Students, alumni and faculty from SF State’s ceramics program are giving the public a chance to own or gift unique and creative pieces of their artwork at this year’s Ceramic Guild’s annual Holiday Sale.

The sale, which has run throughout the week, ends Dec. 5. The sale features approximately 1,000 purchasable works, including glossy vases, abstract shaped mugs and matte stoneware. Prices for individual pieces range from $4 to $115.

According to Associate Art professor Jeff Downing, the ceramic sale has been put on by the Ceramics Guild at SF State for at least 25 years. The Ceramics Guild is an organization that includes all students enrolled in the ceramics program through the SF State art department.

“It is about the community of ceramics,” said Downing, who has taught at SF State since 1996. Downing said Ceramics Guild members are excited to show their face on campus, and have people come and enjoy the things they make. “There is so much work and process in the medium...there’s a passion for it.”

The process for creating sale began in early September with three consecutive weekends of product production by advanced students, as well as invited alumni and staff. The staff of about 25 people acted as workshop elves for this week’s holiday sale. They worked approximately eight hours a day to create the diverse array of pieces made available for sale, according to SF State alumni and holiday sale coordinator, Jessica Regalado.

The guild is comprised of students of all skill levels, including those lacking the proper skill level to churn out sellable items such as plates and vases. For these students, other tasks were coordinated, such as labor, set-up, and publicity of the event, according to Downing. While some students who worked in teams to perform necessary jobs like kiln cleaning or product glazing, did so to earn the one unit necessary for their art production requirement, their efforts did not go unrewarded. They were rewarded for their work by being given permission to submit their own pieces into the show.

Regalado, who had numerous vases for sale, described seeing her work in a sale setting as “weird, but cool at the same time.”

Regalado said that because of their status as students, she and her peers are prone to low-ball their artwork in respect to pricing. “When people look at [the prices] and say, “Wow that’s really low,” you laugh and think, “Wow, I thought it was really high!”

While the holiday sale gives students the opportunity to showcase their learned techniques and artistic abilities, Downing said that the event benefits students because it allows them to create funding for their educational program. According to Downing and Regalado, the sale is the primary fundraiser for the ceramics program. Proceeds go to hiring guest lecturers, hosting workshops, buying equipment for the major mixer event and supplementing funds for professional conferences that students are set to attend.

“It’s about helping students,” said Downing.

Since pieces not sold from previous years are back stocked and re-submitted for the next year, the Ceramics Guild has accumulated a big inventory of sale pieces that are switched out hourly by the staff.

Junior history major, Anna Morris circulated the ceramics classroom that has been transformed into a holiday Pottery Barn of sorts, fully equipped with Christmas lights and music on Wednesday. Picking up different pieces, she gently lifted an ebony vase by the neck with care.

“I’ve been coming to this sale since I was a freshmen,” said Morris, smiling with satisfaction as she turned the vase over to reveal a price tag of $25. “My mom loves things that are funky and different, so being on my budget — this is just the right spot for my wallet.

Check out the last day of the sale on Friday, Dec. 5. Sale hours are from 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. in the Fine Arts building, Ceramics Room 192.