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Pottery Traditions:
Pisgah Forest Pottery, Arden
Walter B. Stephen holding a vase topped with classical figures, photographed by Edward DuPuy, 1950s; Southern Highland Craft Guild.
Walter Benjamin Stephen (1876-1961) came to North Carolina from Tennessee to open
Nonconnah Pottery in Skyland. After Nonconnah closed, he opened in Arden in 1926. There, he began producing pieces with unique glazes, including a bold turquoise, interior pinks, and an experimental crystalline glaze. His very popular “cameo” ware depicted scenes of American life painted on the clay surface using layers of slip in a technique known as pate-sur-pate (paste-on-paste). In 1939, after Stephen joined the Southern Highland Handicraft Guild, his pottery was sold in their salesrooms and at their annual craft fairs.
Pisgah Forest Pottery, 1720 Brevard Road, Arden; 828-890-3053
