Every year the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts also known as NCECA holds an annual conference. It is the premier clay event in America and is attended by thousands of ceramic artists, educators, vendors, enthusiasts and collectors. Over the four days there are demonstrations, exhibitions, presentations, representatives from educational programs and residencies, galleries selling pottery and vendors selling ceramic materials, pottery equipment and supplies. There are also evening programs along with pre and post conference workshops and events. Honestly, there is way too much to list here so go to www.nceca.net and check it all out for your self! This year will be my fifth conference and I’ve compiled a list to help attendees whether this will be your first conference or your tenth I am sure you’ll find something useful here.
Book your hotel early I try to plan way in advance for NCECA and make my reservations in October. Hotels close to the conference book up fast and I like to stay as close to everything as possible. Ideally I book the hotel the conferences is held at but you can save money by booking at hotels further away. This may seem like a good idea but you’ll need to travel to and from the conference and may miss out on some great events and will have to pay for transportation to the convention center. To help with expenses I always share a room with a fellow potter or two (a shout out to the fabulous Judi Tavill my NCECA roomie! Be sure to check out her work www.jtceramics.com)
Download the app You will get a program guide at the conference but who wants to wait until they arrive to plan out their schedule. The app is well organized and it allows you to bookmark events, add them to your schedule and to create your own profile and connect with other attendees via the app! It lists all of the vendors, exhibitions, includes maps, tours and so much more. Go download this now vis NCEAC’s website.
Plan your days but be flexible There is no way you will be able to see and do everything during NCECA that you would like to do. It is just too big and there is way too much going on. To keep from being overwhelmed I suggest you pick out two or three events for each morning, afternoon and evening saving time for the resource hall and exhibitions. Also be sure to attend the opening receptions on Thursday and Friday evening.
Wear comfortable shoes and dress in layers Since you will be walking all day(yay for those of us with fitness trackers) you want to take care of your feet. Because f your feet hurt you will be miserable and will not be able to enjoy all of what NCECA has to offer. Also layers are a must, the weather can be unpredictable and each room or gallery can be a different temperatures so a sweater or light jacket will be welcome. Be sure to check the forecast before you leave home and pack the appropriate accessories such as an unreal, scarf, hat or gloves.
Bring a tote bag or backpack to the conference In addition to your luggage you will want to bring a tote bag or a back pack. Yes, you do get a little NCECA keepsake bag when you register at the conference but it is not an ideal bag to get you through the confrere. You will want bag that is large enough to hold all of you informational handouts, NCECA conference program guide, small purchases and is conformable to carry around all day. Also it should have a place for a water bottle, snacks, business card and pieces to trade. I currently am using the LUG Ace tote bag and love it. It is plenty big enough for all of my stuff, has an adjustable wide strap, a water bottle pocket, an insulated snack pocket and comes in a variety of stylish colors.
Snacks, Water and Staying Healthy. The food choices inside the convention center can be limiting especially if like me you have food allergies. I always bring a water bottle and plenty of snacks because you don’t want to miss any of the conference by leaving the venue trying to find something to eat. I try to stock up on snacks before I leave home and pick up a few tasty options from local health food stores once I arrive at NCECA. Some of my favorite snacks are trail mix or granola bars, sushi, yogurt, muffins (gluten free for me) and fruit. I tend to go non-stop at events like NCECA and can easily get run down so to help combat this I take a few packets of Emergen-C with me and mix them into my water bottle. My wellness guide for the conference looks like this: get 8 hours of sleep a night (difficult with so much going on I know!) eat a good breakfast, snack though out the day and go out for a nice dinner. Also, I bring a few tea bags so I can enjoy a nice hot cup a tea during the day, don’t worry there is no shortage of tea cups or mugs to be had a NCECA!
Come early and attend the gallery expo on Tuesday night Recently NCECA added a new Tuesday night gallery expo(6:30-8:00pm) and it has been quite a success. I know the conference doesn’t officially start until Wednesday but if you can come early do so you won’t regret it. During the gallery expo all of the galleries in the resource hall are open and selling work. This will give you first pick of the work for sale during NCECA. Also many of the galleries have artists talks going on during this time. Not only can you buy that fabulous piece from your favorite potter but you can hear what inspires them and how they made it!
Visit the resource hall vendors early Wednesday for best freebies Wednesday morning is THE best time to visit the vendors in the resource hall for free samples. Most of the vendors bring freebies to give out but what they have is limited and often they run out by Friday sometimes even by end of day Wednesday. Also Wednesday is the least crowded day so it’ll give you the best chance to speak with vendors about their products and try some of them out. FYI Speedball brings plenty of underglaze so be sure to stop by their booth and get a sample!
Bring a notebook or sketchbook You are going to see so many demos, presentations, talks and amazing pottery that you will be over whelmed. Its okay this is normal, bring a notebook or sketch book to write everything down or to make a few quick sketches so you will have this to look back on after. Once you get home you can go through everything and decide what you want to try.
Take lots of pictures Just like using a sketch book or notebook to record you NCECA experience you’ll want to take lots of pictures. We are all visual learners, I have never met a potter/artist who wasn’t and taking photos / videos is the best way to record what you see. Also you’ll want plenty of pictures of all of your pottery friends new and old! Be sure to take your charger since taking photos uses up a lot of your smart phone battery and there are outlets in the convention center for charging your phone. In addition to this you may want to bring an external charger in case you are out and about and need to charge up!
Pack a few small pieces to trade and bring a big suitcase for everything you purchase! This is one of my favorite parts of NCECA. Every year I bring a few small pieces to exchange with my fellow potters. This is such a great memento of of your time at NCECA and all of the wonderful people you met. Also if possible bring a large suitcase or even an extra one for all of the things you think you want buy but really you will! I bring two suitcases.One large and one small. Ion my way to NCECA I pack my small suitcase then nest tat tin my large suitcase and finish packing around that. This way I have two suitcases for the return trip and plenty of room for all of my new goodies!
Have fun and meet new people and bring plenty of business cards. Yes, NCECA is all about the pottery, demos, resource, tools, supplies and exhibitions bit it is also about catching up with clay friends and all of the new connections you will make. Don’t be afraid to go up to that potter whose work you’ve always admired and tell them so. Be sure to bring business cards so you can hand them out and stay connected to all of your new friends. Potters are some of the most down to earth, generous people you will ever meet and NCECA give us the opportunity to come together, get to know each other and share our love of all things clay!
Come find me! I will be at the Speedball both demoing from 12-2pm on Wednesday and at 2:00pm I will be leading a group of ClaySharers around the resource hall to some of my favorite vendors, it is going to be a blast and you are welcome to join in! If you happen to see me around NCECA please come up and say “hi” I can’t wait to meet you all!