I took a group class at Northern Clay center and it was amazing! We had 11 brand new students learning about throwing pottery for the first time (so we all needed individual attention) and the instructor was so friendly and able to help us all! I thought maybe we would each make one piece, but we each got to make 4 or 5 bowl-like objects (you got to pick) and to paint them. We also used the break room to order food, since pottery in the morning was hungry work. Northern Clay is giant inside- I had not idea looking at it from the street. There is a parking lot right by the building, so you don't have to worry about street parking. We had a great time, and will be back to pick up or art in 3 weeks! I definitely recommend the group classes or private parties, which came out to ~$50 per person. read more

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I came here to buy a couple gifts and was not disappointed. I'd browsed some of their selection online and saw all the pieces they'd advertised on display in their showroom. The pottery is grouped by artist, which made it easy to limit my browsing to only the styles I liked. I will note that (at least on the day I visited) they very heavily feature artists whose style is natural and rustic, which isn't bad, but for the prices they charge I was looking for something more sophisticated. I know all pottery takes a lot of work, but I'm not going to spend $80 on a misshapen mug. The items do focus pretty heavily on dishes and cups/mugs, which made gift shopping a little difficult, since I wasn't about to buy a surprise dinnerware set for someone. The person manning the front desk was very helpful and brought out more pieces from the back room of artists I liked. She was also able to share with me which pieces were and were not dishwasher safe. I left with a good selection of gifts and would definitely come back again. read more

Northern Clay Center has a ton of beautiful pottery. They have a nice range of prices. And the staff is incredibly helpful! I highly recommend checking it out. read more

I've taken several classes over the years at Northern Clay and have always enjoyed them greatly. The latest one, in January 2025, however, was far less satisfactory. First, the very limited number of low-fire glazes now available don't leave you with many good options for finishing your pieces. Second, in the past, one of the most enjoyable aspects of taking a class here was the access to the studio outside of class hours. This year the studio was so overbooked with private parties and classes from colleges that the hand building studio was rarely available outside of class hours. This I find to be very poor management and also falsely conveying access to the studio, which is part of what you are paying for, only to find they are booking the open studio time for others. Finally, the street where Northern Clay is located has become increasingly unsafe. Though Northern Clay has a private parking lot there is almost always men sitting in cars in the lot who don't belong there or hanging around in the area. My car was broken into in the middle of the day though it was empty and had nothing to steal. So much damage was done that it had to be a collision rather than a window claim. Though staff are well aware of crime in the area they do virtually nothing to monitor their own parking lot and the cars of their customers. When you exist in a neighborhood like that and invite your customers to come there you should at least take steps to ensure the safety of your customers and their property on the property of your facility. Though NC has security cameras the management lamely reported that they were off on the day of the break in. And even if they were on, it doesn't appear that anyone would be monitoring them. Sadly, I won't be back. No longer a good value for what you pay. Still lots of great people at NC, but management appears to be declining significantly. read more

Taking a class here at NC center. It is an interesting place with rooms and tables and a maze to work through but it is filled with creative people making art. It has a good atmosphere and you feel good being there. Our class was great and hands on. Learned a lot and made some cool stuff. I would absolutely take another class here. read more

We've done two clay along classes with Northern Clay Center where we pick up materials then drop off the projects and pick them up once they're fired in the kiln. The projects have been SO fun and we're given enough clay to do 2 projects- so we got to do one practice and one once we have a better idea of what we are doing. The staff are super friendly and give clear instructions. I can't wait until we are able to visit in person! read more

I took 1, 3 hour class and signed up for it after being recommended by a contact from the northern clay center as a good class for beginners. There were only 8 people in the entire class and me and my two friends arrived five minutes late because of traffic on the way over. We quickly sat down while others had already began their pottery and clearly had worked with the wheel before because they all made atleast 4-5 pieces while my friends and I made 2/3 pieces that I would hardly even call art. It was disappointing because the instructor spent atleast a third of their time cutting clay which obviously could have been done before the class started and because of that I felt as though no one was being helped. For 40 bucks it should have been marketed as an open wheel class, not recommended to people that have never touched the wheel. read more

