VCPG March 2026 Newsletter
Program Meeting • March 23rd • 7pm - Gathering 6:30pm
• The Process and Work of Darlene Pratt
For Your Calendar:
March 1st ……...................Pottery Jam • Put your best pot forward with Wendy Butler
March 10th ……...................Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
March 21st ……................... Pottery Jam - Making Your Mark Using Digital Design
(Tech skill needed for this Jam to be meaningful) with Maureen Schultz
March 23rd …….................Program meeting @ 7pm • Gathering @6:30
• The Process and Work of Darlene Pratt
April 14th ……....................Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
April 13th ……...................Gallery Committee meeting @ 7pm
April 18th ..........................Pottery Jam - Wiring Lamps and Fountains Basics with Mike Maki
April 20th ……....................Gallery Artists meeting @ 7pm
April 27th ……....................Program meeting @ 7pm • Gathering @6:30
May 12th ……......................Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
May 17th............................ Pit fire (in lieu of program meeting)
June 9th ……......................Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
June 8th …….....................Gallery Committee meeting @ 7pm
June 13th &14th …….........Ojai Pottery Market
June 15th ……...................2nd Jury critique
July 14th ……......................Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
July 20th ……....................Gallery Artists meeting @ 7pm
August 11th …….................Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
August 10th ……................Gallery Committee meeting @ 7pm
September 8th …….............Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
September 26th ……...........Beatrice Wood Show (thru Nov 7)
September 28th……..............Program meeting @ 7pm • Gathering @6:30
October 13th ……...............Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
October 12th …….............Gallery Committee meeting @ 7pm
October TBD …….............Annual meeting -- potluck @ 2pm
November 10th……..............Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
November 23rd……..............Program meeting @ 7pm • Gathering @6:30
December TBD ……............Holiday potluck @ 2pm (in place of the Dec meeting)
December 8th ……..............Board Meeting @ 4:30pm
December 14th ……............Gallery Committee meeting @ 7pm
The complete calendar is always listed on the home page. Log in to see everything.
You will find links to all Zoom meetings/events on the VCPG.ORG home page calendar. Just click on the meeting/event to find the Zoom link.
A Message from Your VCPG Board President • March 2026
Greetings VCPG Members –
Your VCPG Board has been spending the last couple of months engaged in boring, but important activities like our Annual Budget. Although the budget won’t be finalized and ready for review until the April 14th Board meeting, I’m happy to report that we now have a proper 9-month operating reserve for both the Guild and the Gallery (remember COVID?) and that our Prudent Reserve Fund (funded, in part, by the extra $35 each Plus Tier member pays for annual Guild dues) is beginning to grow.
This fund was established to enable the Guild to fund future projects. It’s at $15,000 now and grows by about $3,000/year. And it’s been six years since our last long-term planning project: “2020 and Beyond”. So it’s time to plan for the Guild’s future.
Over the coming months the Board will conduct a series of activities to garner member feedback. In the past, we’ve used several methods – Zoom small focus groups, face to face focus groups, surveys, a member retreat – to hear members’ ideas. What methods do you think are most effective? What kind of conversation would you most like to participate in? Let me know at president@vcpg.org.
Planning is underway for our key summer activities. This year the Ojai Sale will be June 13th and 14th . A week later than usual because we continue to hold it in conjunction with the Ojai Music Festival. We broke records last year! Look for signup information in late April, but information on our shows is available on our website here: Sell At Our Markets Time to start making!
We’re also gearing up our Summer Residency Program. Do you know an emerging student artists who needs a studio and guidance over the summer months? Then keep an eye out for the Residency application. Outreach to local colleges and universities is beginning in the next weeks.
Reminders & Updates
The VCPG Board of Directors now meets the 2nd Tuesday of the month, at 4:30pm via Zoom. We are moving from the 1st Tuesday to the 2nd to allow enough time for our Finance Committee to close out the books for the previous month. 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 Secretary on the Contact Us page if you would like to receive the Agenda Packet in advance of the Board of Directors Meeting.
Please pull out your calendars and schedule your Team Service commitment early. Did you work the Ojai or Ventura Pottery Markets last year? The Pit Fire? Was it fun? Then sign up now. I cannot stress how much this will help the teams that are planning the events.
We also have range of TS commitments that can be completed from home and/or via Zoom meetings. All Plus tier members are required to complete one Team Service commitment each year. If you have questions or need assistance, email teamservice@vcpg.org.
The annual show at the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts will be September 26th through November 7th with the opening reception on September 26th . The theme of the show is Dining in Style. Participants will be able to submit place settings of three or more items (the idea is that you can eat or drink with them). And you can submit up to two different settings! Stay tuned for more information about the submission process. You do not need to be juried or a Plus Tier member to participate in this event.
That’s it for now. Keep making stuff.
Stacy Rowe
Guild President
president@vcpg.org
Program Meeting • March 23rd • 6:30 Gathering time
NEW • Website Tips • Q & A • @ 6:45 PM •
Overview of How to Get Events, Exhibits, Classes and Sales Posted for members and the public to see.
7:00 PM: Business and Program
Program: The Process and Work of Darlene Pratt
Darlene began as a hobbyist in 1988 with a potter’s wheel and a penchant for functional ware. Between 2005 and 2020, life circumstances forced her to abandon working with clay, so she participated in a creative mentorship program with master ceramicist, Lesley McInally in 2020, rekindling her passion for ceramic art form and compelling her to explore conceptual sculptural forms.
