395 Guernsey Lane
10:00 am
Auction Grading-Identifying Stoneware Damage, Restoration and Fakes
By Larry Birks
Keynote:
Larry Birks will present on the need for auction grading, and the definitions of the various damage the graders look for that cause the description to vary from what is shown on the auction sheet. The seminar also explains repairs, restorations, and fakes that find their way across the grading table.
Speaker Biography :
Larry Birks has been collecting stoneware for over 40 years. Started attending the RWCS Convention in 1988. He is a Charter Member of Trails West Chapter of RWCS. Served as President of RWCS for two years. Previously presented a seminar on Stoneware Fakes. Served on the RWCS Auction grading committee for the last 5 years.
Orientation for First Timers
Thursday: July 11, 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Friday: July 12, 13:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Start your first Convention experience out right by attending an Orientation Seminar led by longtime RWCS member Catherine Beall. Catherine will discuss all of the activities that are lined up and offer tips on making the most of your Convention experience.
Speaker Biography:
Hello all, my name is Catherine Beall. I have been involved in the Red Wing Convention for over ten years now. I have been speaking at the Convention for eight years now. My interest in Red Wing is the history and preservation of that history. The Charles E. Murphy prints are my particular area of interest. Hope to see you all there.
Shared Interest Groups
Friday, July 12, 2019
9:00 am
Come to the College early to meet up with others with your same collecting interest. Share your specific Red Wing collecting passion for Dinnerware, Stoneware, or Art Pottery. This is your time to network with other collectors and swap stories, ask questions, and get connected with other RWCS members with your area of interest.
Educational Seminars
Friday, July 12, 2019
Session 1: 10:00 a.m. to 10:50 am.
Session 2: 11:00 a.m. to 11:50 a.m
Session 3: 1:00 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.
Session 4: 2:00 p.m. to 2:50 p.m
Session Title: Patents and Stoneware
Speaker: Marv Juel
Session 1: 10:00 a.m. to 11:50 a.m.
Session 2: 1:00 p.m. to 2: 50 p.m.
Session Description: Patents and Stoneware early stoneware patents and their effect on Red Wing
Speaker Biography: Marv is a famous stoneware fruit jar authority, former mathematics teacher, and stoneware collector, from Plainfield Illinois. He will soon be opening a museum in his hometown of Nashua, Iowa
Session Title: The Journey of Collecting Red Wing
Speakers: Larry Peterson, Gary Tyc
Session 1: 10:00 a.m. to 10:50 a.m.
Session 2: 11:00 a.m. to 11:50 a.m.
Session Description: Larry Peterson has identified over ten stages of collecting Red Wing. He along with Gary Tyc will help to identify where you are right now and give you ideas for how to move purposely forward. They will share many new ways to enhance your collecting experience, and how to have more fun in your Red Wing adventure. Class participation will be encouraged.
Speaker Biography: Larry Peterson, RWCS Charter Member and Hall of Fame member has been collecting Red Wing since 1970. Larry was asked to display some of his favorite pieces at the first convention. He has participated in every convention since. He has served as Education Chairperson, and President of the Cannon Valley Chapter. He has coauthored three books on Red Wing stoneware. Larry has always dreamed of creating a pottery museum. With Dave and Diane Hallstrom he started the Pottery Museum twenty years ago at Red Wing which became the new museum. He was project manager, overseeing the designing, coordinating the transfer to the current sight, and moving the Schleich Museum to the city of Red Wing. He works hard every year with other volunteers to have a new display and many new items for you to enjoy. He is owner of Larry’s Jugs Antiques. His passion is to promote the history, the collecting, and the investing in Red Wing stoneware and pottery by sharing, teaching, and having fun.
Gary Tyc has been collecting Red Wing stoneware and other antiques for over 30 years. He has served and is currently serving as a RWCS Foundation Board member. He is a past president of the RWCS Rocky Mountain (Colorado) chapter from 1994 through 1997. His primary collecting interests are salt glaze water coolers, beehive jugs, crocks, and certain merchant advertising pieces. Professionally he is the CFO of a mutual fund company with headquarters in New York City and Tucson, AZ. He has lived in Tucson, AZ for the past 17 years.
Session Title: Collecting on a Budget
Speaker: Todd Avery
Session 1: 10:00 a.m. to 10:50 a.m.
Session 2: 11:00 a.m. to 11: 50 a.m.
Session Description: This seminar is aimed for the novice collector who would like some ideas about how to collect Red Wing on a fixed or limited budget. He will focus on the how, when and where to search. He will offer ideas that have worked for him in the past. He will explore the concept of building a collection as opposed to just buying one. Class participation will be a big part of this seminar.
Speaker Biography: Todd Avery. Born in 1961 in Red Wing, MN. Raised and educated in Red Wing thru the 12th grade. Earned a bachelor’s degree from Augsburg University in 1999. Married to Nora Avery and live just outside Red Wing. Currently employed as a Paraprofessional with the Goodhue County Education District, working with young adults with disabilities. Favorite students are those on the autism spectrum.
