CELEBRATON, SAPA TO MERGE
For Immediate Release
August 10, 2008
Contact: Michael Mahan
Telephone: 910.464.6228
Email: mahanpots@rtmc.net
Photos: See below
SEAGROVE -- Seagrove Area Potters Association, a group of artists who formed in 2003, recently voted to merge with the area's newest organization to promote the potters of Seagrove and the new group's upcoming festival. Association members will join forces with the newly formed Celebration of Seagrove Potters to host the pottery event Nov. 22 and 23 at the historic Luck's Bean plant in Seagrove on Hwy. 705.
"We're very excited about having this dedicated group of potters join us in our commitment to the community of Seagrove," said SAPA president Sally Larson, a potter in the Seagrove area. She said that the goal of SAPA, a non-profit professional organization that promotes, publicizes and markets the Seagrove area's potters, is consistent with that of the newly formed group.
SAPA produces a full-color map featuring the potters of Seagrove and hosts a website promoting potters at www.DiscoverSeagrove.com. The group recently hired a publicist to help promote this unique area, where English settlers began making their wares in the mid 1700s.
Glenn McVicker, sales manager of Our State magazine, and George Gusler, president of the Asheboro/Randolph Chamber of Commerce, who both serve on the SAPA board, said they are excited about the merging of the two groups.
"The tremendous enthusiasm of the association's members and others in the Seagrove pottery community to have a festival that celebrates this unique burr of singularity is fantastic to see nowadays," McVicker said. "Seagrove, as both a place of tradition and a contemporary hotbed of talent, is truly one of North Carolina's great art treasures."
He said one of the Seagrove area's challenges is that it's not all in one county, and there are several different organizations that represent the potters and help promote tourism in the area.
Gusler said it is in the best interest of the potters of Seagrove and its surrounding community to present a unified front and work together to promote growth in the local economy.
"I see this as a very positive first step in, hopefully, what in the future, can become an even stronger coalition of all the various groups and potters in the Seagrove area," he said, "working together towards a common goal of continuing to promote and grow the tourism industry throughout the pottery community."
The new festival has been well-received in the community this past week, as potters have successfully gathered a number of sponsorships for the new show.
"With over 60 potters participating and important sponsors' encouragement, our goals are being realized daily," said Ben Owen, chairperson of the steering committee of Celebration of Seagrove Potters.
The Celebration of Seagrove Potters was formed in early June to host a festival made up entirely of potters from Seagrove. The inaugural festival has received strong support from potters and the community at large and will be held indoors at the historic Luck's Bean Plant on November 22-23, 2008, with an opening night gala on Friday, November 21, 2008. The festival website www.CelebrationOfSeagrovePotters.com will provide continual updates.
The potters who are participating in the Celebration of Seagrove Potters festival in November are also part of a special exhibition at the Arts Council of Moore County in Southern Pines, NC. For more info go to the Exhibition page.
