While getting work shown in galleries is an important part of a ceramic artist's career, pop-up markets offer a refreshingly low-key alternative. These casual, in-person sales cut out the middleman and put you face to face with buyers. They can also be a lot of fun!
Back in 2017, potters Sam Oliver and Brent Pafford and some potter friends decided to give pop-ups a try at the 2018 National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) conference in Pittsburgh. That crew became the Crisscross Ceramics Collective (CXC), and their annual pop-up has since become a fixture each year at the conference. Interested in doing something similar? Read this excerpt from the October 2026 issue of Ceramics Monthly for some of CXC's hard-won tips on planning a pop-up of your own. –Jennifer Poellot Harnetty, editor
Over the last few years, pop-up markets have become an increasingly popular way for artists and venues to expand their audiences. These casual, collaborative events allow people to come together, outside of traditional online and in-person galleries, to support artists, see fresh work, and connect.
At the NCECA conference in 2017, Sam Oliver and Brent Pafford noticed a lot of work that excited them just wasn’t present in the Gallery Expo booths. With a vision of knitting together friends, acquaintances, and collaborators, they asked a cohort of playful, early-career potters to participate in a rogue sale in Pittsburgh during the 2018 NCECA Conference. The group became Crisscross Ceramics Collective (CXC) and has since pursued three goals: sell enough work to finance the conference trip, have fun while doing it, and engage directly with local small businesses.
Pop-ups have become a quintessential part of the NCECA experience, alongside other unofficial events, chance encounters, and spontaneous gatherings that celebrate in-person connections, joyful exchange, and ultra-low overhead. Here is what we’ve learned by organizing our yearly event in a new city, far from home.
#Goals
CXC uses a collaborative decision-making process, connecting throughout the year to choose a site, find shared housing, and order shared supplies. Setting a solid foundation of working together nurtures friendship and success. We split costs and responsibilities, from managing the site agreement and scheduling Instagram takeovers, to cheerleading and ordering lunch for fifteen people.
Partners
Pop-ups create a direct interaction between conference attendees and local communities, both financially and socially. NCECA’s host cities have incredible local art scenes, and our hosts often have experience with art markets or other events. Many sites have a rental/event manager and agreement process to get on their calendar, so we play the role of client as we explain our needs. It’s important to stay flexible with our needs as we balance proximity to the conference center, cost, capacity, and availability. While we tend to focus on craft brewing and distilling venues, sites that focus on serving alcohol aren’t appealing or accessible to everyone.
For us, it’s a big plus if the venue serves food or hosts food trucks, and we may gently coach a venue to double-check their staffing for a busy weeknight.
Tax Stuff
The biggest unknown each year is the burden of sales tax. Is it easy to become licensed in a state, or not? When do you need to submit the sales tax you collect, and can you do it online? Is a raffle technically “gambling” that needs a special permit, or is it just good fun on a Thursday evening? You might be surprised to learn it is the former.
Capacity
We invite a few guest artists each year, often highlighting under-exposed artists, but we adjust the total number of artists based on the venue. We bring different quantities of pots (from 30 to well over 100) based on our individual making schedules and expectations for the sale.
the author Dustin Yager is an artist and educator based in Brooklyn, New York. He is one of the original members of CXC. The current roster includes Liana Agnew (Pittsburgh, PA), Casey Beck (Cobb, CA), Neil Celani (Batavia, IL), Dehmie Dehmlow (Philadelphia, PA), Sam Oliver (Tryon, NC), and Brent Pafford (Eugene, OR). Follow the group on Instagram, @cxc_ceramics_collective.
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Published Dec 1, 2009
While getting work shown in galleries is an important part of a ceramic artist's career, pop-up markets offer a refreshingly low-key alternative. These casual, in-person sales cut out the middleman and put you face to face with buyers. They can also be a lot of fun!
Back in 2017, potters Sam Oliver and Brent Pafford and some potter friends decided to give pop-ups a try at the 2018 National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) conference in Pittsburgh. That crew became the Crisscross Ceramics Collective (CXC), and their annual pop-up has since become a fixture each year at the conference. Interested in doing something similar? Read this excerpt from the October 2026 issue of Ceramics Monthly for some of CXC's hard-won tips on planning a pop-up of your own. –Jennifer Poellot Harnetty, editor
Over the last few years, pop-up markets have become an increasingly popular way for artists and venues to expand their audiences. These casual, collaborative events allow people to come together, outside of traditional online and in-person galleries, to support artists, see fresh work, and connect.
At the NCECA conference in 2017, Sam Oliver and Brent Pafford noticed a lot of work that excited them just wasn’t present in the Gallery Expo booths. With a vision of knitting together friends, acquaintances, and collaborators, they asked a cohort of playful, early-career potters to participate in a rogue sale in Pittsburgh during the 2018 NCECA Conference. The group became Crisscross Ceramics Collective (CXC) and has since pursued three goals: sell enough work to finance the conference trip, have fun while doing it, and engage directly with local small businesses.
Pop-ups have become a quintessential part of the NCECA experience, alongside other unofficial events, chance encounters, and spontaneous gatherings that celebrate in-person connections, joyful exchange, and ultra-low overhead. Here is what we’ve learned by organizing our yearly event in a new city, far from home.
#Goals
CXC uses a collaborative decision-making process, connecting throughout the year to choose a site, find shared housing, and order shared supplies. Setting a solid foundation of working together nurtures friendship and success. We split costs and responsibilities, from managing the site agreement and scheduling Instagram takeovers, to cheerleading and ordering lunch for fifteen people.
Partners
Pop-ups create a direct interaction between conference attendees and local communities, both financially and socially. NCECA’s host cities have incredible local art scenes, and our hosts often have experience with art markets or other events. Many sites have a rental/event manager and agreement process to get on their calendar, so we play the role of client as we explain our needs. It’s important to stay flexible with our needs as we balance proximity to the conference center, cost, capacity, and availability. While we tend to focus on craft brewing and distilling venues, sites that focus on serving alcohol aren’t appealing or accessible to everyone.
For us, it’s a big plus if the venue serves food or hosts food trucks, and we may gently coach a venue to double-check their staffing for a busy weeknight.
Tax Stuff
The biggest unknown each year is the burden of sales tax. Is it easy to become licensed in a state, or not? When do you need to submit the sales tax you collect, and can you do it online? Is a raffle technically “gambling” that needs a special permit, or is it just good fun on a Thursday evening? You might be surprised to learn it is the former.
Capacity
We invite a few guest artists each year, often highlighting under-exposed artists, but we adjust the total number of artists based on the venue. We bring different quantities of pots (from 30 to well over 100) based on our individual making schedules and expectations for the sale.
the author Dustin Yager is an artist and educator based in Brooklyn, New York. He is one of the original members of CXC. The current roster includes Liana Agnew (Pittsburgh, PA), Casey Beck (Cobb, CA), Neil Celani (Batavia, IL), Dehmie Dehmlow (Philadelphia, PA), Sam Oliver (Tryon, NC), and Brent Pafford (Eugene, OR). Follow the group on Instagram, @cxc_ceramics_collective.
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