Vessel; vase; bowl; plate. Traditionally, pottery for everyday use is thrown on a turntable. The clay is placed in the centre of the wheelhead, and when rotated, is squeezed and pulled upwards and outwards. The shape originates from movement. The shape almost is movement.
The turning can be read in the result: circle and spiral are always present.
The rim completes the container. It defines its function and serves as a decorative element at the same time.
The making-process was the starting-point for this jewellery-collection from 2016. I experienced the ‘throwing’ of the clay as a kind of meditation. The material must be centred, the mind must be focused – and has to let go of anything else. Making pottery is entirely about the material and the repetitive circular movement, about the hands and the emerging shape. Associations with Arabic Sufi dancers, pirouettes and whirling spins come to mind, where the dynamics of turning keep the centre balanced.
The shape now almost can be experienced physically and expresses a mood. The ceramic container turns into a body. Isn’t the body a vessel for the human spirit?

Materials: Thrown earthenware and porcelain, glaze, copper oxide, rope, silver, silver chain and remanium
Photography on model: Stefanie Geerts