially besides donating to this campaign include hiring me for website and graphic design work, or purchasing my pottery (contact me if you ever see a piece you would like to purchase). I will be trying to earn all the money I can on my own between now and January 15, as well as after the tuition deadline.
I should mention that GoFundMe has a 2.7% + $0.30 per transaction processing. If you want to donate money to this campaign offline, that works too, and I can accept money through Paypal ([email redacted]), Venmo (melanie-risch), or in person. I can still submit these donations to the GoFundMe platform to show everyone that you've helped me get closer to my goal!
In the coming months, I'll be more proactive about posting my pottery here and to social media. I will also be posting regular updates during my time at Penland. I’m incredibly excited to share this journey with you all.
very recent photo of me on a road near Penland, after visiting artist studios on the Toe River Arts Studio Tour (#mood)
Thank you for reading, and thank you for all your love and support. I couldn’t have gotten here without you.
Love,
Melanie
As some of you may know, I moved to Western North Carolina a year a half ago to live and work at Mountain Gardens . My time here has brought me closer to the earth—not just the plants and animals we share this planet with, but also the soil, the clay, and the minerals that make up a garden or a mountain. In spring of last year, I joined High Country Ceramics Arts, a community ceramics studio in Burnsville, where I’ve since spent most of my evenings and weekends, falling in love with the medium of clay.
This area of the country has an incredibly vibrant ceramics culture, in part due to the minerals and clay bodies that are found here, as well as the presence of cultural centers like Asheville and Penland School of Crafts. I feel grateful to have been welcomed into the ceramics community here, and...
I am honored and extremely excited to announce that I've been accepted for a work study scholarship for Penland 's Eight Week Spring Concentration in Clay this spring.
some recent mugs I made at HCCAThis is a special opportunity for me, and for many aspiring craftspeople before me— the Eight Week Concentrations are Penland's most in-depth educational sessions, on par with art school semester-long classes. They are often talked about here by local artists as a life changing experience. I've met many artists who came to this area to attend Penland sessions as young adults, and have been practicing their craft here ever since.
The course I'll be attending, Making Pottery, is taught by Terry Gess and will run from March 10 - May 3. Here is Terry's description:
"This workshop is devoted to the skills and techniques of making good pottery. We’ll explore and create using the potter’s wheel and handbuilding techniques. We’ll make lots of pots using wood, gas/salt, and electric kilns at stoneware temperatures with stoneware and porcelain clays. We’ll delve into clay/glaze chemistry, including instruction on simple ways to test glazes. We’ll investigate the long, rich history of pottery, visit nearby potters, and discuss ways of making a living as a potter. Whatever your skill level, the goal of this eight-week intensive is for you to discover, develop, identify, or refine the kind of pottery you want to make as your own."
Attending the Eight Week Concentration at Penland will give me 24/7 access to Penland's clay studios and equipment, new kiln atmospheres, and will help me refine my technique in ways that will allow me to throw faster and more consistently, skills that are crucial to production potters. I particularly look forward to learning about glaze chemistry, and hope to use what I learn in this course to help me develop new glaze recipes for HCCA, the community studio I go to in Burnsville. And perhaps more than anything— I'm thrilled that I'll be surrounded by the creative energy of other peers passionate about clay, as well as seasoned craftspeople. This will be my first serious step toward pursuing an arts education and a future in the arts.
photo of just some of Penland's kilns (taken from the internet)Most of my time will be spent in the clay studio; the rest will be spent working 20 hours a week in the dining hall, as per my work study agreement.
While the work study scholarship I've received will cover the cost of my dorm, my meals, and some of my tuition, I will still be responsible for the remaining $3,680, as well as materials fees.
I already feel so lucky, for those who’ve mentored me in clay (big thank you to Linda Powell, Ruth Fischer Rutkowsky, Michael Rutkowksy, and everyone at HCCA), for those who helped in my Penland scholarship application, and for those who’ve purchased my pottery or even just shared words of encouragement. I feel lucky to have been accepted not only into Penland’s Eight Week Clay concentration, but also into the larger ceramics community here in Western North Carolina.
I am humbled by how much everyone’s help and support has gotten me to where I am now, and by how much more support I still need to get me to this next great step, Penland.
Should anyone wish to support me on my pottery journey, I now need all the help I can get!
Penland tuition is due January 15. $3,680 is a lot of money for someone who's been living off the grid for the past year and a half; I am fortunate to have some financial aid in this big step, but will need all the help I can get from those who are willing and able to give.
To anyone able to contribute in any way financially or by sharing this GoFundMe on social media, I will be sending out handmade cards while I'm at Penland to express my gratitude.
For those of you who are able to give $50 or more, I will be mailing you a work of pottery (cup, bowl, or mug) in addition to a handmade card.
Anyone able to contribute $100 or more will receive pottery that I made during my time at Penland (this may include *special edition!* wood fired, reduction, and/or cone 10 pottery that I’d normally be unable to make in HCCA’s electric cone 6 kiln), as well as a handmade thank you card.
Other ways to support me financially besides donating to this campaign include hiring me for website and graphic design work, or purchasing my pottery (contact me if you ever see a piece you would like to purchase). I will be trying to earn all the money I can on my own between now and January 15, as well as after the tuition deadline.
I should mention that GoFundMe has a 2.7% + $0.30 per transaction processing. If you want to donate money to this campaign offline, that works too, and I can accept money through Paypal ([email redacted]), Venmo (melanie-risch), or in person. I can still submit these donations to the GoFundMe platform to show everyone that you've helped me get closer to my goal!
In the coming months, I'll be more proactive about posting my pottery here and to social media. I will also be posting regular updates during my time at Penland. I’m incredibly excited to share this journey with you all.
very recent photo of me on a road near Penland, after visiting artist studios on the Toe River Arts Studio Tour (#mood)Thank you for reading, and thank you for all your love and support. I couldn’t have gotten here without you.
Love,
Melanie
Organizer
Melanie Risch
Organizer
Burnsville, NC