Wissahickon Pottery is located in Fairmount Park just steps away from the Wissahickon Creek in Philadelphia PA. I create quality, handmade pottery for many uses around the home, and more! Come see me at an upcoming event, sign up on my mailing list, and feel free to contact me with any questions or comments.  I don’t keep regular hours at my shop but am happy to show you around, contact Nick to make an appointment.

 I am a one person pottery operation. Every piece of pottery that I sell is handmade by me. I design and create each piece to be functional, artistic, and fun! I hold my pottery to the highest standards of craftsmanship, and quality. My work incorporates the thousands of years of tradition that came before me, and blends that tradition with creativity and function in todays world.

Clay

C lay provides strength and structure to a piece. I use a variety of clay bodies for my pottery. My main clay is versatile clay that I dig from the ground in Maryland. I also mix and blend commercially mined clays to create clay bodies for specific needs. I like to experiment with different clays to bring variety to my work, and I like to use local materials to bring a local and unique element to my work. 

Glaze

G laze is the skin or surface of a piece.  I develop and formulate all of my own glazes which are “ash based”, containing 30-50% wood ash as the core of the glaze. Wood ashes are rich in minerals, are free, abundant, and a waste product.   Developing my own glazes allows me to have complete control over the color and texture. All glazes are food, microwave & dishwasher safe. 

Firing

Firing a piece of clay transforms it permanently  Clay starts as a stone, transformed and deposited as clay through various geologic forces.  The heat of the kiln fuses the clay particles, converting it back into a stone from which it came.  Hence the fitting name “stoneware”.  The fuel used to heat a kiln imparts a distinct character onto the piece.  I currently use gas, electric and wood fired kilns, a majority of my pieces are fired in my gas kiln.

Process

I often look to old handmade pots as inspiration and always find something honest and special in pottery made by potters of past generations. The quality of the craftsmanship of pottery made 1000 years ago easily surpasses that of today.
All of my work is handmade. I gather the elements of my pottery and transform them into works in ways that I understand and control, while a sense of mysticism, mystery and wonder is always present. There are always challenges and opportunities along the way.