Goodbye 8th Street…Hello 4th Street!
By Cheryl Stevens
On June 30th we said goodbye to the Studio on 8th Street that had been our home for the past eleven and a half years. At 1221 8th Street, The Potters’ Studio increased its membership, and the classes offered, including both six week and twelve sessions, became a non-profit organization and introduced the Maija Williams Scholarship for BIPOC and/or LGBTQIA+ people. This was the space that carried us successfully through Covid and the place where we introduced the annual throwdown in the Fall and where the community showed up in large numbers for the Holiday and Parking Lot sales. From Raku and Soda firings to countless innovative workshops from talented potters from the US and abroad, 8th Street has been the creative home for hundreds of members and even more students. Saying good-bye to this space was difficult for many because it was our home away from home and the place where we spent long hours week after week and where we found pure joy when the kiln gods smiled on our creations.
Staff rolled up their sleeves and carefully packed up everything we would need in the new space and threw away everything we no longer needed. In a few short weeks staff prepared for the movers and over three days the Studio relocated from 8th Street to 4th Street and we said goodbye to one era while preparing to welcome a completely new era in a new location we can call our own. Hopefully, many of you got the chance to say goodbye to the place where you made friends, discovered a new technique, or fell in love with clay for the very first time. Maybe you attended one of the farewell parties or shed a little tear as you emptied your cubby or picked up your last fired piece. Or maybe you have spent the last thirty days waiting for that email that we are back and ready to see everyone again behind a wheel or standing at a hand building table. Well, that email went out over the weekend and in case you missed it or forgot . . . .
On August 1st, the Potters’ Studio is reopening its doors at our new home at 724 Camelia Street, Berkeley. As many of you know we purchased this building on February 15, 2024 and have spent the past 18 months turning the former manufacturing repair facility and former grow house into our new 7500 square foot studio. We have been very busy during the past 18 months working with our talented architects, Stromberg Architecture and our skilled contractor Holland & Harley Construction to design and build the space to meet ADA requirements and accommodate our very specific needs. The contractors are almost finished, and orientation sessions begin on Friday August 1st. Staff has been busy unpacking and putting everything away. There are nice new cubbies waiting for new tenants, a conference room that is separate from the kitchen and a bright student/classroom area that is separate from the Member space. There are a many new policies and protocols which will be rolled out over the next few weeks.
Look around this new space and acquaint yourself with all there is to offer. All the kilns except Soda and Raku will be housed indoors, you can fill your water bottles from the filtered water fountain and there will be a reception desk and a staff member to greet you every time you enter the Studio. The tiles you made during the last weeks at 8th Street are installed in several key spots and there will be a bike garage where you can safely secure your bike while working in the Studio. Many other surprises exist in our new space for you to discover and enjoy.
Classes will begin the second week of September, and we hope to have a ribbon cutting/grand reopening party to celebrate and show off our new space. New workshops will soon appear on the calendar, the Holiday sale is just around the corner, and we hope to partner with our neighbors like Trumer Brewery and Tessier Winery on interesting events in the future, not to mention participate in the first Fridays that currently exists as part of the Gilman District activities. So, pull out your apron and dust off your tool kit, The Potters’ Studio will soon be open again for you to enjoy and create. Don’t forget to register for your orientation and maybe even sign up for a class. Thanks for your patience and flexibility and remember we still need your financial support, so if you can, please donate to our ongoing capital campaign. See you soon at Camelia Street!