John Bogard has been creating pottery at his “far out” Planet X for decades.
Unique scenes are featured on Planet X pottery.
Desert scenes are among John Bogard's best sellers.
A variety of cups, plates and more are featured at Planet X.
Posters recall special sales and events at Planet X.
Desert landscapes seen outside his home-studio decorate some of Planet X's pottery.
John Bogard has been creating pottery at his “far out” Planet X for decades.
Unique scenes are featured on Planet X pottery.
Desert scenes are among John Bogard's best sellers.
A variety of cups, plates and more are featured at Planet X.
Posters recall special sales and events at Planet X.
Desert landscapes seen outside his home-studio decorate some of Planet X's pottery.
GERLACH, Nev. — “Far out” accurately describes John Bogard’s pottery.
Yes, his creations are uniquely “far out,” definitely not the kind found at a Walmart or Costco. It’s far out because his pottery is created at Planet X, near the foot of Granite Mountain between the Smoke Creek and Black Rock deserts, eight miles from Gerlach in northwestern Nevada.
Planet X has been home for the 74-year-old Bogard for 48 years. He moved from Santa Cruz, Calif., in 1974 and created his home studio at an old Emigrant Trail homestead.
“I just came through here after a fishing trip from Montana with a friend,” he said of his first visit to Gerlach. “One of the old cowboys turned me on to it.”
Located off County Road 447 in a huddle of trees, the desert property is where he displays his creations at a series of four galleries. Three are filled with fine porcelain, raku and stoneware mugs, plates, bowls, casserole dishes, vases, tea pots and more while a fourth showcases his plein air landscape paintings. Another room houses his potter’s wheel, glaze and fire brick kiln that Bogard built from scrap piles collected from a gypsum plant in nearby Empire.
Because of its remoteness, most of the year Planet X typically sees only a few visitors a day, although those numbers multiplied during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. “We did real well during COVID,” he said. “[visitors] couldn’t spend their money at other places so they spent it here.”
When he and his late wife, Mary, who died in 1994, moved to their remote home it lacked a name. That changed during a friend’s visited. “He came out here and said, ‘You’re living on Planet X, not Earth.’”
The Planet X name is also fitting because Bogard’s creations are regarded as X-tremely excellent, not only beautiful to look at but excellent for a variety of uses. (Confession: Among items I’ve bought throughout the past decades are bowls and a mug that feature Planet X’s desert landscape.)
Bogard began making pottery in 1969 when studying with Al Johnsen at the University of Santa Cruz and at Big Creek Pottery. After learning different pottery techniques, he left college to focus on creating and selling his own styles. “It was very disciplined. You made different forms,” he said of developing his own, hand-painting creations.
As for becoming a potter, he matter-of-factly states, “It was predetermined,” adding, “It’s just an obsession, and it’s not going away.”
For the past 20-plus years, Bogard has shared his work and play with his wife, Rachel, a former veterinarian. Like her husband, she enjoys their self-sufficient desert lifestyle. Because of their remoteness, the couple relies on solar, propane and generator power. Rachel crafts ornaments and does a majority of the setup and clean-up tasks.
Located a short drive off Washoe, up County Road 447 eight miles west of Gerlach, a large sign along the highway indicates if Planet X is open or closed, with the usual hours being 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. “most days of the week.” Although most of the year visitors are few, things get busy during their annual Memorial Day Weekend show and their Thanksgiving weekend Bargain & Seconds Sale, events that some years attract 500 to 1,000 visitors, Bogard said.
After relying for years on word-of-mouth, the Bogards have added a website that provides information on their business and special events. And, despite their isolation, they say Planet X has become a destination for people from Nevada and nearby northeastern California and curious travelers from around the world. “People come to seek us out,” Rachel said.
For many years Bogard and his pottery went on the road to shows in Reno, Nev., Berkeley, Calif., and elsewhere, but no longer. “Just the thought of it, packing and shipping,” he said of the preparation work involved, adding, “They need to find me.”
And, after decades of developing his vast, eclectic collection of pottery, with a barely suppressed grin Bogard describes his favorite creations as, “The ones that are in your car when you’re going out the driveway.”
To learn more about Planet X Pottery, visit go to www.planetxpottery.net, or call 775-442-1919. The website includes access to “Planet X Unglazed,” a 34-minute documentary film about Planet X.
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