The Beauty is Hidden in the Details

What is the real difference between mass-produces ware and individual craftsmanship? The price, of course, and the timeless nature, but what else? The reproducibility. Mass-ware is produced by machines with tools in a constant identical shape, surface and color. The ceramic does show no mistakes or if, then they are artificial. But even those artificial deviations are identical during the whole series. What is the characteristic of individual craftsmanship? The deviation from the norm. This can be disturbances of the surface and shape, glaze color deviations etc., however the ceramics must be nevertheless perfectly done from a craftsman’s perspective.Symmetry and faultlessness seem beautiful if looked at superficially, but our eye is always caught be deviations from the standard. This is common for super models as well as for art. The eye-catchers make the ceramic unique and are responsible for the beauty we see and feel. Wood firing is the perfect approach to create random deviations at the ceramic.

If you look very, very close at the ceramic, you can find little crystals in the glaze, thicker glaze layer in the grooves that have a different color, overlays of different glazes that mix differently in every location. Also, you can find blooming on the surface, e.g. pyrite spots or flux crystals.

If you participate in a Japanese tea ceremony, it shows good manners, if you admire the Chawan (tea bowl) very intensively and use the deviations from the perfection as a starting point for a conversation with the other ceremony participants.

It is worth to look very closely at the ceramic you have bought. You will always find new details that you can enjoy.