Welcome to Our 35th Year at Ellison Bay Pottery

Entrance to our gallery….

John started potting 43 years ago, and I fell into it more like 16 years ago.  He first studied in college, took one year in grad school, then apprenticed with Abe Cohn, a Wisconsin Master Potter in Milwaukee WI. and Fish Creek, WI., who recently marked 50 years in the Fish Creek, WI in his gallery and studio The Potter’s Wheel.  Abe, well over 80 years old, is still potting.  In 1974 John bought 10 acres of Driftwood Farms, an apple and cherry orchard.  The property was an old apple packing and storage barn, which he converted into a studio/gallery/home.  We married in 1994 and soon I was making ’stuff’ in the studio, not just waxing and glazing.

In 2000 we began pit firing in an above ground pit (built with hard and soft bricks) in an almost off handed way.  Someone asked us if we would like to do one pit firing with them and could we provide the land, wood, bricks, materials, insurance etc?  Sure, why not.  And then, we found that we liked doing this so much, we began doing it weekly.  Then we held public demonstrations and, finally, selling bisqueware to customers so they could do it with us.  So, nine years later, with many experiments and failures to support us, we find we can get some good results, almost consistently.  The Wednesday workshops begin in May and end sometime around the end of October.

We’re also parents, grandparents, gardeners, readers, singers and caretakers of many animals…including the wild ones who inhabit our outdoors.