The North-West Ceramics Foundation is pleased to announce the launch of the BC Ceramic Marks Registry (BCCMR), a project initiated by NWCF President Debra Sloan and assisted by the Craft Council of BC (CCBC) which has provided essential support for the project. In 2021, Intern Tatiana Povoroznyuk, created a digital platform to house the data. The platform is part of an overarching CCBC project, the Digital Craft Archive. In 2021, Debra asked Allan Collier, Canadian expert in 20thC craft and design, to join the enterprise. The project has evolved from an individual endeavour to a collaborative undertaking.
In 2005, during the preparations for the 50th Anniversary of the Potters Guild of BC (PGBC), Debra realized there was no single source with which to identify or document ceramic work produced in this province. She set out to collect ceramicists’ marks from the 1920s to present day. The PGBC Newsletter published a call, familiar to many, for years. Debra assembled makers’ biographies through historic PGBC Newsletters, and she photographed marks at potters’ studios, at collectors’ homes, and, in particular, her main source, collector John Lawrence. Her own collection provided many marks. Allan sifted through his extensive collections of rare publications and pottery and scoured second-hand shops. The NWCF salutes this essential research and the concerted effort Debra and Allan devoted to documenting an important component of BC’s creative history.
The BC Ceramic Marks Registry allows visitors to navigate the site through browsing makers or mark images. The Registry is a living document, designed to be updated as new information becomes available and as new makers elect to include their marks.
If you are a ceramicist in BC and wish to be in the Registry we encourage you to use the submission form. Include; date /place of birth; studio name/ location; art education, exhibitions, collections, and publications along with clear digital images of your marks.
BCCMR is a growing project that is operated by the CCBC. Debra Sloan, as well as Staff at the CCBC will oversee the information and add to the Registry on a regular basis. If you wish to EDIT your profile already existing in the Registry, email Debra Sloan (debraesloan@gmail.com).
