Pottery has been a craft at the Folk School since the early 1950s – almost three-quarters of the school’s history! The first clay classes were not actually taught on campus, as the Folk School did not have its own clay studio yet. Instead, potter Lynn Gault led instruction at his home studio, Birdfoot Ridge, in Brasstown. With a history of ceramics going back to 1952, it’s no wonder that the Folk School’s Fain Archives has dozens of examples of pottery in its collections! Read on to learn more about some of these pieces and the artists who made them.

Lynn Gault (1912-1998) came from a background in the dramatic arts. His early professional jobs included working with the outdoor dramas The Lost Colony and Unto These Hills. After moving to Western North Carolina, he took up traditional crafts. Gault’s artistry was well-respected, and he joined the Southern Highland Craft Guild in multiple areas, including pottery and enameling. He was also highly involved in the Folk School community. He built the current stage in Keith House Community Room, was part of community theatre projects, and started the Folk School’s annual holiday tradition of a live reading of A Christmas Carol.

Lynn Gault working in his home studio.

Ceramic pieces made by Lynn Gault: zodiac punch bowl, c. 1965; candleholder; sculpture.

Ceramic pieces made by Lee Davis, c. 1970s.

In 1975, Lee Davis came to the Folk School as the first official Resident Potter. Davis had attended the Atlanta College of Art, Georgia State University, and Indiana University in ceramics. He started his career as a university teacher but decided that studio production suited him better. Davis was the Folk School’s Resident Potter until the early 1980s, also producing wares for sale in the Folk School Craft Shop. He continued to be an instructor here for many years and has been honored as a Life Member in the Southern Highland Craft Guild.

Lee Davis

The Fain Archives also has pieces from later Resident Potters, including Bonnie Staffel (1921-2020) and Marcia Bugg. Staffel had a formal art education from Feather and Feather Art School, the American Academy of Art, and Cranbrook Academy of Art. She operated most of her pottery business out of Charlevoix, MI, but she joined the Folk School staff in 1984 and remained here until the early 1990s.

Bugg attended Clemson University and the University of Georgia for art and ceramics. She was first invited to teach at the Folk School in 1982. In addition to having her own production pottery at her home studio in Brasstown, she was Resident Potter here for most of the 1990s.

Vase made by Bonnie Staffel, 1987.

Bonnie Staffel

Marcia Bugg teaching a clay class at JCCFS.

Vase made by Marcia Bugg.

The Fain Archives also has pieces from other pottery instructors and regional ceramic artists. These include works by North Georgia potter W.J. Gordy (1910-1993); Tennessee potters Phil Mayhew (1943-2023) and Terri Mayhew; Cherokee potter Amanda Swimmer (1921-2018); local potters Harry Hearne and Rob Withrow; and Pisgah Forest Pottery. Pieces made by students in the Folk School’s clay classes have also made it into the collections.

Jug made by W.J. Gordy, 1986.

Vase made by Phil and Terri Mayhew.

“Wedding jug” made by Amanda Swimmer.

Bowl made by Harry Hearne, 1994.

Vase made by Rob Withrow.

Pisgah Forest Pottery jar, 1943.

“IOI A Mean” face jug made at JCCFS, 1996.

Vase made in a clay class taught by Bob Owens, 1998.

Bowl made by JCCFS Clay Mentorship participants, 2025. Part of the clay used in this piece was dug from the Folk School’s campus.

Though not Appalachian, pieces from potters further east in North Carolina are also included in the collections. Some are from Sanford, NC, made by the North State Pottery Company and by A.R. Cole (1892-1974). Others are from Seagrove, one of the centers of North Carolina pottery traditions. These include pieces by Jugtown Pottery and one piece by Mark and Meredith Heyward of Whynot, NC.

North State Pottery Co. jar, c. 1920s-1950s.

Pipkin made by A.R. Cole, c. 1941-1974.

Jugtown Pottery teapot.

Miniature vase made by Mark and Meredith Heyward, 1983.

Jugtown Pottery crock.

Finally, the Fain Archives has a lot of pottery by unidentified makers and with unknown origins. Some of these are sampled below. Do you recognize any of these pieces? Leave a comment on this post and help an archivist out!

There are many unmarked pieces in the Fain Archives made with this purple-ish brown glaze.

Plate, cup, and saucer sets in this mustard-colored glaze are unmarked.

The Fain Archives has dozens of mismatched pieces with yellow or gray bodies and blue rims, such as the ones pictured here.

There are about half a dozen ceramic pieces marked with this distinctive (but illegible) signature.

An example of a bowl marked with the signature in the left-hand photograph.

All of the known Appalachian pottery in the collections of the Folk School’s Fain Archives can be viewed online at Southern Appalachian Digital Collections.