Lawn Chairs, Jazz Hands, and Raku Flames: Callanwolde Keeps It Weird in the Best Way

Callanwolde Fine Arts Center is doing so much this summer.

If you’re not familiar, Callanwolde is a sprawling Tudor-Gothic mansion on Briarcliff Road that once belonged to the Coca-Cola Candlers. These days, it’s a place where you can:

• Watch jazz legends perform on a literal front lawn
• Set pottery on fire (on purpose)
• Or let your teenager disappear into a two-week clay camp and come back with a portfolio

Grab tickets and deets on the website, but first let’s break it down here.

🎷 Jazz on the Lawn: Back for Year 26

Callanwolde’s annual Jazz on the Lawn series is what happens when an amphitheater hides in the back of a mansion and books musicians with actual Grammys.

Bring a blanket, your favorite takeout, and just enough bug spray to feel smug but not paranoid.

This year’s lineup includes:

• Bob Baldwin – smooth jazz royalty
• Pete Ayres Quartet – for when you want your jazz a little indie
• The Grant Green Jr. Group – funky, soulful, groove-heavy
• Eddie & Mayi Lopez Orquestra Macuba – big Latin energy
• Joe Gransden’s Big Band ft. Karla Harris – you will feel like you’re in a 1950s movie

🪑 VIP tables available if you’re fancy. General admission lawn tickets if you’re chill.
🎟️ Season passes on sale now; individual tickets are out now

🔥 Pottery That Involves Actual Flames

If your version of self-care involves fire and clay, you’ll want to check out the ceramics workshops.

Highlights include:

• Soda Fire Glazing (June 21):
  Learn slips, glazes, and how to “wad” your pots. You’ll feel like a wizard.
• Raku & Sagger Fire (June 28):
  Combustibles + fire barrels + rapid cooling = unpredictable, crackly beauty.

Led by Doug Tobin and Julia Burns, who seem entirely too chill about the flames part.

🎨 Low-Pressure Art Nights

On June 12, Callanwolde and Scraplanta are hosting an Open Studio Night in the gallery.

• Totally free
• BYO art project or just wing it
• Friendly vibes, no judgment
• Ideal if you haven’t made art since summer camp

👩‍🎨 Teens Throwing Clay Like Pros

Teen Summer Studios are giving 13–18-year-olds two weeks to dive into:

• Centering, throwing, trimming (on the wheel)
• Glazing and firing
• Clay-covered everything

Led by actual Atlanta artists in small class sizes. Parents, this might be the quietest two weeks of your summer.