There’s an age-old question we get asked countless times in this business. It doesn’t matter where we are or what we are doing. It’s always the same thing. “Why should I buy handmade pottery versus store-bought pottery”? We all know the store-bought pottery I’m talking about. It’s the dinnerware set at Walmart or Target. It’s the set of generic canisters from Amazon that you put on display on your kitchen countertop. Its also vases, mugs, and other home decor that you can find in any big box store, anywhere. Most importantly it’s the exact same dinnerware set, mugs, vases, canister sets, etc. that literally everyone else has.
Do you ever wonder where these items really come from? These products originate most often from China. They are mass-produced in factories that employ thousands of people to run machines to stamp out ceramic products. They are made by machines that make thousands of items every day. Each item is absolutely identical in size, shape, color, and thickness. Each item is stamped by a machine and glazed by a machine. These products are packed into boxes by different machines yet again. There is no human touch involved. Factory-made products lack uniqueness, originality, and that touch of “je ne sais quoi” that handmade products have in abundance.
Factories that mass-produce ceramic products have a really negative effect on the environment as well. There are really high levels of carbon emissions that are generated throughout the production cycle of pottery. There are also extreme amounts of solid waste that are produced throughout the production cycle as well. The majority of this waste is non-recyclable and can only be used as construction filling or other crushed waste material. This industry also generates a plethora of hazardous waste materials such as inks, solvents, and coal tars.
Now lets take a look at handmade pottery production. Somewhere there’s a person that loves to create with his hands. He starts his own small business so he can share his talent with others. He gets up early and heads out to the studio. He cuts some clay and wedges it up with his hands. He “throws” it down onto the potter’s wheel and molds and shapes this clay into a beautiful vessel of some sort. It is set aside to dry a bit. After several hours that pot is painstakingly trimmed and shaped into something even more beautiful. Sometimes problems occur and things don’t work out. That’s not a problem for a potter. That clay is easily recycled and then reused at a later date. After the drying process is complete, the potter loads the kiln with all of his unique pottery pieces and starts the bisque firing process. This process is one that has to be observed carefully so that the kiln functions properly. After 24 hours the first firing is complete. He unloads the kiln and is ready to glaze the pieces. Now his glazes aren’t like other glazes. These lead-free glazes are formulated, measured, and mixed by his hands alone. Each piece is dipped into the glaze and left to dry. This process takes several hours and is probably one of the most important steps in the process. At the end of the day, he does the final cleanup of the pots and reloads the kiln with the glazed pieces. This is the most stressful part of the whole process and often keeps this creator awake at night worrying. He worries about the functionality of the kiln and the glazes. Sometimes he wakes up in the night to check on the firing process and usually doesn’t sleep well until the firing is complete. Now comes the most exciting part. The kiln opening! It’s time to see the culmination of all of that hard work. As the finished piece leaves the potter’s hand it becomes a unique, special, and one-of-a-kind vessel that can be used day to day or passed down through the generations of the new owner.
Imagine ordering a ceramic piece for yourself. Which way would you prefer to have it made? Would you want a machine to make it from start to finish? Why would you want the same exact piece that everybody else has when you could have that unique, special, one-of-a-kind piece made by hand just for you? In this impersonal technological age shouldn’t we all be supporting small businesses and the shop small business initiatives rather than lining the pockets of mass production factories somewhere? Wouldn’t you want a handmade piece that possessed that undeniable “je nes sais quoi” I spoke of earlier? I certainly would.
Maybe this answers the age-old question of “why should I buy handmade pottery versus store-bought pottery” but maybe it doesn’t. I’ll leave that to you to decide for yourself. As for us, we will forge ahead doing what we love and doing it by hand!
-Kirsten