Pottery on Prince Edward Island: Prince Edward Island

Showing posts with label Prince Edward Island. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 1, 2025

Pottery Marks of Prince Edward Island - Index

- updated Oct 1, 2025

Pottery has traditionally been marked with the place of production, as well as identifying the potter or the studio where it was made. Many studio potters include the year as well. Requests from collectors for information on PEI pottery that arrived by email has grown into a blog about Prince Edward Island potters over time.

Village Pottery in New London, PEI continues to be a big part of our family life; founded by my wife Daphne Large in 1973 it is now owned and managed by our daughter Suzanne Scott, while Daphne and I continue as active potters within the business. My interest in the field developed when I worked as a leather instructor at Holland College School of Visual Arts in 1972, worked with both Barry Jeeves and Ron Arvidson, who were instructors in the pottery studio. They both influenced a generation of potters including myself. I began compiling information on current and historic potters on Prince Edward Island after getting questions by email sent to the Village Pottery address and decided to post the responses in blog format.

Local collectors of Island pottery including Gary Carroll, Tom Banks and Catherine Hennessey have all been generous with sharing their collections with me and providing photographs, which is much appreciated.

This listing is not complete, and we welcome additional information and images or edits that you notice which need correcting. Your suggestions help it grow. You can contact the author via email -- Ian Scott, Charlottetown, PEI.

The current listings includes, (in no particular order):

Monday, July 7, 2025

Barb MacLeod, Potter - Artist, Charlottetown, PEI

Barb MacLeod, is a potter and artist, residing in Charlottetown, PEI. She is a juried member of the PEI Crafts Council and sells her work in the PEI Crafts Council Retail Craft Gallery located at 98 Water St. Charlottetown. Here potter's mark is BLeod PEI.

Facebook profile and her Instagram feed are ways to contact her.

Wednesday, July 2, 2025

Alex Bevan-Baker Pottery

Alex Bevan-Baker Pottery is located in Bonshaw, PEI. Alex is an active potter and instructor with the Alley Street Clay Club in Charlottetown.

His Facebook page is Alex Bevan-Baker Pottery

Instagram - alex_bevanbaker

Well known for his crystalline glazes, the technique requires a precise firing regime to slowly hold the kiln temperature at a consistent temperature for the duration of the growth of the crystals. Very few potters have accomplished this level of skill in such a precise glazing technique and currently Alex is the only PEI potter working in this style of glaze.

Jamilynn Wilson Ceramics - Summerside PEI

The website for Jamilynn Wilson captures her approach as a small batch potter living on PEI. It indicated that she is,

"a self-taught ceramic artist from Summerside, PE, uses local wild clay to connect with her grandparents' roots and reflect on life in Western PE.
Combing her love for Japanese ceramics, traditional and ancient techniques to design and produce useful domestic objects. Mostly thrown, these contemporary ceramics are intended for everyday use and are entirely handmade. In the name of responsible manufacturing, Jamilynn highlights the possibilities of local clays extracted from the nearby beaches.
“Researching, digging, testing, and working with wild clay helps me connect to a place, I dig small quantities of each material, process clays by hand, and use them pure when possible.
I aim at abstracting as little as possible from the original earth, maintaining what could seem an imperfection, be it soluble salts surfacing during the firing, organic and mineral impurities, or non-homogeneous texture, to respect what the material really is. I want to embrace the marks of a maker and the stories behind them.
My glazing approach is in a constant state of progression as a I learn about my local materials and how to process them. “ - Jamilynn Wilson
Currently Jamilynn is working towards a tableware line featuring the Island clay. Along with working on limited edition collections & collaborating with fellow artisans to make one of a kind pieces. Jamilynn is also striving towards brining a wood fired kiln to the Island, and will be releasing workshops very soon to help support that venture."

In 2023 she wrote about her potter's mark.

"I’ve always known from the very beginning that, my makers mark would be really simple but full of meaning.
Before I made any new work in 2023, I started with my stamp. It’s the same simple j, but slightly altered and much smaller than before. Ironically I designed it before taking notice that it has similar characteristics from my tattoo.
The anchor on my thumb was imprinted from a first young love over a decade ago. And has now become a symbol for the role I take part in when it comes to my family, and marks my life living and working by the sea."

