VCPG October 2025 Newsletter
Program Meeting • October 27th • 7pm • Gathering 6:30 • Venice Akamatsu!
For Your Calendar:
October 7th ……................Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
October 13th ……..............Gallery Committee meeting @ 7pm
October 20th ……..............Gallery Artists meeting @ 7:00pm
October 27th……...............Program Meeting @ 7pm • Venice Akamatsu
November 4th……..............Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
November 8th&9th……......Bowl of Thanks & Ventura Pottery Market
November 24th……............Program Meeting @ 7pm
December 2nd ……............Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
December 8th …..…...........Gallery Committee meeting @ 7pm
December 13th …..….........Annual Holiday Potluck and Clay Challenge Reveal
2pm-4:30pm
You will find the link to all Zoom meetings/events on the VCPG.ORG Home Page.
Just click on the meeting/event in the Guild Calendar for the Zoom link.
A Message from Your VCPG Board President • October 2025
Greetings VCPG Members –
A good time was had by all the Annual Memebers's meeting and Potluck – Plus we got a lot accomplished!
The Annual Members Meeting and Potluck was held October 5th from 2:00pm to 4:30pm at Rancho Ventura Clubhouse, 1220 Johnson Drive, Ventura. Twenty-nine members attended the meeting in person. And boy did we put on a spread! (Shame on me for not taking photos – I was busy eating!).
In addition to getting feedback on this year’s accomplishments and goals moving forward (stay tuned for a summary of this next month) we had a presentation and vote on the Bylaw update and voted for the two open Board officer positions – President and Secretary. After the meeting, online voting was open for one week, and the results are listed below.
Thank you to everyone who voted, we did exceed the required quorum of 35 votes.
Total Votes: 38
Votes to Approve the Bylaws: 37
Votes for Stacy Rowe for President: 33
Votes for Rebecca Catterall for Secretary: 32
A link to view the business portion of the meeting is here: https://youtu.be/8TOSA0-46P8
After we got the business out of the way, we heard presentations from the four participants in the VCPG Summer Residency Program. Claudia Wilson, Anahita Modjahedpour, and Olga Johnson displayed work they completed during the Residency and talked about how the Residency, and working with Wyn Matthews, pushed the boundaries of their practice. And how excited they were to move forward with new skills and to stay involved with the Guild. The fourth participant, Jules Wecker, is back at Boudin College in Maine and provided his presentation online. Jules focused on form and consistency this summer – aiming to make dinnerware sets that stacked nicely and looked cohesive. And while Jules didn’t display any of his own work in person, we were treated to a display of the work of his great-grandmother, Isidora D. Parsons (1894-1971) one of the founding members of the VCPG!!! Imagine that, we are supporting our fourth generation of potters!!!
We will send you links to the videos of all four of the residents’ presentations when they are posted. Meanwhile, here are a few photos of Isidora Parsons and her work:
Final report from The 2025 Ojai Pottery Market
While we may not have data from all the prior 66 years of our sales at Ojai, we do suspect that the 2025 market was a record-breaker on several fronts. We had 36 participating vendors, who sold a total of $56,271 in pottery over two days. This resulted not only in proceeds for the artists, but the Guild also cleared $10,303 in revenue to be used for activities – like the Summer Residency Program, the School Outreach Program, and to build operating reserves. See the attached report for details and comparisons to recent years.
Ventura Pottery Market and Bowl of Thanks
The 2025 Ventura Pottery Market and the Bowl of Thanks will be held at the Ventura Harbor on November 8th and 9th from 10am to 5pm. You have until midnight October 15th, to register. Click the link Sell at the Ventura Pottery Market to review the Guidelines for Shows and Sales and then click on Seller Signup to register (you will need to be signed in to vcpg.org). Or you can click on the Ventura Market SELLER Sign Up event in the Guild Calendar on the Home Page and go directly to the application.
We are pleased to announce that students from Ventura College will be participating in the event and will be available to help us with space setup and breakdown both days.
There was enough interest for us to rent or borrow a moving truck for overnight storage on Saturday.
Please donate to the Bowls of Thanks!
It’s not too late to commit to creating and donating cereal-sized bowls for this event.
