September has been a milestone month for Studio Potter – membership drives, grants for apprenticeships, and three new articles featuring the good word from Canada.
We are pleased to report that our website is fully recovered, and we are back to welcoming new members while reestablishing profiles that were lost during the server crash. Members can expect to receive an email from our membership coordinator with instructions for registering their new accounts and answers to frequently asked questions. Please be patient with us as these registrations are being handled individually through personal emails and may take some time. If you need immediate assistance, contact us at membership@studiopotter.org, and we will prioritize activating your account.
This month also marks the opening of applications for our annual Grants for Apprenticeship Program (GAP). Applications opened September 1st and will remain open until September 30th. Now in its seventh year, this program awards $15,000 to a mentor-and-apprentice team, ensuring the continuity of a centuries-old tradition in non-academic education. For more details on the application process, past recipients, and opportunities for future grants, visit our grants page.
I am also delighted to present three articles highlighting the exceptional work happening in Canada. In a time when much of the world feels polarized, our northern neighbors continue to lead with strong commitments to environmentalism, equity, and play. Canadian ceramists and authors like Brendan Tang, D Wood, and Jennifer E. Salahub, Ph.D., through their work, are modeling what it means to hold complexity without collapsing it into division. Their commitment to environmental responsibility, curiosity, equity, and play demonstrates that clay is not neutral matter; it is a medium through which values are practiced. Perhaps this is what ceramics in Canada offers most clearly in a polarized world: the reminder that creation is not about erasing difference. Creation comes from collaboration – of sustaining critical voices, of fidelity to diversity, and of play as a necessary act of renewal.
September 13th marks a milestone in the life of Studio Potter. Founded in 1972, the journal turns 53 this year – more than half a century of voices, ideas, and stories carried in clay. Few publications in the field of craft can claim such a legacy. This birthday does more than celebrate longevity; it acknowledges resilience. In a year marked by technological survival and the challenges of adapting to digital landscapes, Studio Potter continues to endure. The journal remains a landmark in the ceramics community – one that has shaped generations of potters, nurtured dialogue across borders, and served as a touchstone for the field. As we celebrate this milestone, we look back on the history that has raised the potters of today, and we look forward with confidence that Studio Potter will continue to guide and inspire future generations.
Randi O'Brien, editor and executive director