Todd has collected pottery most of his life and has broken his share as a child. He enjoys collecting Red Wing produced clay almost by default, having grown up around it. He claims his collection is modest but, has grown to include treasured pieces. Most conventions you will find Nora and Todd in the parking lot and friends, with the occasional piece that fits into our collection.
Session Title: The Dump Finds from the Past
Speakers: Steve & Phyllis Showers
Session 1: 10:00 a.m. to 10:50 a.m.
Session 2: 11:00 a.m. to 11: 50 a.m.
Session Description: This session will feature a photo collection of the 50 years of digging in the dump. During the seminar, there will also be a display of the results of a recent team dump dig with several longtime collectors. If you have a shard or need a shard come to this seminar.
Speaker Biography: “Red Wing Archeologist” Steve Showers has been a Red Wing pottery dump digger for over 50 years and is an RWCS Hall of Fame Member. He has been a speaker at every Convention since he joined the RWCS. Steve and his wife, Phyllis, are active members of the Gopher Chapter and Iowa Chapter. They are avid gardeners, using their Red Wing sewer pipe as planters, and shards as ground cover. They live in Welch, Minnesota.
Session Title: Anniversary Line Dinnerware
Speakers: Larry Roschen & Terry Moe
Session 1: 10:00 a.m. to 11: 50 a.m.
Session 2: 11:00 a.m. to 11:50 a.m.
Session Description: Terry Moe and Larry Roschen will discuss the patterns and unique shapes of the Anniversary dinnerware line. This line was introduced in 1953 and was named to honor the 75th anniversary of the Red Wing pottery industry. Photos and information about these patterns will be shared via slides along with our usual chatter.
Speaker Biography: Terry Moe and his wife Marilyn have been collecting Red Wing pottery since they inherited a partial set of Gypsy Trail Plain and Reed in 1975 from Terry’s Grandmother. They primarily collect dinnerware. Gypsy Trail, Wreath, Ivanhoe, Nassau, Ardennes, Hotel or Restaurant, and Normandy along with Merrileaf have been their main focus. Primary source materials allowing them to document dinnerware have become a major interest.
Larry Roschen and his wife Kathy have collected all forms of Red Wing pottery since 1980. Red Wing pitchers, teapots, salt & pepper shakers are primary collecting interests along with building complete sets of several dinnerware patterns. Larry’s interests eventually turned from growing the collection to learning more about the Red Wing dinnerware lines through research of vintage documents. Larry currently serves as the dinnerware advisor for the “Ask the Experts” section of the RWCS website.
Larry and Terry have conducted numerous dinnerware seminars for RWCS Midwinter and Summer Conventions.
Session: Early Red Wing Clay Industries and Marketing – from Salt and Albany to the Dawn of Zinc
Speaker: Dr. Danaè R. Quirk Dorr
Session 3: 1:00 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.
Session 4: 2:00 p.m. to 2:50 p.m.
Session Description: This seminar will include the history of stoneware production in Red Wing and also cover various products produced, attributed to, and sold by Red Wing Stoneware Co., Minnesota Stoneware Co., North Star Stoneware Co., and Union Stoneware Co. through the late 1800s.
Speaker Biography: Intrigued and fascinated by the science and history of the Red Wing Potteries, Dr. Danaè R. Quirk Dorr has been enthusiastic about collecting North Star Stoneware products for many years. When she’s not reading about stoneware or searching for a hard-to-find piece, Danaè works as a chemistry professor and author.
Danaè is currently serving as Vice President of the RWCS Facebook Chapter. She is also a Board Member of the RWCS Foundation and enjoys volunteering at the Pottery Museum of Red Wing.
Session Title: “Hat’s Off To History” 150 years of Goodhue County History
Speaker: Robin Wipperling, Executive Director
Session 3: 1:00 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.
Session 4: 2:00 p.m. to 2:50 p.m.
Session Description: Goodhue County Historical Society is celebrating 150 years “Old Settlers Association” was founded back in 1869-the first county historical society in Minnesota. Learn how the Goodhue County Historical Society has grown over the past 150 years.
Speaker Biography: Robin Wipperling Executive Director of Goodhue County Historical Society. She serves on the Goodhue County Heritage Preservation. Is a member of the Minnesota Alliance of Local History Museum. She enjoys sharing the rich history of Goodhue County. Robin has volunteered over the past 4 years.
Session Title: The Potter, the Myth and the Reality
Speaker: Richard Spiller
Session 3: 1:00 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.
Session 4: 2:00 p.m. to 2:50 p.m.
Session Description: Richard is going to share his lifelong love of pottery. He will share a brief history of American pottery, his personal work, and his outreach in the world. Come hear his story and learn from a lifelong creative potter, instructor, and world traveler.
Speaker Biography: Richard Spiller, has 50 years as a potter, sculptor, ceramic artist, professor, having taught university, exhibited, participated in symposiums, and built kilns. Being well traveled with focus on northern Europe especially being in the company of dear friends and colleagues in Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, and “Darling Iceland” recently and frequently. Richard lives in a home and studio, centrally located in downtown Urne, Wisconsin.
