There’s a certain sense of pride to be felt when you can say that you made something with your own bare hands. Handcrafted items possess a certain charm and have a unique and original character, as opposed to their mass produced counterparts. This is for the simple reason that someone infused their spirit into them, that is to say put their blood, sweat and tears into their ultimate creation.
When you think about the fact that someone had a vision of something and then proceeded to realize that vision by investing their time, energy and love into creating a particular object, you cannot deny that there is an attractive and heart-warming aspect to it.
History of Pottery and Ceramics
The tradition of handmade pottery and ceramics can be traced all the way back to prehistoric times. Our ancestors needed containers to collect water and store food and other items, and cleverly discovered that by using various types of soils and clays, moulding and then drying them, they could fashion exactly what they needed.
The malleability of the clay allowed for functionality and size modification according to intended purpose, but also the freedom to personalize and embellish. Some of the oldest collected pieces of what could be considered art are in fact pottery and ceramics, also owing to the fact that the material is quite resistant.
Modern Day
Nowadays not much has changed, we still use the same types of pottery and ceramic that our forefathers before us did to eat and drink out of. The only difference being that due to the advancements in technology, we can have our ceramics mass-produced by machines, and there is no longer the necessity of human labour in the manufacturing process. This may be a good thing for convenience purposes, however it takes away from the magic of the finished item, because it has no spirit.
The beauty of handcrafted pottery is that each item is unique to itself, and there can never be two of a kind. Even if two vases may be ‘look-a-likes’ designed and adorned in the same manner, each has its own unique nooks and markings that distinguish them from all others. If you think about it, it’s a bit like ‘Surprise the player’-factor; in creative games you never know exactly what to expect.