Pottery

A woman shaping a clay pot on a pottery wheel in a studio.

The Folk Art Guild pottery studio makes functional work designed to enhance the quality of everyday life, for eating, drinking, gathering flowers and making tea.

Shop our Pottery

“I am in constant awe of the patterns, textures and rhythms of nature. I wish my work to reflect this as well as nature’s mystery; to let the clay dance in my hands and my body so that the clay and I become one. And when the user of these pots eats, drinks or arranges flowers, I hope they can experience this mystery and the sacredness of life in small daily rituals.”

— Artist’s Statement from the Rochester Folk Art Guild Pottery

Several white and brown ceramic vases with textured and patterned surfaces are displayed on wooden shelves in a pottery workshop.
Inside a cluttered workshop or studio with various furniture, shelves, and items, including a small chair, wood stove, and a table with miscellaneous objects, illuminated by natural light from high windows.
Decorative ceramic plate with intricate geometric patterns in brown and cream, displayed on a clear stand.

Our Pottery

is primarily high fired stoneware, suitable for kitchen and table. Our glaze palette reflects the natural tones found in nature at the Guild over the seasons. Intricate carving, delicately pressed leaves and other surface decorations elevate functional items meant for regular use. Some of our work is fired in our wood-fired kiln, producing unique and beautiful finishes. We also make exquisite carved and decorated porcelain, and a low fired, highly burnished earthenware, fired using sawdust as fuel.

Our Studio

is housed in a spacious building with clerestory windows constructed in 1978. The studio has many unique design features including an exterior wall made of ceramic tiles in the style of Incan ruins, all made and mounted by the potters.

Education

We offer pottery lessons, apprenticeships, residencies and workshops, including the Guild’s annual Craft Weekend.

Many craftspeople have worked and studied in the Guild Pottery Studio over the decades. Many who started their journey in ceramics have gone on to become successful potters across the country including Renata Mastroti, Turiya Gross, Claire Willis, Nicole Hummel, Renata Wadsworth, Jenny Johnsrud, and Hailey Fair.

Find Our Work

Folk Art Guild Pottery is sold in East Hill Gallery, our Etsy, at various Craft Fairs, and Art Galleries and Craft shops around the region. Come find us at The Clothesline Art Festival, The Western NY Pottery Festival and others.

A woman wearing a red sweater and an apron is shaping a ceramic vase on a pottery wheel in a pottery studio.

Meet Annie

Today, Annie Schliffer is the principal potter at the Guild. She has been living and working here since 1972. She also bakes sourdough bread for the resident community and events, and teaches Iyengar Yoga weekly. She makes functional work including mugs, bowls, plates, teapots, pitchers and occasionally sculptural work, large scale vases, platters, garden lanterns, and birdbaths. She takes custom orders for specific pieces, including dinnerware sets.

A woman wearing a headscarf and checkered apron holding a tray with pottery vases in a pottery studio with shelves, scaffolding, and tools in the background.
Stone sculpture of a howling wolf, with a long, straight tail, on a rectangular base, placed on a wooden surface against a plain wall.
A person working on clay sculptures at a pottery studio, with several small house-shaped clay models featuring decorative elements like sun motifs and figures in the foreground. The background contains various ceramic pieces and pottery supplies.

Meet Emma

Emma Silverstein is a resident potter at the Guild, producing sculptural figurines and functional pottery. She has lived and worked here since 2022 after several shorter residencies. She divides her time between pottery, the garden, the kitchen, and care of our herd of five Alpacas.

Person shaping a clay sculpture on a balance scale in a ceramics workshop, with clay balls on the table.

Join Us

Each season we welcome interns and residents to the pottery studio. We accept applications for internships, apprenticeships and residencies on a rolling basis.

Learn more
Person shaping clay on a pottery wheel.
A woman in a red hat and red vest building a brick oven or fireplace with bricks inside a small brick-walled chamber.
Two green ceramic vases with geometric patterns, one large and one small, against a dark background.
Decorative ceramic plate with intricate circular patterns in brown, cream, and beige tones.
Two owl-shaped carved objects, one smaller and one larger, made from a patterned material with detailed textured surface, set against a gradient background.
Older person decorating a ceramic mug with green glaze at a pottery studio.
Person holding a decorative gingerbread cookie with white icing, next to a LEGO brick fireplace.
Two children and an adult are sculpting with clay at a table. The children have blonde hair and are wearing plaid and patterned long sleeves. The adult's hands are visible, guiding the activity.
Decorative ceramic plate with a textured, stained rim and a smooth, speckled inner surface displayed on clear stand.
Woman with short dark hair wearing a red beanie and red vest kneeling at a table with two young children, teaching them pottery in a workshop.
Ceramic fish-shaped bowl with textured scales and fins, glazed in brown, white, and red colors.
A brick kiln under construction with a partially built archway and multiple small decorative figurines on top, surrounded by construction tools and materials.
Four small turtle-shaped figurines placed on a piece of bark wood on green grass.
Blue glass bowl with a spiderweb pattern inside, scalloped edges, and a reflective surface.
Young child with curly red hair playing with clay on a white table.
Person painting a brick wall with a paint roller illuminated by a red light in a dark room, with another person sitting nearby.
Outdoor stone building with a window and a sign that reads 'Pottery'. There are benches, plants, and decorative items on the grass in front.
Two young children and an adult sitting around a table, playing with clay and clay tools, creating sculptures.
An elderly woman with glasses working on a pottery wheel shaping a ceramic bowl in a cozy studio with warm lighting.
Unfinished ceramic vases and pots on a wooden shelf in a pottery studio.
Several unfinished ceramic mugs with vertical ridges on a wooden shelf in a pottery studio.
Close-up of a person decorating a ceramic mug with a green leaf design, hands covered in white clay dust, wearing a colorful apron.
Person decorating a ceramic cup with a leaf design using a glass cutter, with pottery tools and work surface visible.
Hands shaping wet clay on a pottery wheel.
A person shaping clay on a pottery wheel, wearing a red vest and black shirt, with shelves of pottery tools in the background.
A woman wearing a red beanie and red sleeveless jacket shaping a large clay pot in a pottery studio.
A person wearing a red beanie and red fleece vest working with pottery in a studio.
Close-up of a potter's hands shaping wet clay on a pottery wheel.
A woman wearing a red beret and brown shirt pointing at a partially damaged brick fireplace under renovation, with tools and construction materials around.
An elderly person's hand covered in clay shaping a pottery piece on a pottery wheel in a studio.
Person shaping clay on a pottery wheel in a pottery studio.
Close-up of an elderly person's hands shaping clay on a pottery wheel.
An elderly person is rolling out clay on a table in a pottery studio. Five clay balls are on the table. There's a vintage weighing scale, and some tools and materials in the background.
An elderly woman shaping clay on a pottery wheel in a cozy, decorated art studio.
A rustic building with a stone wall exterior and weathered wooden upper level, featuring a sign that reads 'POTTERY,' surrounded by greenery.