The Cariboo Potters Guild is having its annual Spring Pottery Sale at the Central Cariboo Arts Centre from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m this Saturday, May. 11.
Lesley Lloyd has lived in Williams Lake for “not quite all her life”, having spent about two years in Australia before returning to the lakecity. Shortly after returning, Lloyd took up pottery and became involved with the Cariboo Potters Guild which she then “got the bug” for and has been involved with ever since.
Recently, Lloyd has been experimenting with a high fire style of stoneware, similar to porcelain, that is more durable than some of the low fire work she typically does. Low fire, she said, lends itself well to “light, cheerful” work, good for Spring which she also enjoys creating.
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“I prefer the making, the tactile quality of pottery where you are actually throwing or hand building its what I enjoy the most,” Lloyd said.
Lloyd plants to bring both high fire and low fire pieces to the upcoming Spring Pottery Sale she’s helping to organize at the Central Cariboo Arts Centre, the old fire hall beside City Hall. She said it’s going to designed to be a fun day outside, with the guild going back to some of its earlier pottery sales looks. The pottery will be laid out on pallets rather than tables, to avoid looking like the garage sales the guild also takes part in.
From these pallets, you’ll be able to pick up functional ware, mugs and more creative pieces, with an emphasis being placed on planting pots, according to Lloyd. With Seedy Saturday happening this past weekend, Lloyd knows that people are itching to get back into their gardens and she hopes the guild will be able to help provide homes for some of these plants.
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She also observed the sale is happening exactly a day before Mothers Day, making is the perfect chance for people to pick up handmade gifts for their mothers and grandmothers. Lloyd estimates there’ll be at least 10 potters taking part in the sale, though this number could increase depending on the productivity of individual members.
“A good variety, you know, everything from low fired bright, cheerful, funky and fun stuff to high fired porcelain, stoneware, dishwasher safe all that stuff,” Lloyd said.
She estimates there will be close to 500 unique pieces on sale come Saturday, with proceeds from the sales going to the artists and the guild to support both their ongoing endeavours. Prices will range, as each potter prices their pieces individually, but Lloyd said they should all be in an affordable range.
“To have something handmade, the person invests a bit of themselves into that piece and there’s just something nice about the feel of a handcrafted item that you can feel and connect with,” Lloyd said.
Anna Roberts, a founder of the guild and its first president, will be taking part in this show and has her 90th birthday this year. For those looking for a piece by her, Lloyd said this sale may be one of the last ones this venerable potter can take part in, due to the physical nature of the activity.
patrick.davies@wltribune.com
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