Jamilynn Wilson Ceramics -- Instagram 2023

Potter's Mark -- Jamilynn Wilson Ceramics -- Instagram 2023

Her Instagram account shows "the processes involved in the craft and the ideas and discoveries she encounters along the way."

You can contact her directly via her contact page.

Saturday, May 10, 2025

Greenmount Ceramics - Charlottetown

This work of Greenmount Ceramics, locate in Charlottetown from the 1990’s was for sale on Etsy and since I have not documented their work previous it is a good opportunity to add this example. Slip cast using commercial moulds, this was typical of the style of work with a strong focus on the glaze. The bottom shows their signature:

Friday, January 6, 2023

Red Cliff Pottery -- PEI

The work of Red Cliff Pottery on PEI is a bit of a mystery. Do you have any additional information that could help identify the maker, location or dates of this pottery operation?

Red Cliff Pottery

Red Cliff Pottery signature

Wednesday, December 15, 2021

Haley Potter Pottery - Haley Cole

Operating under the name Haley Potter the pottery studio of Haley Cole is located in Bonshaw, PEI.

Her Instagram feed, and Facebook page as well as her Etsy Store are methods of contacting her directly.

On Nov 24, 2023 Haley indicated on Facebook/Instagram -- "I’ve been keeping a secret…. I’m opening a community pottery studio in Canmore, Alberta.

This was a hard decision to leave PEI, but I know the Canmore community will support me as much as PEI did. I’m overjoyed about my new studio space and can’t wait to begin this new adventure! Feel free to follow along (I will still be posting my work on @haleypotter.pei but studio updates on @haleypotterstudio)

Her potters mark is a signature Haley Potter and the year.

Monday, December 13, 2021

Sydney White Ceramics & Schoolhouse Stoneware

The website for Sydney White Ceramics & Schoolhouse Stoneware indicates:

Hi, I’m Sydney! I’m a Ceramic Artist living on the East Coast of Canada. I’ve been collecting pottery for as long as I can remember and was gifted a short series of classes a couple of years ago. After my first few attempts at the wheel I was incredibly humbled by this practice but up for the challenge. It didn't take too long before I fell in love with this medium. I’ve always admired the idea of functional art and now it’s a complete pleasure to be putting it out into the world. My goal is to create pieces that bring joy and add uniqueness to any home. I’m inspired by the natural world around me, near and far, and I try to convey a deep sense of nostalgia in my pieces. During the day I’m lucky enough to explore another passion, natural soap making at a local artisan shop downtown, and by night you can usually find me crouched over the wheel in my home studio with a spooky podcast playing or vinyl spinning!

With my partner, we bought an old decommissioned schoolhouse and moved ourselves and our pups out of the city and into the country! After about a year of me creating functional tableware Joe was inspired to get his hands dirty too and he created our first ever bong! It blew my mind! I hadn’t even considered that form to explore. It didn't take long before I started making bongs too and we launched our little passion project Schoolhouse Stoneware. We want to create pieces to be admired, ones that can sit out openly on your coffee table providing both function and beauty. You can feel assured that every bong we sell goes back into preserving our historic home that we love so much.

The Instagram feed is an excellent source of images of her work.

Sydney White Ceramics

Sydney White uses the following pottery mark.

Sydney White pottery mark
2025 - collection and image credit Ian Scott

Sticks and Stones Pottery - Rachel Ballem

Sticks and Stones Pottery is the business name that Rachel Ballem operates under, based in Summerside, PEI. The business Facebook page and Instagram feed both indicate that Rachel Ballem was born and raised on Prince Edward Island, and is a pottery artist that draws inspiration from her Island life and whimsical imagination.

The website for Island Stoneware, a production pottery company in Summerside, PEI indicates that among their potters, "Rachel Ballem joined Island Stoneware in 2019. Originally from Summerside, she started as a self-taught sculptor using newpaper and a food processor to create her first sculpting material. She moved on to polymer clay and then to stoneware clay. She’s been potting for over 22 years. Rachel is the mom of two grown kids and a menagerie of animals."

