Spotlight: Springfield Art Association – Roasted Raku Ceramics

On May 3, 2025 from 3:00 to 9:00 p.m., the Springfield Art Association will host Roasted, a unique fundraiser featuring raku ceramic firing, dinner, live music, and fire breathing. Roasted is in its 8th iteration. Roasted is another way the Art Association can connect with the Springfield community. As Betsy Dollar, Executive Director of the Art Association explains when talking about the mission of the Springfield Art Association, “it is to make the visual arts available to a broader audience through education, exhibits and activities.”

The raku method was developed in 16th century Japan and did not become common in the United States until the 1960s. Raku technique involves glazing a piece of pottery and then subjecting it to rapid firing, followed by rapid cooling. The process results in unique colors and patterns so that each piece is truly one of a kind. Raku pottery is designed for decorative purposes and is generally not suited for eating. 

Tickets for Roasted are $55 for adults and $30 for children 12 and under. Tickets include entertainment, a barbecue dinner from Clay’s Popeye’s BBQ, and a ceramic pot to glaze. The pots will be fired in an outdoor kiln and ready to take home the evening of the event. For those interested in exploring ceramics in more detail, the Art Association offers a variety of classes in its Prairie Earth and Fire Ceramics Studio.

The Springfield Art Association was founded in 1909 as the Springfield Amateur Art Study Club. In 1913, Alice Edwards Ferguson donated her family’s mansion, Edwards Place, on 4th Street in Springfield to the Art Club to be used for classes, gallery space, and meetings. Edwards Place, constructed in 1833, is the oldest house in Springfield still on its original foundation and has ties to Abraham Lincoln. To this day, the Springfield Art Association, operating out of Edwards Place, continues its mission of promoting and supporting the visual arts, providing art education opportunities, and preserving and interpreting the historic Edwards Place and the collections of the Art Association. 

To learn more about the Springfield Art Association and to purchase tickets to Roasted, please visit https://www.springfieldart.org/roasted.html