Pottery Traditions:
Pisgah Forest Pottery, Arden

Walter B. Stephen holding vase topped with classical figures
Walter B. Stephen holding a vase topped with classical figures, photographed by Edward DuPuy, 1950s; Southern Highland Craft Guild.
Walter Benjamin Stephen (1876-1961) came to North Carolina from Tennessee to open Nonconnah Pottery in Skyland. After Nonconnah closed, he opened Pisgah Forest Pottery in Arden in 1926. There, he began producing pieces with unique glazes, including a bold turquoise, interior pinks, and an experimental crystalline glaze. His very popular “cameo” ware depicted scenes of American life painted on the clay surface using layers of slip in a technique known as pate-sur-pate (paste-on-paste). In 1939, after Stephen joined the Southern Highland Handicraft Guild, his pottery was sold in their salesrooms and at their annual craft fairs.
Pisgah Forest Pottery, 1720 Brevard Road, Arden; 828-890-3053
https://www.leftwichpottery.com/contact