Session Title: Digging up the Past
Speaker: Paul Boudin, Connie Mathison
Session 3: 1:00 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.
Session 4: 2:00 p.m. to 2:50 p.m.
Session Description: Come and Join Connie and Paul for fun of informational discussions on some of their best and newest finds. They have added some awesome pieces from both Pottery Road and the Stoneware Dump. As always, they love to give away pieces, So please attend and get your piece past.
Speaker Biography: They joined the RWCS in 2007 and one of their first seminars was Steve Showers Dump Diggers. They talked to Steve about taking them digging and they were hooked. Since that day They are still digging not as much lately but is still their passion. They have many amazing pieces and have learned so much of what Red Wing made. They love to share our passion with others. Paul collects Salt glaze, advertising, and art pottery. Connie loves all her bowls. We have volunteered for 8 years.
Session Title: Red Wing Bowls
Speaker: Brent Mischke
Session 3: 1:00 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.
Session 4: 2:00 p.m. to 2:50 p.m.
Session Description: This session will provide an overview of the bowls that were made by the Red Wing companies from the start of stoneware production in the 1870s through the early 1940s.
Speaker Biography: Brent Mischke and his wife, Debbie, have been RWCS members since 1980. Brent was born and raised in Red Wing, and his grandmother worked as a decorator at the Potteries for 20 years. Areas of collecting interest include Saffron Ware, Gypsy Trail, Red Wing bowls and New Brighton (PA) stoneware. Brent has been an active volunteer for the past 9 years
More Speakers Information Coming Soon for 2019, Check back soon!
Steve Showers
Richard Spiller
OFF-SITE tours for 2019
Friday, July 12, 2019
Session Title: A Tour through Oakwood Cemetery, 1258 Cherry St, Red Wing, MN
Speaker: Dustin Heckman
Session 1: 10:00 a.m. to 11:50 a.m.
Session Description:
Journey through one of the cemetery’s most historic sections as you visit the final resting places of some of Red Wing’s most notable names, including Reverend Joseph Hancock, Abraham E. Welch, T.B. Sheldon, and more. Learn the difference between male and female Victorian mourning customs, the meanings behind tombstone symbolism, and what life was like for a 19th century Red Wing resident.
Speaker Biography:
Dustin Heckman has worked in local history for over 11 years throughout Minnesota. He currently is the Alliance Coordinator for the Minnesota Alliance of Local History Museums and was the previous Executive Director of the Goodhue County Historical Society. A beginning collector, Dustin lives in Red Wing with his wife and daughter.
Directions to Oakwood Cemetery meet at the caretaker office:
From River Bluff Education Center (10 min.): Exit the main parking lot and turn right on to Flower Valley Road. At MN 58N (the traffic light) turn left. Continue down the hill and turn left onto 15th St. Take 15th Street to East Avenue and turn left. East Avenue leads into the entrance of Oakwood Cemetery. Follow the road to the right up the hill. At top of the hill take an immediate left. The caretaker’s office is straight ahead on the right.
From the Pottery Museum (11 min): Head out of the Pottery Museum parking lot. Turn right on Old West Main Street. At the intersection of Main Street (HWY 61) turn left. At the next traffic light turn right on to West Avenue (by Econo Foods). Continue straight to stay on West Ave. Turn left onto west 7th St. Then turn right onto East Ave. East Avenue leads into the entrance of Oakwood Cemetery. Follow the road to the right up the hill. At top of the hill take an immediate left. The caretaker’s office is straight ahead on the right.
Session Title: Guided tour of the Pottery Museum of Red Wing (240 Harrison St.)
Speaker: Docents
Session 3: 1:00 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.
Session 4: 2:00 p.m. to 2:50 p.m.
Session Description:
Ever wander through the Pottery Museum of Red Wing and felt you missed out on details? Well here is your chance to have a guided tour of the Museum but an experienced guide who is able to give you detail and information that you do not know. A great experience if you never have experienced a guided tour. The tours last for about 1 hour.
From River Bluff Education Center (13 min.):Exit the main parking lot and turn right on to Flower Valley Road. At MN 58N (the traffic light) go straight on to Pioneer Road. (You will be driving past Minnesota State College-Southeast) Stay on Pioneer Road through the roundabout intersection by Twin Bluff Middle School. Turn right on to Hay Creek Valley Road and continue on to Featherstone Road. At the stop sign, turn left on to Tile Drive. Turn left on to Withers Harbor drive (Perkins Restaurant will be on your right.). Turn on the second driveway by the Bierstube Bowl and Grill. Continue on past the two sets of red garages, the Pottery Museum will be on your right.
Education Manager – David Hoffman
Education Sessions are a great way to: hear about the new research being done about Red Wing, learn tips and ideas from fellow members.
Education Manager is always looking for speakers, please contact him at education@redwingcollectors.org.
Video Lending Library
Each year the Education Manager selects session to record and added to our library and available Free to RWCS Members. To see a complete list of sessions available on DVD and VHS please contact the RWCS Business Office or log into the members-only section Video Section of the website or the Resource Page.
Any RWCS Member can become a speaker at the Annual Convention by simply contacting the Education Manager via email.
