About Catawba Valley Pottery Festival

2026 marks the 29th Annual Catawba Valley Pottery & Antiques Festival! This year’s theme, Crafting America: 250 Years Through Pottery and Antiques, celebrates the nation’s rich artistic and cultural heritage through the lens of Southern craftsmanship. The festival continues its mission to honor and preserve the legacy of Catawba Valley’s alkaline-glazed stoneware and the skilled potters who keep this traditional craft alive.

Historically, local potters worked from home sites using wood-fired kilns and relied on word-of-mouth sales. The CVP&AF was founded to recognize that heritage by creating an annual event where pottery made in the Catawba Valley—and beyond—can be showcased and purchased.

Over nearly three decades, the festival has grown to feature talented potters from across North Carolina and the greater South, along with dealers offering historical pottery and antiques that provide a broader context for understanding the history and use of pottery in the South.

We are especially excited to welcome Mary Farrell as our guest lecturer on Saturday, March 28th, who will share her insight and expertise as part of this year’s celebration of craftsmanship and heritage.

The festival is a juried event, and will be held on Friday, March 27th & Saturday, March 28th, 2026, at the Hickory Metro Convention Center in Hickory, NC. 

The CVPAF is a non-profit event which benefits the Historical Association of Catawba County in Newton, NC and the North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove, NC. More than $500,000 has been donated to these institutions over the past 20+ years.