The next session in a series of workshops at the Mount Airy Museum of Regional History will feature the art of pottery, while another museum program, set for Sunday, has been canceled. On Saturday the museum will host a pottery workshop at 1 p.m. The event is part of an ongoing series of programs at the museum. In February and March the museum hosted an arts show. In exchange for having their work on display, the artists and craft makers who took part in the show are hosting sessions with the public. A blacksmith workshop and a bead embroidery workshop have already been held as part of the series of events, and stained glass and painting workshops will follow this. Museum Executive Director Matt Edwards said the four-hour workshop will be led by Aaron Blackwelder from Elkin. Participants will use basket-weave pottery skills to make a pot. “It’s a great chance to get your hands dirty and have some fun,” added Edwards. Participants will have the opportunity to make their pot, and Blackwelder will fire the pottery at his workshop. Those who take part in the workshop will then be able to pick their pot up at the museum. The fee to take part in the workshop is $25 for museum members and $30 for non-members. The class is limited to 12 participants. Thus, Edwards said advance registration for the event is strongly encouraged. Those interested in participating may call the museum at 786-4478 to reserve their spot.
Edwards also said the monthly History Talks program which was scheduled for Sunday has been cancelled. History Talks is a series of programs in which the museum brings in historians from the region to speak about their areas of expertise. The events are held in the spring and fall. Edwards said Sunday’s event was scheduled to be the second of three talks in the spring. However, museum staff were unable to find a speaker without scheduling conflicts. That stated, Edwards noted History Talks will be back in May. On May 7, a paleontologist from the Virginia Museum of Natural History in Martinsville, Virginia, will speak as part of the series.