Frances Senska, (1914 - 2009), was known as the "grandmother of ceramics in Montana", known for wheel-thrown locally dug stoneware functional pottery with pulled handles and finials. Surface techniques included wax resist and locally sourced slip and glazes materials. During her career, she trained a number of now internationally known ceramic artists, including Senska’s students included Rudy Autio & Peter Voulkos. She was one of the founding members of the Montana Institute of the Arts in 1948, served as the organization's Crafts Chair from 1954 to 1956, and was its director from 1961 to 1962. She also helped found the Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts in Helena, Montana, in the early 1950s. Her lithographic prints have been collected by the Brooklyn Museum, the Library of Congress, and the Princeton University Library.