Whidbey Clay Center, at 1664 Main Street in Freeland has a new ceramics exhibition: “Raining Cats and Dogs.” The show opens April 1 and will be showing its special cat and dog-themed ceramics created by studio members for the month of April.
Juried awards and prizes will be given for the best in show dog and cat-themes works.
A portion of the proceeds from Raining Cats and Dogs will be donated to Critters & Company, a non-profit pet and rescue center located in Clinton.
The Whidbey Clay Center (WCC) is a unique place for people who want to work in a pottery studio, and also provides classes for people to learn more about the art of pottery making. Members pay a monthly fee of $135 which includes access to equipment, private storage, glazes and firing services, and a door code that allows entry whenever they want. Other materials available for members to use include ribs, knives, sponges, trimming tools, calipers, scales, Griffin Grip, bats, ware boards, and buckets. Members need to purchase clay, but everything else is included in the membership fee. Members work independently, though there is a community attitude and they help each other.
In addition to the gallery exhibition, Whidbey Clay Center offers hand building and wheel throwing classes that are open to the public. Group classes are typically once a week and last six weeks. This spring the Whidbey Clay Center is also offering individual pottery lessons.
The Whidbey Clay Center was opened by Cara Jung in 2019. The studio was originally established in Freeland more than ten years ago and has changed ownership and names a few times (The Paint Escape, Backdoor Clay). Cara first joined as a member; then purchased the studio. The current Whidbey Clay Center is three times larger than the original space, and the membership has grown from 15 potters at the beginning to 70 now.
Cara’s love for pottery and ceramics started 20 years ago. She went to a small college in Iowa and studied art and communication. After graduation she apprenticed with potters in Door County, Wisconsin. She also did some production pottery at a studio in Minnesota. Cara earned an MFA in Ceramics from PennWest in 2008.
Whidbey Clay Center offers many enrichment activities for beginning potters as well. WCC typically offers wheel throwing and hand building classes, and occasionally offers more specialized classes including mask making, pit firing, raku firing, and wild clay.
One of the recent changes to the Whidbey Clay Center has been the addition of a gallery where the work of the members can be displayed and sold. Anyone who would like to know more about the current opportunities and a listing of classes at the Whidbey Clay Center can get information on the website: www.whidbeyclaycenter.com.
Whidbey Clay Center is a member of the Washington Clay Arts Association (WCA), Whidbey Island Arts Council (WIAC), and Freeland Chamber of Commerce.
