Our History:
1979 - Pinch Pottery was founded in Northampton, Massachusetts by three potters - Leslie Ferrin, Mara Superior, and Barbara Walch, all of whom continue their work in the ceramics community today. Our founders were recent graduates of the University of Massachusetts and were seeking a place where they could make pottery, teach classes, and showcase the work they and others created; and so, Pinch Pottery was formed, originally in the basement of Thornes Marketplace, just across the street from our current storefront.
1987 - The gallery moved from Thornes Marketplace to bustling Main Street, Northampton. 179 Main Street became – and continues to be – Pinch’s home, and we couldn’t have found a better spot to grow our roots. It became a shop and gallery, with Pinchat the front full of functional pottery and jewelry, and Ferrin Gallery at the back with regular exhibitions. The annual exhibition "A Tea Party" became internationally known; in 1989 it included teapots by 160 potters. It was a couple of years after this move that Donald Clark became involved as a partner with Leslie Ferrin. It was during this period the name was changed from Pinch Pottery to Pinch as it was no longer a “pottery” where classes were taught.
2006 - Jena Sujat purchased Pinch from its then-owners, Leslie Ferrin and Donald Clark. Leslie is the director of Ferrin Contemporary, her gallery in North Adams, MA, as well as Project Art. Donald Clark founded The Marks Project in 2015 and has written several ceramics-focused books including his recent, Contemporary Black Ceramic American Artists. Jena spent many years as a retail buyer for a larger Northampton shop and was excited to curate her own collection, work with local artists, and bring her business sense, buying experience, and “good eye" to the shop.
2006-Present - While many things at Pinch have changed over the years — paint colors, displays, the variety of products we carry, where Jena lives (she moved to Austin, Texas!) — our core values and mission very much stay the same; to bring a wide selection of curated, high quality artisan products to our community.
