Having just celebrated fifty years of publication with an editorial transition, it is apropos to look back at Studio Potter's editorial history. On the journal's website, one can read a truncated history of the publication. And if a reader is so inclined, a more thorough accounting of the journal and the organization can be pieced together from an archive peppered with stories of what used to be and how things were among the stories of what is happening now and what may happen in the future.
In 2015, Elenor Wilson, the third editor of Studio Potter, published "Community," Volume 43, Number 1. It was the eighty-fourth issue of the journal. Under the umbrella of community, readers found stories grounded not only in community but also kinfolk, lineage, and legacy. The issue was significant in the journal's history because it was the first issue published beyond the lifetime of founder Gerry Williams. Wilson wrote that the issue was evidence of "the stamina of [Williams'] legacy." Within the issue, six articles from six people who knew Williams and either lived the Studio Potter experience with him or were touched by his vision chronicled his contribution to the field and shared their impressions of the man.
But what about the person who followed Williams? There is a generation of ceramists for whom the name Mary Barringer is synonymous with Studio Potter. They are individuals who may have only learned of Williams' legacy when they read the "Community" issue in 2015. This group knew the journal when it was a physical object. They were more comfortable – albeit not completely – with the difficult but necessary decision to become a digital publication in 2019. It was a decision that allowed the legacy of gathering voices and experiences from the field of ceramics to move forward, and that was always a priority for Barringer: keep the legacy viable, sustainable, and moving forward. She always saw herself as a steward of the journal. One might say that Williams and Barringer were equal but opposite mirrors. Where Williams might have been seventy percent visionary and thirty percent sustainer, Barringer might have been seventy percent sustainer and thirty percent visionary. It's an imperfect illustration, but it is intended to shine a light on the unique and necessary mix of gifts required to lead, to direct, to build, to edit.
