Our Story

It all started in a scrapyard.

In the summer of 2020, a little ceramic studio called mud URBAN POTTERS took shape. What began as a space for friends and family to create and laugh their way through tough times, has since grown into a full-fledged pottery community.

We’re here for the makers, the dabblers, and the “I swear this was a bowl” types. Our studio keeps pottery approachable, the vibes kind, and the clay celebrated in all its imperfect, muddy glory. Whether you’re brand new or already know your way around a wheel, you’ll find your place here.

  • A woman smiling and wearing a black apron standing in a bright, modern kitchen with plants and baking supplies.

    Jenna Crawford

    OWNER & INSTRUCTOR

    Meet Jenna! Studio owner and business woman extraordinaire. Jenna has been practicing pottery since 2017 and now finds herself waist deep in the art world. Pottery presents her with challenges and rewards, and is why she finds ceramics so addicting!

    @felixceramics

  • A young woman with long brown hair tied in a bun, smiling, sitting in a room with shelves, plants, and a window in the background.

    Jill Lahring

    OPERATIONS & ADMIN

    Jill has been dabbling in ceramics since taking her first wheel-throwing class in 2019. A longtime drop-in member at Mud, she started out making pots to house her growing plant collection.

    Today, she helps keep things running smoothly behind the scenes! Jill primarily manages all scheduling, web, sales, memberships, and answering your emails!

  • A woman with glasses and tattoos smiling while holding a ceramic mug with Betty Boop on it, sitting next to a dog with light brown and white fur, in a room decorated with various framed artwork and posters on the wall.

    Megan Phillips

    STUDIO MANAGER & INSTRUCTOR

    Megan first tried out wheel throwing while attending ACAD in 2012. After being successful on the wheel, she changed her major and focused all her attention on ceramics. Watching people learn and grow is her favourite thing, and teaching is a passion of hers; she also has her Bachelors of Education!

    In her own pottery practice she likes to make funky functional objects that spark joy in everyday rituals.

    @motormouthceramics

    Etsy Shop

  • A man with gray hair and a gray long-sleeve shirt standing in a backyard next to a large cone-shaped sculpture made of colorful pottery shards. The backyard has a wooden deck with stairs, a white fence, and grass.

    Pat Jaffray

    STUDIO TECHNICIAN & INSTRUCTOR

    Pat's love affair with clay began in the 90's and it's continued ever since (when he wasn't being pulled away by his other career as a minerals chemist). He's lived and worked in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. For the last ten years he was the owner/operator of a teaching studio in Malaysia. He is drawn to the joy of discovery. Even after all this time, he still finds clay revealing new mysteries all the time.

    @pat_jaffray

  • A woman smiling while working on a pottery wheel.

    Amy Hein

    INSTRUCTOR

    Amy Hein (she/her), received her BFA in 2018 from AUArts, and graduated from the Visual and Creative Arts program at Sheridan College before that. Amy has been drawing and painting as long as she can remember, and now specializes in painting her botanical illustrations on pottery, all inspired by nature. Amy has been teaching painting, drawing and hand built ceramics for over 10 years. After finding Mud Urban Potters in 2021, she tried her hand at wheel throwing again, and found the studio community to be the welcoming art outlet she was missing. When not in the studio, Amy can most likely be found in her garden or enjoying the beautiful Alberta landscape.

    @amyheinart

    website

  • Emily Stone

    INSTRUCTOR

    Emily has been potting since 2010 and graduated from ACAD in 2016. She fell in love with the material and process as well as the endless potential clay has! 11 years later she finds herself still going strong! Note to her students: prepare yourself, pottery making is super messy, fun as hell and seriously addicting!

    @emilystoney

    Etsy Shop

  • A woman wearing a black hat and black sweatshirt holding a mushroom-shaped ceramic sculpture with a beige cap decorated with purple flowers and a brown stem with a face.

    Hanna Ferreira

    INSTRUCTOR

    Hanna first fell in love with pottery at the young age of 14 when she discovered the wheel at a local art studio. She is so excited to find herself working and playing with clay day to day and loves to share her passion with others.

    @myclayfilledhome

    website

  • Close-up of a person carving a ceramic piece on a pottery wheel, with clay shavings around the base.

    Jason Cripps

    INSTRUCTOR

    Jason began working with clay during his BFA at AUArts. What began as an extra course ended up becoming his major, as he switched focus fully into clay and ceramic science. The infinite possibilities of clay have become the focus of Jason’s ceramic interest, as he explores the different techniques, styles and applications of the material. Sharing knowledge and teaching are a closely held passion for him, as the journey of ceramics has historically been and is best experienced through community and group learning.

  • A woman with glasses, wearing a white t-shirt and a black apron, sitting on a wooden table in a pottery studio, holding a large ceramic bowl she made, smiling at the camera.

    Katie Romansky

    INSTRUCTOR

    Katie studied ceramics at AUArts, trained as a geologist before that, and has always liked rocks whether in their natural or artistic form. She loves teaching and sharing what she knows about clay! She met an incredible woman named Jenna in 2020 and was brought on board to help build Mud Potters. When she is not at the studio Katie tries to get out into nature as often as possible to camp, ski, bike, and climb.

    @katiero_ceramics

  • Hands shaping a ceramic vase on a pottery wheel, with a clay pot and a small plate underneath.

    Kendra Sleeman

    INSTRUCTOR

    Bio coming soon :)

  • A woman with glasses, wearing a green beanie and a pastel-colored sweater, is smiling while working at a pottery wheel making a vase.

    Madde Sullivan

    INSTRUCTOR

    Madde found her love of clay by accident when she stumbled across the pottery studio on her college campus. 5 years after an immediate switch into the arts program, Madde is still throwing pots and no where close to getting sick of it. She has a love for teaching and is stoked to call Mud her home. If you hear someone obnoxiously whistling around the studio, nine times out of ten, it will be Madde.

    @maddesullivan.ceramics

  • Melanie McEwing

    INSTRUCTOR

    Melanie has been working with clay for years but has been on the wheel since 2019. She has taught both wheel throwing and hand building classes in her home town. She is currently a student at Alberta University of the Arts taking a bachelor of fine arts, majoring in ceramics.

    @melanie.mcewing_art

  • Four stacked beige ceramic coffee cups on a light background.

    Natalie Cole

    INSTRUCTOR

    Bio coming soon :)