Flying high: Thousands flock to experience Nelson Clay Week
Nelson Clay Week has soared to new heights, attracting crowds of people to demonstrations, workshops, exhibitions, and the chance to get creative.
Run by Hiwa Arts Council Nelson and creative directors Jamie Smith and Tom Baker the biennial festival, which aims to celebrate pottery as an art form, concluded on Friday.
This year’s festival included Potters Square, with daily free public pottery demonstrations and activities which attracted about 4500 people.
A popular attraction was the clay table, where 600 people – mainly children – had at go at making clay ceramic birds which will be turned into public art installation at Natureland Zoo.
Photo: Martin de Ruyter / Nelson Mail
Throughout the week, the festival went though 6.5 tonnes of clay, and held 39 workshops that sold to 95%, with more than half of ticket buyers coming from outside Nelson.
Hundreds attended the Clay Te Pai Open Day at Whakatū Marae with a clay table, raku demonstrations and a hāngī-style lunch, as well as four workshops.
Hiwa project manager Andy Meldrum said the third festival had been “everything we worked for”.
“It bought hundreds of people to Nelson, many of whom stayed for an extended time, and created a real vibe in the inner city.”
The event had become a “must attend” for potters around New Zealand, as well as international visitors, he said.
This year there had been a “massive focus” on making sure there was a variety of events.
“We see Nelson Clay Week as an essential part of building the creative community stretching from Whakatū across the motu.”
The Potters Market and Potters Square attracted a wide range of people, he said,
“Potters Square was a real buzz for potters and public alike, with free demonstrations on every day, a clay table for the kids, and opportunities to get hands-on with have- a-go at a potter’s wheel and raku firing.”
Creative directors Smith and Baker said it was a joy to see artists come together.
“We love that we were able to grow our programme of special events, so that every day there were talks, discussions and connections.”
The Potters Refuge, a drop-in centre, encapsulated the event, being consistently busy with people coming and going.
“This year, we feel that Nelson Clay Week has come into its own for nurturing the clay community across the country.”
The festival also included the Pushing Clay exhibition of contemporary ceramics, with the Forsyth Barr Contemporary Ceramic Award. The $8000 premier award was given to Tūrangi artist Z.
Nelson Clay Week and Nelson Jewellery Week are established as complementary biennial events, along with the annual Changing Threads textile exhibition and awards, and Make It Nelson series of weekend workshops in June.
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