Steele Bits & Pieces Pottery - Steele Ceramics - Lisa Steele

Updated July 5, 2025

Lisa D. Steele began her pottery training in British Columbia. Concurrent to an academic career at UPEI, she operates Steele Bits & Pieces Pottery. Lisa also operates her business under the name Steele Ceramics.

Her member profile on the PEI Crafts Council's website indicates: "Lisa Steele started doing pottery in British Columbia over twenty years ago and has been making pieces ever since. She has an appreciation for all sorts of functional or just-for-fun pottery, and likes trying out different pottery techniques and glazes."

Email: steele.ld@gmail.com

Her first potter's mark paid homage to her academic life in Physics through a combined symbol. Lisa indicated that she changed her maker's mark about 2019. Both are shown below. She also includes PEI when signing her work.

Steele Bits & Pieces is also on Instagram.

The website is Steele Bits & Pieces Pottery

Business Card 2025 - Steele Ceramics

Steele Bits & Pieces Pottery - maker's mark of Lisa Steele prior to 2019

Steele Bits & Pieces Pottery - maker's mark of Lisa Steele after 2019

During the summer of 2025, as part of the 60th anniversary of the PEI Crafts Council, the exhibition “Excellence in Craft,” featured a wide variety of well-crafted contemporary pieces inspired by PEI’s talented fine craft community, including two pieces by Lisa Steele. This exhibition was mounted in partnership with the Eptek Art & Culture Centre. The show catalogue indicates, "These raku pieces use burnished clay and ferric chloride acid to evoke the sensor of movement within natural turbulent flows of fluids, with layering evoking a sense of depth and motion as in storm clouds at sunset."

Steele Bits & Pieces Pottery - Sunset Storm 1, an exhibition piece from
Excellence in Crafts Exhibition 2025 at Eptek Art & Culture Centre, Summerside, PEI

Steele Bits & Pieces Pottery Sunset Storm 2, exhibition piece from
Excellence in Crafts Exhibition 2025 at Eptek Art & Culture Centre, Summerside, PEI.

Steele Bits & Pieces Pottery - studio production items 2025

Lisa Steele

Monday, March 23, 2020

Pottery Marks of Prince Edward Island - Judy Cheverie: Clay Art - Funk & Stuff Pottery

Judy Cheverie produces clay art under the name Funk & Stuff Pottery. She has been an active member of the PEI Potters Studio Co-operative for a number of years.

Her work includes sculptural work as well as functional work. She signs her work with her name - Judy Cheverie and the year.

by Judy Cheverie
photo by Ian Scott

by Judy Cheverie
photo by Judy Cheverie on Facebook

Potters Mark used by Judy Cheverie
photo by Ian Scott

Sunday, July 15, 2018

Bodine MacDonald - Keppoch Kraft

I recently came across two pottery tiles that I believe are both the work of Bodine MacDonald. Bodine Keene Forder met her husband Dr. Sandy MacDonald while he was undertaking a surgical residency at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri. Operating under the name Keppoch Kraft, Bodine and Sandy were both active within the crafts community in the 1970's when I first met them through the PEI Crafts Council. These pieces show the use of found objects from nature to make impressions in the clay surface. An obituary for Sandy from 2003 tells of their retirement life together.

"Bodine and Sandy enjoyed many happy retirement years in Keppoch, PEI, where they both kept busy with hobbies and volunteer community work. Sandy developed an interest in silversmithing and became a skillful and artistic jeweller. He was pleased to accept a position as Chairman of the Board of the Confederation Centre of the Arts in Charlottetown. After his wife's death in 1986, Sandy moved to Victoria, BC where he continued to enjoy his hobby of silversmithing well past his 90th year." Full obituary.

