WSW’s Mug Library

Women's Studio Workshop's Mug Library

For the 2018 Global Day of Clay the Women’s Studio Workshop launched the WSW Mug Library! Ceramic studio manager Ruth McKinney Burket has long been inspired by the Artstream Library and Pots In Action and has been wanting to bring something like this to WSW and our local community. Please check out these amazing community projects that have been the muses for our mug library.

For the WSW mug library 24 talented potters have generously donated a special handcrafted mug which will be available for anyone in the local community to borrow. The mug library functions in much the same way as a traditional book library does, and borrowers get the chance to take the mug home and use it for a week. Through this experience we aim to cultivate appreciation for well-crafted pots and give participants an enriching personal and social experience.

The Mug Library lives within our gallery and is displayed on a custom made shelving unit. The mugs themselves are housed within their own handmade box, which doubles as a safe means of transport when the mug is borrowed. Boxes have a place to record the name of the borrower and are stamped with the date of return on its “library card”. Every participant signs out the mug and commits to return it in a timely manner. There is an element of exchange as each borrower is prompted to return the mug with a contribution in the form of a question, poem, inspiring quote or drawing. These contributions will be used in a future project or exhibition.