Coming to Goshen, you probably wouldn’t think much about the arts as part of its long-standing cultural history as the Maple City. But people have been shaping the clay in this region for more than 300 years — long before Goshen had a name, Miami and Potawatomi potters were digging local clay for daily use and trade.

That history runs in an unbroken line to the present. In the 1840s, the Goshen Democrat reported on a French potter named Paul Kirkdorffer working in town and on the Dausman brothers’ combined sawmill and pottery. 

By the late 1960s, Marvin Bartel, professor emeritus of art, had arrived at Goshen College and planted the seeds of a “family tree” of potters that would spread across Northern Indiana through Dick Lehman at the Old Bag Factory, Merrill Krabill ’79, and dozens of others.

What this lineage was missing was a headquarters where potters could gather as a community, which is where the Goshen Clay Artists’ Guild was created. However, the guild became a thriving community that couldn’t let in more people or had space for graduates to use those resources

Tiffany Wyse-Fisher, associate professor of art, is connected to various clay artists in the area and those involved with the Clay Artists’ Guild. “It’s a really cool organization, but it’s at capacity,” Wyse-Fisher said. “There are too many potters and no space there, and they won’t offer you to become a member unless you take a certain amount of classes.”

That changed in October 2026, when the Northern Indiana Clay Alliance opened downtown. The organization itself was founded in the fall of 2022 by Justin Rothshank and Trevor Daugherty, who began talking during the pandemic about how to formalize a network that had been thriving informally for decades. Four years later, with 501(c)(3) non-profit status and support from local artists and community members, it has a home in downtown Goshen.

The opening of NICA has led to major community outreach, with classes open to everyone, regardless of skill level. “They’ve also offered studio space for ceramic artists that want to produce art but don’t have the space to do it,”  Wyse-Fisher said. “I’m really excited that students will be able to use this space when they graduate if they don’t have access to a studio to work out of.”

Despite that history, NICA’s day-to-day is run by people just starting out. This summer, the organization opened two internships, one for high school students and one for college students. 

Norah George-Miller, a senior art major, took the college slot. “My internship is kind of customized to what I want to get out of this experience, but mainly manage social media and do outreach to art educators across Northern Indiana,” George Miller said. “I do a little bit of studio assistant work with Sadie Misiuk, and I just fill in wherever they need me to.”

Currently at NICA, the classes being offered are hand-building taught by Justin Foster and an introduction to wheel throwing taught by Eric Kaufmann with George-Miller assisting. “I’ve been helping out with classes grabbing materials and helping guide students,” she said. “I’m definitely learning a lot, and it’s definitely a wonderful resource to people who do make ceramics their career.”

This organization also hosts many well-known clay community events such as the Michiana Pottery Tour, Ruthmere Ceramic Showcase and the Holiday Michiana Pottery Sale.

As NICA continues to grow, its inner community does as well. “It feels very familial,” George-Miller said. “There is a lot of participation and contribution from other artists, and Trevor knows so many people; they’re all interconnected, and it feels like a big family.”