Unsigned but believed to be the work of Bodine (Forder) MacDonald of Keppoch Kraft.
Keppoch, Prince Edward Island
1970's - size 3 inch in diameter

Reverse of item above
Unsigned but believed to be the work of Bodine (Forder) MacDonald of Keppoch Kraft.
Keppoch, Prince Edward Island
1970's - size 3 inch in diameter

Ceramic tile by Bodine (Forder) MacDonald of Keppoch Kraft.
Keppoch, Prince Edward Island
1970's - size 3 inch in diameter

Reverse of above tile by Bodine (Forder) MacDonald of Keppoch Kraft.
Keppoch, Prince Edward Island
1970's - size 3 inch in diameter

Keppoch Kraft - candle holder - marked "Keppoch Kraft SVD" - P.E.I.
Collection of Catherine Hennessey - photo by Ian Scott

Keppoch Kraft - candle holder - marked "Keppoch Kraft SVD - P.E.I."
Collection of Catherine Hennessey - photo by Ian Scott

Wednesday, July 12, 2017

Arden Howard Pottery

Arden Howard established her pottery on PEI in the 1980's and benefited from a time when Holland College School of Visual Arts was providing pottery training at that time.

Arden and her husband Bill Howard relocated to Alberta where she continued her pottery work.

While on PEI her work was signed Arden as well including PEI.

Daphne & Ian Scott Family Collection

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Pottery Marks of Prince Edward Island - Pieter Ijsselstein - White Gables at Hope River & Birchtree Gallery

Pieter Ijsselstein produced a line of items that incorporated his flock of hens in the decorating process. The video of his flock at work tells the story of Hen Pecked Pottery. The hens are no longer part of the operation as Pieter's pottery has evolved.

Operating an art and craft studio in Hope River, PEI with his wife Geraldine, a painter and weaver - the combined family efforts operated under the name White Gables at Hope River.

In 2018 his potter's mark included the first two initials of his surname ij as well as PEI.

In 2022 they moved to Victoria-by-the-Sea where they reside and operate a gallery studio, Birchtree Gallery. Their Facebook page provides additional information.

In June of 2025, when visiting their gallery, I noticed that his pots were unsigned and asked why. He indicated that he stopped signing his pottery about two years ago, and considers it a production product with no need to add a potter's mark or signature. He indicated that he had been using a marker to sign the pots prior to that and he felt that it eventually wore off anyway and that he simply stopped signing them at that time.

Pieter Ijsselstein at Farm Days in the City, 2018 Charlottetown, PEI

Potter's Mark of Pieter Ijsselstein, 2018

The Prince Edward Island Pottery, 1880-1898

Three milk jugs by the Prince Edward Island Pottery (1880-1898)

Items from the original Prince Edward Island Pottery, a company that operated from 1880-1898 remain a collectible form of historic pottery both in PEI and beyond. While there has never been a book published on the topic, solid research has been conducted on the 18 year history of the business and the site of the operation was excavated by Donald Webster of the Royal Ontario Museum in 1970. The operation was located on what is now the Charlottetown Research Station (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada) near the Charlottetown Farmers Market. A line of trees remains at the edge of a field marking what has been long known as Pottery Lane. Webster's article published on the research is now available online. His abstract introduces the topic.

The Prince Edward Island Pottery was established by Oswald Hornsby on the outskirts of Charlottetown in early 1880 and, following its closing in 1898, all structures and buildings were demolished in 1903. During its 18 year operation the pottery produced the greatest range of earthenware forms yet established to any Maritime's pottery, and the only known marked wares. The site of the Prince Edward Island Pottery was excavated by Donald Webster of the Royal Ontario Museum in 1970, in conjunction with historical research and a survey of its surviving products.

There is also an valuable article on the Prince Edward Island Pottery called Red in the Soil, by Catherine G. Hennessey, which was published in the PEI Centenary Issue of the Canadian Collector magazine in 1973. A book by Hennessey released in 2015 tells the story in concise form. The book was reviewed by The Guardian the year it was published.

Catherine Hennessey holds one of the pieces that first piqued her curiosity in pottery 50 years ago. The Charlottetown historian has just published the Prince Edward island Pottery Company.

Pottery mark of the Prince Edward Island Pottery

From collection of Catherine Hennessey

Pottery Lane on Charlottetown Research Station.

Image courtesy of Aubrey Bell - Gallery18

On Sept 16, 2012 Gallery 18 conducted a live auction and listed the following item.

35: “Pei Pottery” Earthenware Cup C1890 (Unsigned)

Sold forC$520

Sep 16, 2012

LOT 0035