E V E R Y F IE L D H A S IT S E N D U R IN G
fabled place, where the greats
triumphed and new talent
aspires to be. For golf, it’s the
Old Course at St. Andrews;
for country music, the Grand
Ole Opry. For clay, it’s the
Archie Bray Foundation for
the Ceramic Arts.
The story, by now, is legend:
In 1951 Archie Bray, a brick-
maker with a passion for the
arts, built a pottery next to his
factory, the Western Clay
Manufacturing Co., at the foot
of the Rocky Mountains just
outside Helena, Montana. His
dream was to provide a place to
work “for all who are sincerely
interested in any branches of
the ceramic arts.” In a magical
Founder Archie Bray
was a brickmaker by
trade, but his passion
was supporting and
growing the arts.
The Bray of today grew
out of a brickyard; many
reminders of its past,
such as this old tile factory,
still stand on the site.
Photo: J. David
