Donald V. Bendel is a familiar figure to ceramic artists. He hosted NCECA, the most recognized ceramics conference, at Northern Arizona University in the early seventies.
The Bendel-Burner, which he invented for gas-fired kilns, received international attention in the late 70’s. For 30 years he and Dr. Joel S. Eide organized national and international conferences and workshops in ceramics. At the University he developed an internationally recognized wood-firing program under the influence and assistance of the late Yukio Yamamoto, a Japanese treasure.