Ken Ferguson received an M.F.A. in 1954 from Alfred University, and went on to become an influential teacher and artist in his field of pottery.  From 1964 until 1996, when he was named Professor Emeritus, Ferguson was Head of the Ceramics Department at the Kansas City Art Institute.
His students included Kurt Weiser, Chris Gustin, Akio Takamorri, Richard Notkin, and others.

He created high-fired stoneware and also experimented in salt-glazing.  In 1981 he was named one of the 12 greatest living potters by Ceramics Monthly Magazine.

During the 1980s Ferguson had a summer home and studio in North Fork, Centennial, Wyoming.