Plan Now for the October Southwest Kiln Conference in Silver City

NEXT MEETING: Wednesday, April 16, 2025, 6:00 PM at 2045 Memory Lane in Silver City, New Mexico. The GCAS's next monthly IN-PERSON ONLY meeting features speaker geoarchaeologist Dave Rachal PhD of Tierra Vieja Consulting in Las Cruces NM. Doors open at 6:00 PM with light refreshments on offer. Socializing and a brief-to-nonexistent business meeting will immediately precede Dave's presentation of: How Did The Seeds Get There? Ruppia cirrhosa Ecology, Depositional Context and Accurate Radiocarbon Dating at White Sands: "The stratigraphic and geomorphic contexts, and ultimately the chronometric determinations, at White Sands Locality-2 (WHSA-2) are topics of controversy that stem from conflicting interpretations of the processes that deposited the Ruppia cirrhosa (Ruppia) seeds within the paleo-Lake Otero footprint site....[O]ur interpretation depicts the shoreline as an unstable, dynamic lake margin to which Ruppia seeds...were transported from deep-water, offshore growth beds during storm events and deposited on the lake shore in seed balls. These unusual aggregates, known to mix seeds of wide-ranging ages, were gradually broken apart by several cycles of wave action and erosion and redeposited in layers....[W]e will delve into both the ecology and the depositional context of Ruppia and discuss why the Ruppia seeds at paleo-Lake Otero are problematic materials for radiocarbon dating." Check out Dave's and Tierra Vieja Consulting's YouTube videos (links are on our Events page) and bring your questions for him!

NEXT FIELD TRIP: TBA - watch this space and your newsletters for details as they develop.

Mark Your Calendars for July's Community Conversation at the Silco Theater!

GCAS Monthly Meeting In Person With Featured Speaker: ENMU's Dr. Robert J. Stokes

Plan Now for the October Southwest Kiln Conference in Silver City

07/06/2022

Big News! Friday, October 7 through Sunday, October 9, 2022, marks the 2022 Southwest Kiln Conference in Silver City, sponsored by the Western New Mexico University Museum under the leadership of museum director Danni Romero. The public is welcome and the conference is free. WNMU will provide outdoor space for firing up of the kilns and the museum will host conference room space for presentations. Attendees will also want to visit the WNMU museum itself, which includes the largest and most complete collection of Mimbres materials in existence from a single prehistoric Mimbres site, and the largest and most comprehensive permanent interpretative exhibition of Mimbres pottery and artifacts in the world. Read on for more details:

"The Southwest Kiln Conference attracts a diverse group of people with a shared interest in better understanding prehistoric southwestern pottery. Expect to meet potters who work in a variety of ceramic traditions, making replicas of Anasazi, Hohokam and Mogollon pottery. The conference will offer glimpses of the entire process from collecting raw clay, to forming pots and of course firing. All are welcome and the conference is free and open to the public."

Bob Casias of SW Kiln says the group is especially interested in meeting students of all ages because, "Education of prehistoric pottery making and the cultural preservation of ancient societies' artifacts is a theme we hope to imbue in...young people. We would encourage...local students to attend and learn about what we do as artists, archeologists and just folks interested in SW prehistoric peoples."

SW Kiln is also seeking people who would like to present subjects on prehistoric pottery making on Friday, October 7. Now is the chance for our local artists to share their knowledge!

SW Kiln continues,

"We are excited to be hosted by this premier Museum and have lined up 4 great lectures focused on Mimbres culture and pottery, but we are still looking for a couple more presentations if you have an interest in presenting. We will hold presentations on Friday October 7, between 9:00-4:00 followed by a tile painting workshop put on by Wayne Keene at 5:00, with potential for the Watershed students to conduct painting session using organic paint for small pieces that may be put into Saturday's trench kiln. On Saturday we will conduct firings in the morning and will have a tour of the Museum collection at 2:00. A silent auction will be held, starting at 12:00 on Saturday and artists can list a minimum bid for pieces entered, we'd also like to ask artists to donate 50% of these proceeds to a local educational organization. Dinner will be catered at 6:00 and is estimated at $25 (menu and other specifics to come). An after dinner activity will be planned and may include a trade blanket, where folks can bring items for trade. We'll open the trench kiln on Sunday morning and discuss successes from the previous day's firings as well as the trench kiln.

Camping is available as are RV sites: Mesa Campground (3.6 miles), Cherry Creek Campground (13.2 miles), Silver City KOA Holiday (5.9 Miles), McMillan Campground (26 miles), Manzano RV Park (5.2 miles), Rose Valley Ranch (2.4 miles), Gila Hot Springs Ranch (40 miles). Please make your plans early and we hope to see you all again in Silver City."

Interested parties should contact SW Kiln as soon as possible with a note on the subject they may want to present.

Check out more photos from the 2021 SW Kiln Conference, and learn about the pottery workshops they offer here.

Let's go -- and bring along your favorite student!

/s/ webmaster

Posted at 06:00 AM in Ceramics, Current Affairs, Education, Mimbres-Mogollon, US Southwest | Permalink | Comments (0)

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