It's not just what I do, it's who I am
It's not just what I do, it's who I am
Embedded Files
Image courtesy of Rebecca Hill
Hello all! I’m Allyson Gray (she/her), a potter and enrolled citizen of the Pamunkey Indian Tribe. I have resided most of my life on the Reservation lands of my people, located in King William County, Virginia. I was always interested in the blackware pottery created by my Great Grandmother and other potters in my community. As a child, I participated in a traditional pottery class with the neighboring Mattaponi Tribe, but it just didn’t stick. I even had the opportunity to make some non-traditional ceramics while attending public school, but it still didn’t stick. But in 2019 I worked with potters in my community to facilitate some pottery classes. We decided to do a trial run with a couple of cousins and this time, it stuck. Since then, I have realized how much pottery is imbedded in my DNA and I have finally given in to it.
For Pamunkey people, pottery has been instrumental in our history and resilience. It not only served to produce items for use, trade or sale, it served as a way for us to connect with each other and the Earth. My goal now is to revitalize this craft in my own community while educating others of its importance to myself and the future of the Pamunkey people.
You may have seen me or my work in several places...
You may have seen me or my work in several places...
Washington Post "In the Dragon, history emerges" by Greg S. Schneider - Contributor 2024
Our Commonwealth: People and Places of Virginia by Andrew Talkov - Contributor 2024
Native Craft Artist Readiness Program (NCARP) - Recipient 2024
"Indigenous Perspectives" Exhibition @ Library of Virginia - Contributor 2024
National Council for Education of the Cermaic Arts (NCECA) "Life Along the River: The Pamunkey Tribe of Virginia" & "Expanded Focus Session: Pamunkey Pottery: Keeping Traditions Alive" (video below) - Presenter 2024
"Vesseled" Exhibition @ Brickhouse RVA - Featured 2024
En Forme Magazine "Art of their Ancestors" - Featured Winter 2024
National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Summer Institute “Towards a People’s History of Landscape – Part 1B: Black & Indigenous Histories in Richmond, VA - Presenter 2024
Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian’s National Education Initiative, Native Knowledge 360° - Presenter 2023
Indigenous Arts Day @ Jamestown Settlement - Presenter 2022, 2023
American Indian Magazine "The Bedrock of the Pamunkey People" by Anne Bolen - Contributor 2023
"Recontextualizing Richmond: Tsenacommacah is for Natives" by Reclaiming the Monument - Presenter 2022
Virginia Gazette "Pamunkey tribal citizens’ artwork keeps traditions alive, pave new paths at museum" by Emily Holter - Contributor 2021
The Art Scene "Pamunkey Pottery School"; Season 1, Episode 6 - Participant 2019 (video below)
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse