by Melissa Macker, Executive Director
Imagine downtown Macon without art. No murals or sculptures. No pottery classes. No art galleries to visit on First Fridays. No art on the walls at your favorite restaurant.
It would be awfully dull, wouldn’t it?
Downtown Macon wouldn’t be what it is without artists. And it wouldn’t be where it is today without you, one of our generous donors, paving the way for artists to display and sell their artwork, teach classes, create pottery, put on events, and more.
Artists like Roban.
Roban has been making pottery for many years through a local studio. It was something she loved doing, and she created beautiful work.
While she loved creating pottery, she was only able to work on her skills one day a week.
During that time, her husband learned about The 567 Center’s pottery studio from a neighbor who was a studio instructor. He knew she would welcome the opportunity to work on pottery more often, and he gave her a studio membership as a gift.
Being part of The 567’s pottery studio allowed Roban to work on her pottery at any time and produce pieces more quickly. With the additional practice she has been able to develop her skills and experiment with different techniques. She has learned from the other potters in the studio who work together and freely share tips. She has enjoyed improving the quality and variety of ceramic pieces she created. Roban has also appreciated the opportunity to display and sell some of her work in the gallery.
Around one year after she started her studio membership, a friend and fellow studio member asked her to sell pottery with her at the All Hands Art Festival. Roban knew she would have to work hard to create enough pieces to make it worthwhile, but she was up to the challenge. When the festival came around, it was definitely worth the work she put in.
Through The 567—and because of the generosity of our donors—Roban experienced the biggest sales weekend she has ever had since she started making pottery.
Photo by Jessica Whitley
The 567 Center organizes All Hands Art Festival each year with the goal of celebrating artwork and fine crafts that are specifically made with clay, glass, metal or wood. Roban felt like that narrow focus attracted people who would be specifically interested in the kinds of things she made. She experienced a festival that was small enough for her pottery to get noticed, but large enough to attract visitors. Because people got to know both her and her work at the festival, she thinks that they will recognize her pottery more in the future. She looks forward to selling more pottery, making more pottery, and being a vendor at All Hands Art Festival again next year.
Roban is just one of many artists we’ve worked with. Thanks to you, 100 different artists have been able to share their talents through teaching art classes or displaying artwork in the past year alone. These artists attract thousands of people to downtown through the classes they teach, enrich lives with the art they create, and provide a creative outlet for all ages.
When artists thrive, so does downtown Macon.
Want to help artists thrive in 2025? Donate here.