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The Cowan Pottery  Symposium

Each year, on a Saturday  in Spring, the Cowan Pottery Symposium is held at the Rocky River Public Library.  The Symposium is organized by the Cowan Pottery Museum curator and Rocky River Public Library staff and is co-sponsored by CPMA. Symposium sessions are open to all and there is no charge for admission. The Symposium program is intended for all who are interested in Cowan Pottery, its connections with the  Cleveland School art movement, later work of Cowan artists, local history, art pottery and antiques collecting, or the arts in general.

Each year, the all-day Symposium program includes presentations by noted experts in decorative arts, art history and the role of R. Guy Cowan’s venture in the contemporary Cleveland environment. Other activities at the Symposium include news from collectors on new discoveries, acquisitions and restoration projects, and the Annual R. Guy Cowan Scholarship presentation.

The weekend of the Symposium also includes a post-event dinner gathering and is also a time for CPMA to present fundraising events such as sale or auctions of Cowan pottery items and to conduct its Annual Meeting

2024 Symposium

Following recent notification from the Museum Curator of a decision to no longer organize the annual Symposium co-sponsored with CPMA, in favor of resources for other activities, it has now been agreed that the annual event will continue under CPMA sole sponsorship. Rocky River Public Library has generously agreed that the event will continue to be held at the library.

The 32nd Symposium is scheduled for Saturday April 20th 2024.

We are returning to the traditional pre-Covid format for Symposium content. Program details and schedule are available here.

Event planning is in progress so save the date. Check back here or on the Cowan Pottery Museum Associates Facebook page where details of the program will be posted in the New Year.