Check out our awesome 2026 teachers

 Shawna has a background in Art Illustration, drawing, painting, sewing,  embroidery, pottery, & a degree in Business. She & her husband Ernest  saw a need for detailed textured rollers, stamps, & cutters to improve  their techniques for their small pottery business. After creating their  f  irst few rollers Ernest, who also has a degree in Business, suggested  they open an Etsy shop & o er them to others who may be interested.  Ernest wheel throws pottery, runs the manufacturing, printing,  shipping, website, & sales for the 3D printing side of the business.  Shawna designs all of their items, tests, and uses them to create hand built pottery. They have been married for 29 years, and they have a  pottery pup named Marshall, who oversees their whole operation.  Together they make up Cole Mountain Pottery. 

 Bob Moreni is a 30-year tenured employee with Mayco Colors. In his role as Designer, he has specialized in low fire ceramics and non-fired mediums. During his 58 years in the hobby ceramic field, Bob has done it all from teaching to owning his own ceramic studio in Philadelphia, PA, to creating finished samples for several mold companies. Bob enjoys all aspects of Ceramic Arts, including dabbling with stoneware and high fire projects. Above all else, Bob enjoys teaching and sharing his knowledge with teachers, students, hobbyists, and even other professionals through domestic and international workshops and shows throughout his many years of experience 

Hi, you can call me Alex! Alexandria Pottery Co. offers a unique collection of pottery tools for the budding artist to the seasoned potter. From forms to function, we know you will find the tools to make the things you love! My husband and I are blessed to have our children spend time in studio and helping with tools, which makes us a true family business. I personally love making a wide range of work on the wheel and by slab. You’ll find texture and inspirations from nature in my own work. Our family loves to serve the pottery community and we truly hope our tools inspire you to make something amazing!

  Melanie Kaffl joined the ceramics industry in 2002 when she opened a contemporary ceramics studio called Glazed to Perfection. In 2007, she joined the staff of Chesapeake Ceramics as a technical representative and new-studio trainer, serving both contemporary and traditional studio customers until 2019. After a short venture into other industries, Melanie returned to her favorite community in 2021 with the launch of her custom overglaze decal business, CeramiPics. When she’s not educating customers on how to enhance their work with decal embellishments, she can be found experimenting with new decorating techniques at her home in suburban Maryland with her husband, Scott, and their two corgis, Peanut and Sophie. 

   Kim Votsmier, owner of a paint your own pottery studio, China Towne, in Springfield, Illinois for over 22 years. I thrive on learning and then sharing my knowledge with others. Seeing the happiness that comes from accomplishments in art is gratifying. The PYOP studio led me into the fused glass medium and from there I moved into stained glass. After selling China Towne 3 years ago, I now focus on my store, ART4U, an artist co-op that now includes the works of 60 artists, also in Springfield. I also participate in art shows in Missouri and Illinois. I teach ceramics, fused glass and stained glass. Outside of art, I love gardening, cooking and my feline family that includes Maine Coons, Persians and Himalayan cats. 

Michael Harbridge got started in the ceramic industry when they completed a ceramic project as a Cub Scout. He's owned studios, worked for a publishing company, brush manufacturer, and is the creator of clay puzzling methods and former owner of LearnFiredArts.com and Forma-Leaf. He's currently the Education Director for Mayco Colors and the owner of Fired Arts Expo. He has a strong background in education and teaches workshops around the world and in his studio in central Wisconsin with his wife Jeannine. 

 Annie Chrietzberg lives in Bend, OR, where she makes her living as a handbuilding potter, selling to collectors online, and at fine craft shows in the Pacific Northwest.  She also teaches online out of her home studio, and travels to teach in-person workshops.

She took her first clay class in 1991 and then went on to get a BFA and an MA in Ceramics. She has taught college and at art centers, has given workshops all over the US and in Canada, and has published more than 20 articles in Pottery Making Illustrated. Annie has been evolving her current body of hand built functional pottery since 2003, has designed her own forms and the templates to make them, makes her own tools to make her work, and has formulated and makes her own glazes.  She is excited to share her tools and techniques with the Fired Arts Expo participants.  You can find her at Earth to Annie on Facebook & @earthtoannie on Instagram, and of course earthtoannie.com.

 Hello, my name is Lorrie Wickman and I have been passionate about ceramics since high school, and I opened my first studio in 1990, The Potter's Wheel. As life goes, I was busy raising my family and working full-time as a Social Worker, and my shop had to be put on hold. A few years ago, I started working in my studio again and have since been able to switch from working full-time for someone else, to working full-time doing what I love! So this is how we've arrived at The Potter's Wheel Too. I have been especially intrigued with the Raku process, and I have now been specializing in the Raku firing technique for more than 15 years. For those who aren't familiar with Raku firings, Raku firing is an ancient Japanese ceramics technique that has been used for centuries to create a very unique finish to wares. The Raku technique dates back to the 16th century. The Raku technique is essentially when glazed ceramics are taken from the kiln while they are still glowing red hot and are then placed in a material that would be able to catch fire, such as sawdust or newspaper. This technique is used to starve the piece of oxygen, which creates a myriad of colors within the glaze 

 Eileen Boomgaarden is a local library, pottery guild, and Google taught potter and fused glass artist. She has a BA and MS in Education and was an elementary classroom teacher for nearly two decades both overseas and in the USA. Originally from upstate New York, she moved to Wisconsin when she married her best friend Jon. During a bathroom renovation their son requested a pond themed bathroom. After much research and creating thousands of mosaic clay floor tile pieces including lily pads, frogs, turtles, and fused glass koi fish, Eileen decided to start a pottery and glass business: Hyde Park Hill, LLC. She has had her work published in leading glass supplier catalogs and regularly sells her pieces in galleries and online. Nowadays, you will find her teaching art workshops, melting glass, and making pottery as she creates pieces of functional and decorative art for gift giving or keeping! Teaching is in her DNA, and she hopes you find her classes not only educational but inspiring!