Sydney Williams grew up in the Uwharrie National Forest in the North Carolina Piedmont.
Sydney named her studio after Dark Mountain. The highest peak in Montgomery County; she was drawn to its beauty and to its complicated history and found a sense of moxie in the tales of civil war absconders who placed their social values before their physical safety and fled to the mountain’s hollows to escape. The range of Sydney’s interests is reflected in the fluidity of her work. Yen for experience is what keeps Sydney engaged, and she balances that welcomed chaos by gravitating to craft techniques that emphasize repetition, building into a type of meditation.
Artist CV
Education
University of North Carolina at Charlotte (Charlotte, NC)
BFA in Ceramics, Minor in Art History, 2017
Summa Cum Laude
Montgomery Community College (Troy, NC)
AA in Professional Crafts: Clay, 2013
Experience
Production Potter 2024-
Ye Olde Pottery, Concord NC
Studio Potter 2023
Candor, NC
Director of Heritage Crafts 2021-2022
Pottery Studio Coordinator 2019-2021
Ceramics Instructor, 2013
Summer Camp Instructor, 2012
Studio Assistant, 2011-2012
Montgomery Community College, Troy NC
Clay Factory Assistant 2018-2019
STARworks Ceramics, Star NC
Studio Assistant 2017-2018
Thomas Schmidt Ceramics, Charlotte NC
Studio Assistant, 2016-17
University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte NC
Professional Affiliations
2024- Art vendor, Artists in Cellophane, Winston-Salem NC
2023 Guest Artist, The Triangle Studio, Seagrove NC
2022-23 Board Member, Seagrove Area Potters Association
2020- Artist on Display, Discover Uwharrie Welcome Center, Troy NC
2012 Contributor, Piedmont Totem at the North Carolina Zoo, Asheboro NC
Exhibitions/Shows
2024 Clay, Cabarrus Arts Council, Concord NC
2022 Fall Pottery Show, North Carolina Pottery Center, Seagrove NC
2022 Pot Pop-UP!, WoodfireNC: Envision, Star NC
2021 Guest Artist, The Triangle Studio: Celebration of Fall Tour, Seagrove NC
2020- Uwharrie Regional Arts Exhibition, Discover Uwharrie Welcome Center, Troy NC
2020 Holiday Pop-Up, Uwharrie Mercantile, Troy NC
2019 Clay: Woodfire NC Exhibition, Cabarrus Arts Council, Concord NC
2019 Firefest, STARworks Center for Creative Enterprise, Star NC
2018 Year in Review, STARworks Center for Creative Enterprise, Star NC
2017 Weave It to Me, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte NC
2017 Trespassing Together, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte NC
2017 Annual Student Juried Show, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte NC
2016 Glazed and Confused, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte NC
2016 Annual Student Juried Show, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte NC
2016 Interface, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte NC
2015 Parts & Fabrication, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte NC
2014 Clay on Fire Arts Festival, Carthage NC
2014 Pottery Exhibition, Falling Rivers Gallery, Albemarle NC
2013 Senior Exhibition, Montgomery Community College, Troy NC
2012-2015 Uwharrie Mountain Festival, Troy NC
2011-2013 Holiday Clay, Montgomery Community College, Troy NC
Awards/Residencies/Grants
2023
NC Arts Council, Artist Support Grant
2018-2019
Ceramics resident, STARworks Center for Creative Enterprise, Star NC
2018
Area Award for Outstanding Achievement in Ceramics, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte NC
2016
Third Place, Annual Student Juried Show, University of North Carolina At Charlotte, Charlotte NC
2013
NC Community Colleges Academic Excellence Award, Montgomery Community College, Troy NC