Northern Clay Center - The paint makes it look more like art but seriously these two took me 3 hours and I probably got a total of 8 minutes MAYBE. - Art Galleries Near Me - Minneapolis, Minnesota

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Recently took an introductory wheel class. The temporary instructor came late to the class and kept saying he had to get out and get some air. He left to smoke and just left all of us not really knowing what to do. Trying to pick up pots after nearly five weeks, still not fired and communication is poor. Paid $190 for five classes and got four :( read more

Northern Clay Center has artists residences, studios, community art making, gallery spaces, a shop and lots of happy faces. read more

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Such a cool place. We came here because my traveling companion does ceramics back home. His parents told him to check this place out. What i liked about it was that it was really big and the staff was really friendly. The art in the galleries was beautiful. My friend said he was very inspired by what he saw and really enjoyed the work. The store part also had some great art for not very expensive prices. The staff were also very friendly. My friend asked if they had heard of his former teacher. They had heard of her and in fact she was invited to be an artist there. Sadly my friend was going to miss her display, so the lady who was helping us shot her an e-mail hoping to get them back in touch. She didn't have to do that but it was so nice that she did. The studio space is also open to explore. I thought was really cool of them. You can wander in and see students working, and check out the spaces of the artists who rent space there. It felt so friendly and casual. If I moved to area I would love to take a class here. read more

Visited the Northern Clay Center for a tour! Enjoyed a nice guided walks through the current exhibitions, classrooms, glazing areas, studio spaces, kiln room, and the sales gallery. We got an artist demonstration at the potter's wheel, too! Fascinating! read more

Northern Clay Center is a great place to take clay classes. I took a class during COVID and they were really great about keeping the studio and students safe. They have a lot of different clays and glazes to chose from and everyone is very helpful. I would recommend NCC to anyone looking to expand their ceramics knowledge and experience. read more

I have visited this very large and complete ceramic art studio, school, library and gallery several times, as my brother is an active, long-time participant there. In the front, they have a beautiful gallery comprising several large rooms where local and national artists display their art for sale. The have very large, well-supplied areas for both throwing and hand-building works with numerous large wood and gas-fired kilns. One can sign up for classes and regulars are available to help newbies. My brother loves this place and I have enjoyed each visit. read more

I would avoid Northern Clay Center. I took 3 classes there and had two good experiences and one really bad one. The 3rd class I took there was overbooked but refused to acknowledge it. People were unable to even sit in the same space where the instructor was teaching and since I was coming from work, and frequently arrived a couple minutes late. I seemed to consistently not be able to sit where 80-90% of the class was all sitting. I called them and explained the problem expecting them to simply give me a chance to take the same class during the next time it was offered but they didn't. Instead they said that they would "check" with the instructor. Later that week I spoke to them again, and they said that the instructor said that the class size was not an issue. I was shocked. It made no sense. I tried talking to this person's manager explaining that if I, and several others, can't be in the same space as the instructor the class is clearly overbooked. All they need to do is look at the number of wheels in the space where the class is being taught and the number of students enrolled to figure out if they have a problem. It isn't a matter of checking with the instructor. In any case they refused to give me a rain check or refund my money. There are better places in town to go to take a pottery class. read more

Really cool place with lots of classes on claymaking. I took an intro wheel class and although I can't say I would be interested in making pottery a hobby, it was a good experience and I learned a lot. I have so much more respect for local artists, and speaking of art, this is a great place to look at everyone else's work! read more

I agree with the other reviewer, Casey: the administrative aspects of this place make taking a what-should-be simple clay class a nightmare. Had a similar bad experience, and was really surprised at not only the slipshod operation of how the place is run, but, most of all, how poorly they treat their patrons. Too bad. read more

Great classes. The newer management and staff is friendly and knowledgeable. I love talking classes here and mingling with the amateur and professional potters. read more

Awesome display of ceramics from across the country including great local artists. They are constantly changing out the inventory, I go in frequently. You can explore the whole building, there are artists in the back making work, too. I have found $18 mugs and $180 pieces I love. Great range. I love bringing people here from out of town, and do most of my gift shopping here. read more