ULVERSTON Potters Collective hold their first exhibition next month.

Creatively titled Fired Up Furness, the gathering will be at the new Pop Up Shop on Ulverston’s Theatre Street, opposite the Coronation Hall, showcasing work from the collective alongside regional guest potters and ceramic artists. On show will be a wide variety of sculptures, earthenware and stoneware thrown items with colourful glazes, earthy glazes and hand decoration, raku fired pots and scores more.

UPC was formed 18 months ago to provide a mutually supportive group for people who loved working with clay. The group meets regularly to share ideas, techniques and plan visits to local arts events. Its aims are to take ceramics out into the wider community enabling local people to experience, learn and buy from source. The group wants to encourage people’s involvement with ceramics and improve opportunities to access creative works within the local area.

The group has seven founder members: Alyson Dickson, Wendy Kolbe, Joe Lenartowicz, Janet Parratt, Deborah Robinson, Kathryn Stevens and Shona Cameron.

Shona said that it all came about when she was contacted separately by Deborah Robinson and Joe Lenartowicz wanting to talk about all things clay: “We had all attended classes with Norman Hill at Stray Cats Pottery in Barrow, many years earlier. It was apparent that we had lots of thoughts and ideas to share about our work - types of clay, upcoming exhibitions, problems we’d had - so it was a logical next step to meet regularly and keep on sharing.”

Soon they had introduced other clay lovers to the group and Ulverston Potters Collective was born.

“We were all keen to share what we had been creating to a wider audience locally so we decided to hold our first exhibition. Our aim has always been to share our love of clay and give local people the opportunity to experience more creative exhibitions and other creative experiences.

The exhibition us staged on Saturday and Sunday, May 4-5, the same weekend as the massive Printfest event at the Coronation Hall. Guest potters and ceramic artists in the Fired Up Furness include Martine Becquet, Martin Copley, John Kershaw and Jan Huntley-Peace. The show will be open 9.30am-5.30pm.