Pocono Mountain potter Allen Weichman has worn many hats during his adult life: Army Intelligence, Executive Director of the Monroe County Conservation District, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen, Soil Conservationist, and potter and co-owner of Groundhog Blues Pottery.

A founding member of both the Pocono Chapter and the Online Chapter, Al has served the Pennsylvania Guild as State Board member for over 20 years, as VP Membership, VP Administration, State President. and Executive Director.  He has chaired many State Guild committees, including F&M show chair during the great years, Tyler Show Chair and Site Chair, Long Range Planning, and was actively involved in acquiring both Tyler State Park and the Bushkill Gallery for the PGC. He wrote and set up the Review Board for the PGC among many other accomplishments. Currently, he is President of the Pocono Chapter and Site chair for the Pocono State Craft Festival. He also chairs the Festival of Wood for the US Forest Service.  He devotes his volunteer time locally these days.

With his wife Helen he maintains a full show schedule, and is the demonstrating potter for Sugarloaf Craft Festivals.

In 1973,the Weichmans moved to the Pocono Mountains so Al could get his Masters in Environmental Science at East Stroudsburg University.  They became caretakers of a 300 acre farm, with two barns, a lake and stream, and proceeded to fill the barns Noah style with animals of every description, fur and feather and opened their pottery studio in 1973.

Working together for 35 years has allowed them to produce both a functional line of dinnerware, with our trademark carving of mountains and trees being our most popular design,and a line of sculptural soup tureens and jars. Throwing each piece by hand allows them to do custom orders.

You can meet Al and see his pottery demonstration at the Sugarloaf Craft Festival in Somerset New Jersey this upcoming weekend and at the Sugarloaf Crafts Festival at Oaks next week.http://www.sugarloafcrafts.com/

You can follow Groundhog Blues Pottery blog at : http://site.groundhogbluespottery.com/journal/ They post what’s new and what shows they are doing each week.

Groundhog Blues website: http://www.groundhogbluespottery.com/

You can also find Al at the following shows:

RoseSquared Productions in New Jersey: http://www.rosesquared.com/

Kutztown Folk Festival http://www.kutztownfestival.com/

Pocono State Craft Festival: http://www.poconocrafts.com/

People’s Choice Festival: http://www.peopleschoicefestival.com/index.php

Philadelphia Folk Festival: http://www.pfs.org/PFF.php

Tyler State Park Crafts in the Meadow: http://www.ec4ta.org/commactiv.html

Spring Crafts and Fine Art  Nassau County Museum of ARt Roslyn Harbor, New York http://www.craftsatlincoln.org/

Patriot Arts Festival in Harrisburg: http://www.harrisburgarts.org/artsfest/

From their first studio located on Willow Creek Crossroads near Corvallis, Montana to their return to the family farm in the Cumberland Valley of Pennsylvania, Karri Benedict and Rod Meyer have been making pottery together for more than 30 years.

Karri Benedict and Rod Meyer

Rod began working in clay in high school in Portland, Oregon in the days when high schools had terrific arts and crafts departments, went on to four years of college at University of Puget in Tacoma, Washington, where he studied under Carlton Ball and graduated with a Fine Arts program. Pennsylvania native Karri’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania is in History of Art and Architecture. After college she moved to Montana to teach art and recreation at an institution for the developmentally disabled….but mostly as a great adventure. Her knowledge of clay comes through books, workshops and years of hands-on-experience on our studio.

Rod demonstrating

Presently they work out of their studio near Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, with the rolling fields and orchards of the scenic Cumberland Valley as inspiration. Moving back to the family farm in 1985 to help out her ailing father, a dairy farmer, Rod learned to feed cows in between throwing pots while Karri did the milking and glazing. Today Karri and Rod are the owners of their family farm, where they share a one hundred and fifty year old farm house with her dad.  Recently one of her brothers returned with his family to the homestead with a welcome contingent of kids, dogs, cows, and several 6 toed kittens to play with Rod and Karri’s beloved chocolate lab Sophie. .

Teaset

Together Rod and Karri produce a line of functional pottery, showing their work in such notable craft events as the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts (PA) and the Richmond Craft and Design Show (VA). Juried members of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen, they have both been active members since joining the Guild in 1985. Showing for the first time with the Guild in 1986, Karri served two terms as Guild President and several years as State Board Secretary while Rod has been active on Show Rules and Site Committees for the Guild shows. They spent several years as craftsperson in residence at the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen’s State Craft Gallery in Bushkill, where Karri managed the Gallery.

Karri and Sophie...sharing an ice cream cone?

Their work shows a great respect for fine craftsmanship, and their sense of design is strongly influenced by function. Using simple elegance of form and pure color they create useful objects, which are pleasing to look at, touch and hold They produce a full line of functional pieces for the kitch en, bath and home. One of their favorite pieces to make is the colander. “I think I get the most satisfaction from making and selling the berry bowl”, Karri said. “I am a gardener and a cook, and I know that these functional and attractive pieces are on duty in kitchens wherever we sell our work…holding grapes, apples, onions and even jalapeno peppers!”

An original idea is their Marguerita salters. “I never imagined how many devotees of this simple folk drink there were out there!”, Karri said.

Recently they remodeled an old favorite… the pie dish, and they are hoping that their customers like making pies (and eating them!) as much as they do.

Rod, of course, loves firing the Raku..the unpredictable nature of the firing process is a nice counterpoint to making the production stoneware.

They work in two distinct glazes with their raku- a copper metallic in both matte and luster, and a clear crackle with polychrome underglazing. Rod has conducted many raku workshops to introduce potters to this four hundred year old firing process and has won many awards.

Raku Bowl

Karri is a founding member and current treasurer of the Online Chapter, and they are both active members in the Cumberland Valley Chapter of the Guild.

In Karri’s own words: “Rod and I joined the Pennsylvania Guild for the retail sales opportunity, but we quickly realized that membership gave us an opportunity to take an active part in an organization that was fostering the re-emergence of the craft movement. Being part of a group that recognizes and rewards what you do as important is no small thing. We also had the opportunity to help tell the story of craft making”.

Karri said, “What I find exciting about the Guild today..after more than 20 years with the organization.. is how we have adopted the web as a medium for both education and sales opportunities”.

Rod and Karri will be showing this week at the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen show at Montgomery College in Blue Bell, and next week will take part in the Cumberland Valley Studio tour.

Website: http://www.willowcreekpottery.com

Upcoming shows:

This week! A Pennsylvania Guild Fine Craft Fair

http://www.pacrafts.org/
2nd year in our NEW LOCATION, same great show! Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen
Montgomery County Community College, Blue Bell, PA

October 17 & 18, 2009

Holiday Open House

http://www.cumberlandvalleycrafts.org/
Cumberland Valley Craftsmens Guild
Greencastle, Waynesboro, Chambersburg Area, PA

Oct. 31, Nov. 1, 2009

A Pennsylvania Guild Fine Craft Fair

http://www.pacrafts.org/
Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen
Manheim Township School, Lancaster PA

November 14 – 15, 2009

Sugarloaf Crafts Festival http://www.sugarloafcrafts.com/festivals/gaith/november/
Montgomery County Fairgrounds
Gaithersburg, MD November 20 – 22, 2009