Bragging Rights (article in the 11th Hour)

Georgia’s main resources; cotton, peanuts, peaches, and clay? Georgia is by far the leading clay producing state in America; as well as stoneware and earthenware, natural kaolin is one of Georgia’s leading products. Kaolin is used not only by local potters, but by industries that make bathroom fixtures, tiles, and chinaware. It is also used in the paper industry, as commercial filler and paint pigment, and in pharmaceuticals.

There are natural deposits of some of the best kaolin right in middle Georgia. Native Americans discovered this natural resource, and used it for their clay ware. In the late 1700’s, European immigrants applied their craft techniques to the native clay. A few tons of southern kaolin were shipped overseas to Thomas Wedgewood, who praised the clay quality but deemed it too expensive to transport back to England.

Americans had no problem with the southern kaolin, and pottery became so widespread in the 1820s and 1840s that several pottery making centers sprang up in the south, known as “Jugtowns”. Peak years for Georgia potters was during the Civil War; they supplied the Confederate army with nearly all its storage vessels.

The Great Depression and increased production of cheaper glass and metal containers had the largest negative impact on Georgia potters. Unable to sell their wares to poor farmers, those potters who did not close their doors had to discover new ways to keep the tradition alive. One way potters began to appeal to a more diverse clientele was to add an artistic element to traditional forms: thus, the rise of the “face jug”. Oddly enough, many art collectors pay thousands of dollars for work was once produced for farmers.

Ceramic artists today use their “homegrown” Georgia clay and commercial clay (made with Georgia kaolin) to create an eclectic variety of ceramic pieces, ranging from the sculptural to the functional, to the functional with a little bit of “funk” added.

Regional ceramic artists keep the potter’s community alive; artist A.J. Argentina, who manages the Roswell Clay Collective, led a Mardi Gras “Clay Olympics” this year, which involved potters and the community in such competitions as ‘blind-folded wheel throwing’. In Crawford County, artist Shelby West organizes a kiln firing, open to the public, in a huge community kiln he helped build. Roger Jamison has an anagama kiln (Japanese for “cave kiln”) in his backyard, and has at least two annual firings. His kiln can hold up to 600 pieces of pottery, and about 20 artists come to his Juliette home to help keep the fires stoked ‘round the clock for 5 days.

Numerous art festivals and gatherings educate the public on the variety of ceramic work that is readily available, and give ceramic artists a chance to meet and exchange ideas. “Perspectives” at the Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation in Watkinsville, is an annual ceramics show featuring 50 Georgia ceramic artists. It includes an exhibit that mixes the contemporary with the traditional, last year with a display of Georgia face jugs next to a large modern piece by artist Sooyeon Kim. The Georgia Jugfest and Old Knoxville Days, held in Crawford County every year, is a gathering of many traditional folk potters, including artists Mark and Coni Merritt, who own the Lizella Clay Co. The Merritts also have a small annual Pottery Festival each fall which features artists from the region, including Triny Cline of Byrd Mountain Pottery.

Macon has its own pottery festival. “Fired Works: A Regional Ceramics Show and Sale,” which features work by over 50 regional artists, including those mentioned in this article. Fired Works will be taking place later this month at the Round Building in Central City Park. Though the show itself is in its fifth year, and Macon Arts is proud to sponsor it, the history of ceramics in Georgia runs as deep as the kaolin fault-line; now that’s something to brag about.

"Fired Works: A Regional Ceramics Show and Sale" will be taking place this month, April 18th through April 26th.

Featured Pictures in this article: 1. Collaborative piece, thrown by Roger Jamison, glazed by Diane Mead. Part of Macon Arts' April show: Collaborations. Opening reception April 3rd, 5-8 p.m. 2. Artist A.J. Argentina throwing blindfolded as part of the "Clay Olympics", photograph by Michael Phillips. 3. Part of "Teapot Conversation", piece by Sooyeon Kim, one of the featured works in the "Perspectives" exhibit.