OraliaLopez Master Mata Ortiz Potter Oralia Lopez will also demonstrate her craft, and offer a selection of her clay creations for saleClay Festival Feature: The Story and Demonstration of Mata Ortiz Pottery at the Silver City Museum
Silver City -- Award-winning author Charmayne Samuelson will discuss her best-selling biography of Spencer MacCallum, the celebrated anthropologist who is credited with discovering the famed Mata Ortiz Potter Juan Quezada, and helping to make Mata Ortiz an international sensation. Master Mata Ortiz Potter Oralia Lopez will demonstrate her craft, and present a selection of her work for sale. The event is part of the annual Clay Festival, and happens on Saturday, July 27, in the Silver City Museum Annex, 302 W. Broadway Street, in historic, downtown Silver City.

Samuelson will present a slide show about MacCallum, and sign copies of her book at 10 and 11 a.m., and again at 1 and 2 p.m. She is the author of nine titles, including a Southwest mystery novel, four story coloring books featuring Southwest desert animals, a coffee-table photography book of the wild mustangs of the Onaqui Mountains, a self-help book on hypnosis and meditation, and her latest release, Spencer MacCallum Memories - Mystique - Mata Ortiz, the authorized biography.


CharmayneSamuelsIn celebration of the annual Clay Festival, the Silver City Museum welcomes author Charmayne Samuelson who will discuss her best-selling biography of Spencer MacCallum, the celebrated anthropologist who is credited with discovering the famed Mata Ortiz Potter Juan Quezada"Spencer was a fascinating person who clearly had a mission in life," said Samuelson. "When he purchased three pots at a Deming junk store, he became obsessed with finding the artisan who made them. He finally discovered Juan Quezada, a dirt-poor farmer/cowboy making pottery for the tourist trade in Chihuahua, Mexico. This was the beginning of Spencer's determination to nurture this craft and bring it to life around the world.

Today, more than 40 years later, Mata Ortiz pottery is known worldwide. "In this biography, you will read how it all began," added Samuelson. "The Spencer MacCallum story is the tale of an incurable explorer who meets his destiny!"

For more information, please contact Brittany Beers, community engagement manager at the Silver City Museum, (575) 590-0230, or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The event takes place Saturday, July 27, from 10 am to 4 pm at the Museum Annex, 302 W. Broadway.