The St. Croix Valley Pottery Tour began in 1993 with host potters Richard Abnet, Robert Briscoe, Linda Christianson, Janel Jacobson, Warren MacKenzie, Jeff Oestreich, Will Swanson, and Richard Vincent. In the second year, Connee Mayeron joined the group.

The original lineup has undergone some changes over the years. MacKenzie left in 1996 and Abnet retired in 2004. In 2009, Guillermo Cuellar became a host. Matthew Krousey, Ani Kasten, and Peter Jadoonath were longtime guest artists before becoming hosts of the tour. Krousey purchased Briscoe’s home studio and replaced him as a host in 2016. Kasten replaced Mayeron as a host in 2018. In 2023, Peter Jadoonath became a host and Alana Cuellar joined her dad Guillermo as a co-host at his studio. 2023 was Richard Vincent’s last year as a host potter.

The Tour’s scale and scope have evolved too. Originally just a weekend sale, the event expanded to include Friday in 2009. In 2020 and 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tour pivoted to an online sale. The return to an in-person event in 2022 brought out enthusiastic, supportive crowds, happy to take part in this Minnesota tradition once again.

Since 2020, the Tour has been actively working to sustainably and respectfully broaden racial representation among guest and host artists. This remains an ongoing priority for the group.

Looking to the future, the Tour hopes to continue welcoming visitors to the St. Croix Valley with excellent handmade ceramics and a celebration of the wonderful artists who make them.

 

Press clippings

 

American Craft | 2023 | article
Potteryland, by Janet Koplos

 

The Studio Potter | 2020 | article
Get the Pots to the People, by Linda Christianson

 

The Studio Potter, Vol. 46, No. 1 | 2018 | article
St. Croix Tour, by Lily Fein

 

Ceramic Arts Network | 2018
A Look Inside the St. Croix Valley Pottery Tour  | video

 

The American Craft Council undertook a large oral history project on The Tour in 2014, comprising video, audio interviews, and images—a selection of which are embedded below.

 

American Craft Council | 2015 | video
Stories Potters Tell: Clay and Community in the St. Croix Valley, by Jessica Shaykett | video

 

American Craft Council | 2015 | audio interviews
A Measure of the Earth: an Oral History of the Potters of the St. Croix River Valley, Minnesota, interviews conducted by Anduin Wilhide

 

The Studio Potter, Vol. 39 No. 1 | 2011 | article
A Take on the Tour, by Ryan Strobel

 

Slide Shows

2010
The potters enjoyed taking The Tour together one day before the show was open to the public.

 

Past Posters

Click each image to download a pdf of that year’s poster.

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2014

2013

2013

 

Past Guest Potters