David Broyles | The Carroll News
Master Ceramist James “Scot” Mauldin pours clay into a mold. Mauldin also offers classes for special needs children and can set up a private party for them. The firm also sells pieces online and on Facebook and can ship pieces customers finished themselves.
David Broyles | The Carroll News
These are some examples of the type of ceramic pieces available for students at Blue Ridge Ceramics & More in Fancy Gap. The top pieces are called “bisque.” He said there is no age limit on the classes. Mauldin also offers classes for special needs children and can set up a private party for them. The firm also sells pieces online and on Facebook and can ship pieces customers finished themselves.
David Broyles | The Carroll News
FANCY GAP — Master Ceramist James “Scot” Mauldin’s studio, “Blue Ridge Ceramics & More,” will celebrate its grand opening from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on May 1.
Mauldin’s guiding philosophy is his “happy place” is getting students to their happy place. The studio is located in a cabin beside the Post Office in Fancy Gap. Following the grand opening, the studio will be open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and is closed on Wednesday and Sunday.
“We are open by appointment. We do a lot girls night out parties, birthday parties.. any kind of occasion. If you want to host a private party after hours, that’s fine. We offer that,” said Maudlin. “Eventually we will have a nice zen garden in the back with picnic tables where you can come paint your ceramics if it is a pretty day and you’d like to sit outside or if you wanted to book that space for your own private party that’s going to be available as well.”
Maudlin formerly resided in Mount Airy, N.C. and said the Fancy Gap property appealed to him because it is bordered by forest on one side and the post office on the other, leaving it with a secluded feeling. He said he’s an artist who works in many different media and is particularly drawn to work which he describes as “visually interesting.”
“If you want it glazed, which is a firing process…we do that for you. We have original, hand-made pieces by myself signed. Ceramic Christmas trees which they remember from their grandmother are enormously popular right now,” said Mauldin. “We have the molds to cast about 30 different trees (Trees are available all year). We retail the little lights and plastic bulbs as well. If you have a tree missing bulbs or needs a replacement wiring kit, we can sell you the products you can take home and repair or we can refurbish it for you. Sometimes when a tree gets dingy over the years they can be re-fired to clean them up. That will remove smoke odor or discoloration. We can fix all that.”
He said there is no age limit on the classes. Mauldin also offers classes for special needs children and can set up a private party for them. The firm also sells pieces online and on Facebook and can ship pieces customers finished themselves (Shipping fragile ceramics is a science itself).
“If being in a crowded space is an issue we will give you your own space to yourself. Typically what I do with special needs kids is I get some basic instruction to the parent or guardian and let them do the instructing because they know better what the triggers are for their child,” said Mauldin. “With my special needs kids the first piece they do is free…no charge….just to see if it’s something they enjoy and like doing.”
Interested people may find more information on the studio at the Blue Ridge Ceramics & More at the shop’s Facebook site. Ceramics, like pottery, is a wide field. Mauldin said his studio does not do wheel thrown types of pottery. The shop does “slip cast” or “hand built” ceramics. Basically, participants can come in, select from among a large selection of pieces and, under his guidance,even glaze a piece.
“Because we are limited on space, I prefer people make a reservation but walk-ins are welcome. If I have a place at the table you are welcome. Our classes are typically three-hours but that depends on the piece you pick out. Simple pieces in three hours…no problem….if it’s a super detailed, micro figure you might have to come back three or four times,” said Maudlin. “I have students who have been coming to me every single week for two years. They work on all kinds of stuff. It’s totally up to them what they do. I do have specialized classes where I’ll teach hand building of pieces or we might have a specific project where everybody is doing the same piece at the same time.”
He said the studio has more than 1,000 items to choose from, most of which are made on the property. But there are some pieces, like coffee mugs, plates and tiles which aren’t practical to make on-site so they purchase these from wholesalers. Pieces which are not finished are called “bisque” and have been cast and fired once and are ready to finish. Students don’t have to glaze bisque, they can take the piece home and spray paint it, for instance.
The huge selection at the studio runs the gamut from dishes, cats, dogs, figurines and wall plaques. Finished pieces are also available for sale and can be glazed at the studio and shipped. The studio also does a large number of cremation urns.
He said ceramics peaked in the 1980’s and is enjoying a resurgence with some students enjoying “cleaning up” green ware (pieces cast but not fired) edges and seams (how well the lines on bisque are blended into the figure). The electric kilns at the studio are used for a variety of other tasks including firing wheel-formed pottery brought in by artists who have no kiln, and fused glass, which is similar to stained glass but without the led webbing to join pieces of glass.
David Broyles may be reached at 276-779-4013 or on Twitter@CarrollNewsDave
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