Sponsored by The Friends of the Randolph County Public Library, the presentation is free and open to the public. The North Carolina Pottery Center will have copies of all six of Steve’s books available for purchase at this presentation.

Since his first visit to the site in 1974 as a newspaper photographer, Steve Compton has been a big fan of Jugtown Pottery. Written more than four decades later, his book, Jugtown Pottery 1917-2017: A Century of Art and Craft in Clay, describes the entire fascinating history of one of the nation’s most significant and long-lasting potteries. His account is the most complete telling of the pottery’s history since John F. Blair published Jean Crawford’s Jugtown Pottery: History and Design, in 1964.

Compton’s October 5th talk at the Randolph County Public Libary (201 Worth St., Asheboro, NC) about his book will be complemented by a colorful PowerPoint presentation showing historic photographs and examples of Jugtown pottery from all periods of its history. Artist Jacques Busbee studied the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s outstanding collection of Asian ceramics to create many of Jugtown Pottery’s now classic shapes and glazes. Images of some of the Metropolitan wares that he observed and documented will be shown alongside early Jugtown interpretations of these shapes made first by local potters J. H. Owen, Charlie Teague, Ben Owen Sr., and later on by Vernon, Pamela, Travis, and Bayle Owens, who currently own and operate Jugtown Pottery.

About Steve:
Stephen C. Compton is an avid collector of mid-18th to mid-20th century North Carolina pottery. Steve has written numerous articles and books about it, including, North Carolina Pottery: Earthenware, Stoneware, and Fancyware (Collector Books, 2011); Seagrove Potteries Through Time (Fonthill Media, 2013); A Handed Down Art: The Brown Family Potters (North Carolina Pottery Center, 2014); It’s Just Dirt! The Historic Art Potteries of North Carolina’s Seagrove Region (Fonthill Media, 2014); Jugtown Pottery: A Century of Art and Craft in Clay (John F. Blair, Publisher); and North Carolina Potteries Through Time (Fonthill Media). Widely recognized for his expertise, he is frequently called upon to be a lecturer and exhibit curator. He once served as president of the North Carolina Pottery Center, a museum and educational center located in Seagrove, NC, and is a founding organizer of the North Carolina Pottery Collectors’ Guild.