Darlene’s work feels familiar and alien, compelling intimate examination of the surfaces, visually and through touch. Animalian, yet reminiscent of plants, and of fossils, her pieces could be objects of the past, present, or future.
She was awarded the 2024 Tucker's Pottery Supplies Ltd. Clay Supply Grant through the Craft Ontario Awards program, and Best Sculptural and People's Choice awards at the 2022 Fusion: Ontario Clay & Glass Association’s annual show. She has shown at Baltimore Clayworks, The Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery, Gardiner Museum Shop, Carnegie Gallery, Thames Art Gallery, Art Gallery of Burlington, and the Rails End Gallery; and her work is available in Canada at Gallery House SKWIRL in Bayfield, Coles Art Market in Huntsville, and Flux Pottery in London.
https://www.darleneprattstudios.com/
Registration is open for the May Pitfire Gathering!
Please see the calendar on the home page for sign-ups.
Join the fun on Sunday, May 17th, for the pit fire at Arroyo Verde Park in Ventura. We will enjoy time together with a mini workshop, clay swapmeet - free and priced items, and of course a breakfast and lunch pot lucks!
Everyone is invited to spend time enjoying the event and our Guild family, even if you are not participating in the firing.
Please read below for details and required registration and payment.
Location:
Arroyo Verde Park - All the way to the back on the left at the larger group picnic site.
https://visitventuraca.com/business/arroyo-verde-park/
5000 Foothill Road, Ventura, CA 93003
7:30 am - Unloading and stack wood. Ready Fire & Breakfast Potluck
8:00-8:30 - Assemble Pots
8:45-9:15 - Light Fires
Mini-Workshops throughout the day
Noonish: Lunch Potluck
3 pm - Pot Reveal
4 pm - Clean-up
Day Use parking is $3.00. You might plan on carpooling? Another great way to meet members who live near you!
Separate workshops on Saturday, May 16th will be held in Ojai and Ventura for those who want help or company putting their pots, should be bisque fired "into potion filled saggers".
This will be an opportunity for those members who have prepared pots (no larger than 6" X 6" and no more than three (3) to ready them for the fire!
Separate registration is required for a prep session and to participate in the pit fire event. Stay tuned for this sign up on the home page.
We are collecting $15 with your registration to cover the cost of wood and materials. Payment is non-refundable.
Need Team Service hours?
We will have a sign up for helpers for this day long event!
Questions should be directed to programs@vcpg.org
Janet Neuwalder
j.neuwalder@gmail.com
www.janetneuwalderart.com
April Program: Picnic: The International Museum of Dinnerware
Design’s Sixth Biennial Juried Exhibition
We will view a variety of tableware included in the exhibtioin Picnic: The International Museum of Dinnerware Design’s Sixth Biennial Juried Exhibition.
We will also have a presentation by a potter that is passionate about the celebratory space of the table.
Let’s get inspired for the Guild’s upcoming Tableware juried exhibition at the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts in Ojai.
Picnic-The Dinnerware Museum
Julianne Harvey
Under the Hood, 2025
porcelain
12″ x 7″ x 8″
Beth Lo
Chi-not Series: Picnic, 2025
porcelain
9″ x 12″ x 1″
Charlie Smith
Lunchtime for Lonely Joe, 2025
lowfire mixed stoneware ceramics, custom decals
8.5″ x 8.5″ x 0.5″
Clay Challenge Theme – June Program Meeting – BIRDS!
This is the first of two Clay Challenges in 2026
It is an opportunity for you to explore new ideas, techniques and a chance to try your hand at something new or push your current work.
It is a chance to spark your imagination, generate conversation and encourage you to investigate new techniques.
In June you will be invited to submit digital images of your BIRD(s). These images will be put into a slide presentation that will be shown at the June program meeting. There will be an opportunity for each submitting artist to speak to the zoom group about their piece and answer questions about construction and finishing. These sharing are always a great opportunity to learn more about each other, our interests and knowledge bases.
Looking forward to your creations!
Information of submitting your images will be posted in early June.
Pottery Jams Update
• If you were late at finding your way to a Jam sign-up, please join a waiting list. Register for a Jam or Jam Waiting List using the Guild Calendar/website post for the specific date of the Jam you are interested in.
• Sometimes a spot will open up a day or two before the Jam and we would love to fill it with an
interested member.
• If the Jam is a topic you are interested, please sign-up on the waiting list so we have an idea of the level of interest.
March 21st - Pottery Jam - Making Your Mark Using Digital Design (Tech skill needed for this Jam to be meaningful) with Maureen Schultz.
April 18th - Pottery Jam - Wiring Lamps and Fountains Basics with Mike Maki.
We are always interested in hearing from members about an idea, a Jam host or the offer to open up a studio or home for a ceramic focused hangout with other Guild members.
The Program Team spends time each month working on ideas and plans for our Jams.
Please use this form to share your ideas and/or interest with us:
https://vcpg.org/content.aspx?page_id=1478&club_id=108313&item_id=13257
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 meet 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
YouTube 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
For Sale
A 17” wide 1968 electric cress kiln with a kilnsitter that is free to anyone that wants to pick it up. It goes to cone 5. Pictures and more information upon request.
Bethany Anderson