Don’t miss this year’s Gallery Expo!  Opening reception Tuesday night 6:30 pm, right in the Washington Convention Center, 6th floor.  Just down the hall from the simultaneous demonstrations, the Expo offers up 1600 square feet of exceptional finished ware from top galleries across the country.  Additionally,  For the first time NCECA will devote an entire EXPO space to our new Emerging Artists.  The works by these exceptional early career artists show a diverse cross-section of some of the best new work in our field.  This year’s selected artists include Dylan Beck, Nick Bivins, Chandra DeBuse, Darien Johnson, Peter Christian Johnson, and Matthew McConnell.   Back for a third year in the Expo is the The Dolphin Song, proud to be bringing four excellent ceramic artists to NCECA this year, Jed Schlegel, Danny Meisinger, and Cathy Broski.  Their work was chosen for it’s diversity in both scale and form while being equally well conceived and executed.  Work in this gallery includes both sculptural and functional ceramic art. Also back for a third year is 18 Hands Gallery which was created with the goal of bringing together the unique work of many fine clay artists in an accessible and inviting way.  In addition to the work of Deb Schwartzkopf, Martha Grover, Steven Hill, Brooke Noble and Cindy Buehler, this gallery represents the work of many other artists – decorative, sculptural, figurative, fanciful, and functional.  Red Lodge Clay Center also participates in the Expo for a third year.  It is their mission to provide a place for professionally minded ceramic artists to create new work. The center routinely will host Visiting Artist workshops, lectures, demonstrations, gallery exhibitions, and educational programming to share with their resident artists and the general public the importance of art in our everyday lives. Their mission is supported by the artists they represent:  Jeff Oestreich, Jan McKeachie Johnston, Margaret Bohls, Jeff Campana, Brad Schwieger, Russell Wrankle, Lorna Meaden and over 60 more.  Returning to the Expo after a brief hiatus is one of the founding galleries, John Natsoulas Gallery.  For the past two decades, John Natsoulas has pursued his vision of making fine art  accessible in a friendly setting. Although this is a rarity in the gallery world, his dedication to art history, arts education, and the exhibition of regional talent and California artwork has fostered the national renown of the John Natsoulas Gallery.  Joining us for the first time and founded in 1975, Lillstreet Art Center is a large community of artists and students working side-by-side in a friendly environment which encourages and inspires artistic growth in the individual. Lillstreet Art Center supports the arts through an artist residency program, gallery, studio space, education, and an outreach program.  Rounding out the 2012 NCECA Gallery Expo, Peter Olsen is excited to launch his new gallery at the NCECA Expo this year.  The show will feature a major body of work from Ron Meyers, some recent pots from Tom Hoffman, and new sculptures of Jacob Foran.  Also represented will be the work Dan Murphy, Mark Shapiro, and other nationally and regionally known potters.