The event is going to be widely promoted by Food Share – our non-profit partner, VCPG and the Harbor Marketing Department. We expect a large crowd! Large outdoor banners will be placed on the Harbor entrance and the 2 Village entrances. Please see the attached document for more information about donating bowls.
Team Service for the Event
We are still looking for Bowl of Thanks Attendants for Saturday afternoon, 11/8 from 1:30 to 6:30pm. And we can always use more help with space set-up and breakdown on both days even with the Ventura College students. Click here to sign up: Team Service Sign Up for the Bowl of Thanks/Ventura Pottery Market (You need to be signed in to vcpg.org). Many thanks to those of you who have signed up already!!!! If you are a Plus member and have not completed your Team Service for 2025, this is one of your last opportunities. If you’ve done your 2025 Team Service or are a Regular member and want to help out, that’s great!
Reminders and Updates
The next Board Meeting will be Tuesday, November 4th at 4:30pm via Zoom. All members are welcome to attend. The link to Board meetings can be found on the Guild Calendar on the VCPG.org Home page. You can contact the Secretary on the Contact Us page if you would like to receive the Agenda Packet in advance of the Board of Directors Meeting.
Save the date for the Annual Holiday Potluck and Clay Challenge Reveal on Saturday, December 13th from 2:00pm to 4:30pm. Stay tuned for details.
That’s it for now. Let’s stay safe and support one another. And keep making stuff – it helps in so many ways!
Stacy Rowe
Guild President
president@vcpg.org
Program Meeting • October 27th • Program: 7:00pm • Gathering: 6:30
Venice Akamatsu — Potter and Sake Sommelier Based in Mashiko, Japan
Venice Akamatsu creates pottery using black clay and a black-spotted tenmoku glaze.
Her background as a certified sake sommelier has a profound influence on her work. She believes that each sake, with its distinct character, should be enjoyed in a vessel that complements and enhances the experience.
Recently, Venice has developed a growing interest in Bizen-style pottery, known for its unglazed surfaces and natural firing effects that are said to improve the flavor of sake. She is particularly inspired by classic tokkuri and guinomi forms, and plans to blend the earthy qualities of Bizen with her own organic and contemporary style.
In addition to her studio practice, Venice runs Workshop Mashiko, a hands-on pottery experience she started in 2024. Through this project, she connects visitors with local Mashiko potters, creating opportunities for cultural exchange and helping artisans earn additional income through teaching.
Instagram: @veniceakapottery
Website: www.venice-aka.com
November 8th & 9th • Bowl of Thanks & Ventura Pottery Market
We need help and we are adding a 2nd shift
We are adding a second Gallery shift to the calendar – both am and pm – for both the 8th and 9th as in the past the Gallery has been very busy and it would be helpful for the Cashier to have some back-up. Thank you.
Clay Challenge • Save the Date
Clay Challenge @ December Holiday Party – Saturday, December 13th , 2-6pm.
At our Program Meeting in June a poll of those attending was taken to choose the theme for the next Clay Challenge: “Cover Up” was selected.
Another chance to create and stretch yourselves. Explore a new technique or take on that project that has been in the back of your mind.
You have until just before our mid-December Holiday Potluck to make your “Cover Up” piece.
What comes to mind when you hear “cover up?” A covered serving dish, a draped sculpture, a hat, a lidded vessel, ????
Be prepared to bring your creation to share at the Holiday potluck. If you are unable to attend and want to share pictures of your piece, please send them to programs@vcpg.org.
NCECA Conference, VOLUMES, Detroit, MI-March 25-28, 2026
Look for a Forum on the Guild website, Home, where I will post more on important NCECA dates: conference registration, volunteer opportunities, block hotel room availability, art bus tour sign-ups and more as is released. Also, I am looking forward to a Guild member meeting up at a gallery or program during the conference. Please feel free to email me at: vcpg.nceca@vcpg.org
Janet Neuwalder
NCECA website
This includes link to Preliminary pdf of 2026 Conference
Utube video of 2026 NCECA
The VCPG Library
Visit the library! Please email and make an appointment with me to come see the books we
have to offer and grab them off the shelf! They are at your disposal. They must be enjoyed.
Nancy Currey
VCPG Librarian
Joke of the month
Why did the ceramicist go to therapy?
Because they felt they were throwing their life away.