Melvin Rowe, Louisville, KY

Pottery Rowe

functional pottery

Melvin D. Rowe, a native of Louisville, KY, has been selling his functional stoneware since 1971. He has a BFA degree from Western Kentucky University and a Masters in Ceramics from the University of Louisville. Melvin is the former director of the Metro Arts Center, taught ceramics at Spalding University in Louisville, KY, and since 1981 has been successfully creating, retailing and wholesaling his work throughout the country.

In the early eighty’s Melvin pursued a career as a full-time production potter which he credits for his ability to fluently express himself with clay. Melvin’s work captures his love of whimsy and humor. His work is both wacky and colorful and blends both his skill on the potters wheel and his hand-building mastery.

Melvin has written numerous articles on marketing and sales for The Crafts Report, and articles on glazes for Ceramic Monthly magazine. He is a juried member of the Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen, past president of the Louisville Craftsmen Guild, and has participated in the Louisville Sister Cities program in Mainz, Germany.

Melvin Rowe’s work can be found at the Kentucky Artisan Center at Berea, Berea, KY; the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, Louisville, KY; Completely Kentucky, Frankfort, KY; BeBe’s Artisan Market, Paducah, KY, and at numerous Kentucky State Park gift shops.