North Carolina Pottery Center Receives $130,000 Grant

The North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC, is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a $130,000 grant from the Windgate Charitable Foundation, a private charitable foundation based in Arkansas. The Windgate Charitable Foundation is well-known for its support of institutions and programs which focus on crafts and craft education.

The grant will be dispersed and utilized over a two-year period, allowing for renovations and upgrades to the Voncannon House (a Victorian house on Pottery Center property), restarting the Artist-in-Residence program, funding a part-time Educational Program Manager position for two years, educational programming and associated costs, and technology upgrades.

Pottery Center Executive Director, Lindsey Lambert says, “Making necessary repairs and upgrades to the Voncannon House will enable us to accommodate our Artist-in-Residence. We will also be able to house periodic on-site interns from East Carolina University, with whom we are collaborating. We anticipate selecting our first new Artist-in-Residence in late spring and having that person start their residency by early June. We also anticipate having one or two graduate students from ECU’s Ceramics Program intern with us during the summer of 2014.” The Pottery Center is in the second year of a collaborative relationship with East Carolina University’s Ceramics Program.

Michael Drought, Director of ECU’s School of Art and Design, notes, "The collaboration between the Pottery Center and ECU’s School of Art and Design, with the support of the College of Fine Arts and Communication, will offer educational opportunities for ECU students via internships, research and exhibition, as well as provide university-level courses for the Seagrove community. This will highlight the strengths and significance of the two institutions and provide a platform for the further development of summer courses, conferences and symposiums."

Lambert adds, “The Board and I believe that a dynamic Artist-in-Residence program and a strong collaboration with East Carolina University will revitalize the Pottery Center. Youthful energy and a steady relationship with a major educational institution will allow us to more vigorously fulfill our mission. We promote public awareness and appreciation of the history, heritage, and ongoing tradition of pottery making in North Carolina through educational programs, public services, collection and preservation, and research and documentation.” A part-time Educational Program Manager will allow the Pottery Center to create more educational programming and outreach activities which help children and adults appreciate the world-class clay tradition that is so much a part of North Carolina’s cultural identity. Technology upgrades will allow the center to function more efficiently in serving the potters and pottery lovers of North Carolina.

Says Lambert, “I am very appreciative of the generosity of the Windgate Charitable Foundation, and we are honored by the trust they have placed in us here at the North Carolina Pottery Center. I believe that this is just the first of other grants that the center will receive in the coming years. While we are starting to receive additional funding from granting sources, it is paramount that that our membership and supporters not become complacent. Having a strong, enthusiastic, and financially supportive membership is crucial to the long-term success of the Pottery Center. Simply stated, we need and appreciate your financial and personal support now more ever.”

The North Carolina Pottery Center will be closed Monday-Thursday, December 23-26, 2013 for Christmas, closing at 1:00 pm on Tuesday, December 31


and closed on Wednesday, January 1, 2014 for New Year's Day.
Happy holidays and best wishes to all.

--
Lindsey A. Lambert
Executive Director, NC Pottery Center

233 East Avenue (Physical Address)
PO Box 531 (Mailing Address)
Seagrove, NC 27341
www.ncpotterycenter.org
336-873-8430