Arizona Clay Association

Category: Guild Also called: AZ Clay; Arizona Clay; AZ Clay Association Last checked: 2026-09-14

What it is

Arizona Clay Association is an Arizona member pottery / ceramic-arts association. The homepage describes it as an association of clay artists dedicated to fellowship, the arts, and supporting local causes. The About Us page states that its purpose is to encourage fellowship; exchange ideas and information through workshops, meetings, exhibitions, shows and sales; and increase the public awareness and appreciation of Ceramic Arts. The About page lists a working board (president, membership, events, Empty Bowls coordinator, newsletter, cup-sale coordinator, and others). The Empty Bowls page states that for over 30 years the association has partnered with Waste Not Arizona on bowl-making and fundraising. It is not a commercial clay supplier and it is not a drop-in teaching studio with its own permanent public class program as its primary identity.

Who it’s for

Ceramic makers and clay enthusiasts in Arizona — beginners through professionals, students, and supporters — who want guild fellowship, reduced-price or free member demonstrations and classes, newsletter access, Marjon Ceramics member discount access as printed, Empty Bowls participation, scholarship program awareness, and a private member Facebook group. Membership page: new and returning members are welcomed; volunteer help is invited for membership, event planning, demonstrations, workshops, and publicity.

Why it’s listed

This is a first-party Arizona pottery-association site with printed calendar-year dues tiers, dated 2026 member presentation archive entries, a ceramics scholarship program with a partner 2026 application timeline, and a long-running Empty Bowls partnership whose 2026 public event date is printed on the Waste Not partner page — not a scraped directory card.

• Membership (checked 2026-09-14): $35 per calendar year for one person; $60 per calendar year for a couple; $20 per calendar year for full-time students only. Benefits printed on the same page: reduced price or no-cost demonstrations and classes; newsletter access for local ceramic events, workshops, lectures, sales, and shows; access to recordings from previous online presentations; discount on most items at Marjon Ceramics; Empty Bowls community support opportunities; private Facebook group. Membership page notes monthly meetings returned toward in-person with online content also offered when possible.
• Event Content — Accidental Soda Kiln (checked 2026-09-14): March 2026 presentation by Mary Delmege on converting an inherited gas kiln into a soda kiln (member Event Content archive).
• Event Content — July 2026 presentation (checked 2026-09-14): July 2026 features Asa of The King and The Flower Pottery at his studio (member Event Content archive; recording noted incomplete at the start).
• Ceramics Scholarship (checked 2026-09-14): AZ Clay partners with the Arizona Artists Guild (AAG) to offer a $1000 scholarship for college students working with clay; multi-media entries should be at least 75% ceramic. AAG scholarship page (partner first-party for the shared award cycle, checked 2026-09-14): AAG–Az Clay Association $1000; application deadline February 1, 2026, 11:59pm; jury February 8, 2026; notification February 12, 2026; award ceremony April 21, 2026, 6:30–9:00 p.m.; AZ Clay scholarship recipient presentation to Arizona Clay Association listed as TBA. Confirm live AAG scholarship page for eligibility and submission rules.
• Empty Bowls: AZ Clay Empty Bowls page — partnership with Waste Not Arizona for over 30 years; Laguna Clay Company clay support acknowledged; member artists craft bowls. Waste Not Empty Bowls page (partner first-party for the 2026 public date, checked 2026-09-14): October 17, 2026, Mesa Arts Center, 1 East Main Street, Mesa; VIP Experience 9:00am–10:00am; Community Celebration 10:00am–1:00pm; thanks Arizona Clay Association members for bowls. Confirm live Waste Not and AZ Clay Empty Bowls pages before treating the date/venue as fixed (AZ Clay’s own Empty Bowls page still carried older “2024 event” placeholder wording on the check date).

Dues, presentation months, scholarship amounts/dates, and Empty Bowls hours above are what the official (and named partner) pages showed on the check date. They can change. Confirm on the live Membership, Event Content, Ceramics Scholarship, and Empty Bowls pages before joining or treating any date/fee/address as fixed.

Official URL

https://www.arizonaclay.net/

About Us: https://www.arizonaclay.net/about.html

Membership (dues): https://www.arizonaclay.net/membership.html

Event Content: https://www.arizonaclay.net/event-content.html

Events / calendar: https://www.arizonaclay.net/events.html

Ceramics Scholarship: https://www.arizonaclay.net/ceramics-scholarship.html

Empty Bowls (AZ Clay): https://www.arizonaclay.net/empty-bowls.html

Waste Not Empty Bowls 2026 (partner): https://www.wastenotaz.org/emptybowls

AAG Visual Arts Scholarships (partner award cycle): https://arizonaartistsguild.net/scholarships/

Location

Regional member pottery / ceramic-arts association serving Arizona (Phoenix-area venues and statewide student scholarship eligibility appear repeatedly on association and partner pages). Meetings, demos, and studio visits are held at announced member studios and partner venues (Event Content cites examples such as Marjon Ceramics, Sunshine Sunflower Studio, Mesa Art Center Ceramics Studio, and member home studios) rather than a single permanent public member-studio street address as the association’s primary public identity. Contact page offers a web contact form only (no mailing street HQ printed as the guild’s primary address on the pages checked).

Major 2026 public program address as printed on the Waste Not partner page: Empty Bowls at Mesa Arts Center, 1 East Main Street, Mesa (October 17, 2026). Use the live event pages before travel.

Do not treat Arizona Clay Association as a walk-in classroom enrollment desk or a clay supply warehouse. The site’s Ceramic Classes page is a directory of valley facilities, not AZ Clay’s own class studio brand.

Notes

• Category is Guild. Member pottery/ceramics association with printed calendar-year dues, member presentations/demos, Empty Bowls community support, and a ceramics scholarship partnership. Not a teaching-studio brand and not a clay manufacturer.
• 2026 dues dollar amounts, March/July 2026 Event Content entries, AAG–AZ Clay $1000 scholarship 2026 timeline, and October 17, 2026 Empty Bowls date/hours/venue are transcribed from official and named-partner pages checked on 2026-09-14 and may change. Where AZ Clay’s Empty Bowls page lagged the partner 2026 date, prefer the live Waste Not page and confirm both.
• Not affiliated with Clay Plaza.
• No Clay Plaza contact, purchase, booking, or publication action was taken.

FAQ

Q: Who can join, and what are the dues?
A: Membership page: open to new and returning members (including full-time students at the student rate). Printed calendar-year dues checked 2026-09-14: Individual $35; Couple $60; Full-Time Student $20. Confirm live amounts at https://www.arizonaclay.net/membership.html

Q: What 2026 programs are documented on first-party pages?
A: Event Content (checked 2026-09-14): March 2026 Accidental Soda Kiln presentation (Mary Delmege); July 2026 Asa / The King and The Flower Pottery studio presentation. Partner Waste Not Empty Bowls: October 17, 2026, Mesa Arts Center. Partner AAG scholarship cycle: Feb 1–April 21, 2026 timeline for the AAG–Az Clay Association $1000 award. Confirm live Event Content, Empty Bowls, and AAG scholarship pages before relying on any date.

Q: Does Arizona Clay Association run a public drop-in pottery studio?
A: No permanent public open-studio classroom brand is the association’s primary identity on About Us or Membership. AZ Clay is a member association that holds meetings, demonstrations, Empty Bowls support, and a scholarship partnership; its Ceramic Classes page lists third-party valley facilities. For weekly class-studio practice, use a local teaching studio or your own workspace; join AZ Clay for association benefits and program eligibility, not as a substitute for a class-studio membership.