Blue Ridge Potters Guild

Category: Guild Also called: BRPG; Blue Ridge Potters’ Guild; BRPG Annual Show and Sale; Clay College (BRPG) Last checked: 2026-09-10

What it is

Blue Ridge Potters Guild is a Roanoke- and Southwest Virginia–area member pottery association. The Guild History page states that the Guild formed in 1996 with potters from the greater Roanoke area and New River Valley (19 original potters), and that it now has over 100 members from the Roanoke Valley and surrounding areas including Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Lynchburg, Franklin, Floyd, Botetourt, and Wise Counties. The mission printed on the homepage and Guild History page is to promote community awareness, understanding, and appreciation of ceramics; encourage artistic and professional growth among members through workshops and sharing ideas; and promote the craft of pottery to the public through an annual show and sale, community outreach, member demonstrations and exhibits in public schools and community festivals, hunger-relief bowl donations, and scholarships. The site footer identifies the organization as a non-profit 501(c)(3). 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

Community-center students through professional ceramicists in the Roanoke Valley / New River Valley and surrounding Southwest Virginia counties who want guild fellowship, workshops, scholarship and outreach participation, and eligibility related to the annual member pottery show and sale. Guild History: member experience ranges from those taking classes in community centers to professional potters with degrees in ceramic arts; all share a love of pottery and willingness to share their love of clay. Homepage copy: “A Community of Potters From Roanoke & Southwest Virginia,” with “100 Members & Counting.”

Why it’s listed

This is a first-party Virginia pottery-guild site with printed 2026 calendar-year dues, a dated 2026 Annual Show and Sale schedule, Clay College 2026, workshops with printed member/non-member fees, and a 2026 student show — not a scraped directory card.

• Join / membership (checked 2026-09-10): annual guild membership dues $40.00; membership cycle follows the calendar year; printed wording: “Membership dues for 2026 expire Dec 31, 2026. Renewals must be purchased in January 2027 to continue active membership.” Online credit-card join and a printable check application are offered on the same page.
• Events Calendar — BRPG Annual Show and Sale 2026 (checked 2026-09-10): Patrick Henry High School, Roanoke, Virginia; Saturday November 7, 2026, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM; Sunday November 8, 2026, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM. (The calendar metadata line on the same event entry showed a mismatched evening start time; use the body hours above and confirm the live event page before attending.) Guild History / 2025 show copy: show held yearly since 2000; currently one of the largest all-pottery shows in Virginia, with about 45–70 potters; 2025 listing printed venue address 2102 Grandin Rd SW, Roanoke, VA 24015 and free public admission — confirm the live 2026 show page for address and admission.
• Events Calendar — Clay College 2026: Saturday August 29, 2026, 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM, at Common Clay Collective; free and open to all, demonstrations by Guild member volunteers (schedule printed on the event page: glaze/slip decorations, underglaze transfers, flexible molds, slab forms). Clay College page describes the program as a free one-day hands-on learning opportunity open to members and the public.
• Events Calendar — Dara Hartman mold-making / slip-casting workshop: Saturday May 2, 2026, 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM, Common Clay Collective; printed registration Member $40.00; Non-Member $80.00.
• Events Calendar — Stephen Palmer Oil Can Pitcher Workshop: Saturday September 26, 2026, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM, Common Clay Collective (hand-building / surface workshop; cone 6 clay; participants fire on their own).
• Events Calendar — Roanoke Earth Day Celebration free clay experience: Saturday April 18, 2026, 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM, Grandin Village (air-dry clay hand-building for adults and children).
• Student Show page: beginning 2019; 2026 show hosted again by the Salem Museum, featuring over 130 works of original middle- and high-school student art (participating schools listed on the page).
• Scholarships page: community scholarships awarded at the Annual Show and Sale; support also noted for scholarships to the Women Working with Clay Symposium at Hollins University. Art teachers attend Guild workshops at no fee (Guild History / homepage).

Dues, show hours, workshop fees, and venues above are what the official pages showed on the check date. They can change. Confirm on the live Join and Events Calendar pages before joining or treating any date/fee/address as fixed.

Official URL

https://www.blueridgepotters.com/

Guild History: https://www.blueridgepotters.com/guild-history

Membership / Join (dues): https://www.blueridgepotters.com/join

Events Calendar: https://www.blueridgepotters.com/events-calendar

BRPG Annual Show and Sale 2026 event: https://www.blueridgepotters.com/events-calendar/brpg-annual-show-and-sale

Clay College: https://www.blueridgepotters.com/claycollege

Student Show: https://www.blueridgepotters.com/student-show

Scholarships: https://www.blueridgepotters.com/scholarships

Location

Regional member pottery guild serving Roanoke and Southwest Virginia (Guild History cites Roanoke Valley and surrounding areas including Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Lynchburg, Franklin, Floyd, Botetourt, and Wise Counties). Workshops and Clay College are listed at Common Clay Collective and other announced venues on the guild calendar (no single permanent public member-studio street address is the guild’s primary public identity on the pages checked).

Major 2026 public program addresses as printed: Annual Show and Sale at Patrick Henry High School, Roanoke, Virginia (November 7–8, 2026; 2025 show copy printed 2102 Grandin Rd SW, Roanoke, VA 24015); Clay College and several workshops at Common Clay Collective; 2026 Student Show at the Salem Museum; Earth Day free clay experience in Grandin Village, Roanoke. Use the live event pages before travel.

Do not treat BRPG as a walk-in classroom enrollment desk or a clay supply warehouse.

Notes

• Category is Guild. Member pottery/ceramics association with printed calendar-year dues, annual show and sale, Clay College, workshops, scholarships, student show, and hunger-relief bowl donations. Not a teaching-studio brand and not a clay manufacturer.
• 2026 dues wording, show date/hours, Clay College date, and workshop member/non-member fees are transcribed from official pages checked on 2026-09-10 and may change. Where calendar metadata disagreed with body hours for the 2026 show, prefer the body hours and the live event page.
• 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: Join page: annual guild membership $40 for the calendar year. Printed for the check date: membership dues for 2026 expire Dec 31, 2026; renewals in January 2027 to stay active. Confirm live amounts at https://www.blueridgepotters.com/join

Q: When and where is the BRPG Annual Show and Sale 2026?
A: Official 2026 show event page / Events Calendar: Patrick Henry High School, Roanoke, VA; Saturday November 7, 2026, 10:00 AM–6:00 PM; Sunday November 8, 2026, 11:00 AM–4:00 PM. Confirm the live event page (hours and street address) before attending.

Q: Does BRPG run a public drop-in pottery studio?
A: No permanent public open-studio classroom brand is the guild’s primary identity on the Guild History or Join pages. BRPG is a member association that holds workshops, Clay College, a major annual show and sale, a student show, scholarships, and community outreach. For weekly class-studio practice, use a local teaching studio or your own workspace; join BRPG for association benefits and show/workshop participation, not as a substitute for a class-studio membership.