A Grand Start for Rain City Clay!

“Building a sense of community helps us really see each other. When we foster our creative side we show up more fully in the world, whether it is at work, with family, or just for ourselves.” ~ Deb Schwartzkopf, Founder

 

 

Where we are headed:

After 8 years of building a thriving community that supports ceramic artists of all levels at Rat City Studios, we are at capacity and cannot accommodate the waitlist for independent study participants or classes in our current location. The opportunity to expand into a sister studio in West Seattle is here!

The location for the new studio, Rain City Clay, has space for us to further build on our mission - to engage and build community through clay. It’s a dream come true, and we need your help as we open.

By funding the launch of Rain City Clay you are participating in fostering a long-term arts community that will offer experiences that bring people together and cultivate creativity.

How can you support this vision?

Please share your support through a financial contribution, telling your family and friends about our endeavor, or you can support us in many other ways – buy handmade pottery directly from the website shop, take an online clay workshop, send money through PayPal.me, or you can even help us paint the walls!

Every contribution matters!

You are helping fund Rain City Clay and bring us closer to launching this community space in West Seattle.

The initial expenses that we are up against are:

• Structure and utility essentials (new roof, new hot water heater, new ceiling, new floor covering, electrical upgrade, & plumbing new wash up sinks & clay traps)
• Security and safety needs (Security system, new locks, fire protection, & handrails/ stairs adjustments)
• Equipment and storage solutions (4-6 wheels, class participant shelving, tables, room dividers)
• Operational start-up expenses (duplicates of many everyday tools, gallery check-out register, storage systems)
• Sharing our story (outdoor message board & sign, new awning cover, website, new branding, cards/ brochures)

At Rain City Clay we will offer:

• Multi-week classes at various levels
• One-night experiences
• Professional development for emerging artists
• Individual lessons
• Skill-building workshops
• A ceramics showcase area
• Firing Service for local potters
• Inclusivity Awards for LGBTQ and BIPOC folks

As we develop we will grow programming:

• Senior Citizen outreach programs
• Youth programming
• Greater variety of firing options
• Rotating themed exhibitions

Now more than ever before, supporting an interactive arts community will ensure a space for ceramics artists to learn, grow, and thrive into the future.

About Rain City Clay:

The location for the new studio, Rain City Clay, has space for us to grow. We will continue building community and fostering ceramic arts for all.

Rain City Clay will offer classes for all levels, skill-building workshops, a firing service for local potters, artist studios, and a specialty shop featuring local and national artists. Our offerings aim to cultivate imagination, bring people together, and facilitate a space where everyone has a place to foster their creative side.

Rain City Clay, sister studio to Rat City Studios, will be moving into what is now Brace Point Pottery. Loren Lukens & Beth Kirchhoff, who have spent 20+ years as active artists in the community, are passing on the torch as they move closer to family. The location for the new studio, Rain City Clay, has space for us to grow our goal of fostering arts in the community. “We couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity to build on the legacy of this artist community, and we need your help as we open,” says founder Deb Schwartzkopf.

Rat City Studios will continue to offer monthly studio access to independent study participants, skill-building online clay workshops, and guidance for emerging artists through studio assistant positions.

My goal is to support more artists at many levels through experiential learning and shared experience. I couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity to build on this purpose but I can’t do it alone. I need your help as we launch this exciting endeavor.

Support “A Grand Start for Rain City Clay”!

Fan the flame. For more information or to add your energy to the launching of Rain City Clay visit https://raincityclay.com

"There is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about." ~ Margaret J. Wheatley

About Deb Schwartzkopf:

Seattle local, Deb Schwartzkopf is a potter, instructor, and active community member. She uses her unique skill set to offer educational opportunities - creating bridges to cross-pollinate communities both locally and nationally. Deb has a Master’s in Fine Arts, has been an instructor collegiately, and has established a successful pottery studio.

The studio practice she has established provides a vehicle for her to continually learn about material, connect with community, and create intersections between ephemeral ideas and functional forms.

“Your support means that I have your vote of confidence and trust. It also means that I am making a pledge to try my best to create a space that fosters the next generation of ceramic artists and that knits our community together through shared creative experience.” ~ Deb Schwartzkopf, Founder

Timeline

• Paperwork was signed for the purchase of the property August 2nd, 2021
• January 15th-31st, 2022 Exhibition: “Introductions” Brace Point Pottery introduces Rat City Studios to the new space through an exhibition of current and past studio assistants, independent study participants, students, and both the Brace Point and RCS founders. This will be a lively ceramics showcase and community event.
• We Get the KEYS to the Building: March 1st, 2022
• Grand Opening Celebration: First Week of April (Date TBD)
• Rain City Clay invites the community to celebrate the opening of the studio.
• Classes begin the first week in April - TBA

What people are saying:

“The sense of community here Is apparent, it is clear that it is a core value." ~ Denise Carillo

“The environment here is so supportive and I am surrounded by other artists that ask me questions that help me grow.” ~ Anika Major

“My husband and I took ceramics through the continuing education program at our local community college until the studio closed, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. We've been married for 31 years and doing art together is a way we enrich our personal lives and marriage. I looked online for other spaces and found Rat City Studio. I was thrilled when we moved up the waiting list and into the studio as independent study members. We have been so happy to be back with clay. We are also really happy with the community, which Deb has mindfully and skillfully built. I am excited for the expansion of this community to Rain City Clay. I look forward to class offerings and I am eager to see how this space helps put more art in the world.”  ~Elizabeth MacKenzie