Guest post from Dave Bare, Teen Librarian at Randolph County Library:

The Pottery Slam as an idea began as a joke with a colleague and a pun on “Poetry Slam”. The outgoing Teen Librarian, in a gesture of handing over the crown, made a few suggestions and poetry slams were among them. I was boning up on all kinds of programming for teens and had seen that poetry events of this kind were popular, but usually in more urban libraries. I said that, since we live in the pottery center of the universe (Seagrove has many potteries known the world over) we should do a pottery slam, without actually breaking the pottery, of course. That’s how the Asheboro Library TeenZone Pottery Slam was born.

I contacted a few local potters and asked them if they’d like to bring their wheels, donate some mud and give local teens a shot at making some pieces. Three potters agreed and so we set the date and I started marketing the event.

The program was such a success I decided that we would do it again the next year. Nearly fifty pieces were made that first year and the pottery teacher at our local community college offered to fire and glaze the pieces for us. I put them on display in the library and after a short time, the patrons were invited to take their pieces home.

The second year was plagued by a number of issues. Snow, a last minute cancellation by one of the potters and several other obstacles made for a challenging day. We pushed through and once again despite the difficulties everything turned out great.

Each subsequent Pottery Slam has been a thrill to direct and we have touched the lives and hearts of so many children, teens and parents. The pottery Slam seems to have taken on a life of its own.

The last two years have been especially wonderful, as I’ve collaborated with a potter working as a teacher at the Randolph Arts Guild. This was a very good development since I had been looking for a way to collaborate with the Guild for some time and this turned out to be the ideal situation.

I believe that of all my yearly events, this one is the most integral to creating an understanding of the arts and exposure to an important and culturally relevant artistic process. Showing young people something new and fun and also creating a sense of community with local potters. As we move forward, I would like for the Pottery Slam to be something that lasts several decades. I’m not sure I’ll always be Teen Librarian, but this event would be the one I would ask for my successor to carry on. Especially in light of how it has opened doors as being an example of how our library can collaborate with other entities in the community, like 4-H, Cooperative Extension The Randolph Arts Guild and more.

I’m very proud of the Pottery Slam, but I’m also very humbled at how it has taken on a life of its own in so short a time.