25 Dec Shaping Earth & Fire: Elemental Pottery
Earthenware is a dialogue with the elements; listening to and learning from the ways of fire, the personalities of clay, and the alchemy of color and form. When we shape wild clays, made like us of bones and blood, and offer our creations to the fire, our intentions are transformed and fortified.
Pit firing foraged clay vessels is practiced by many cultures around the world, each with rich pottery traditions, cuisines, and histories. With the prevalence of modern technological methods and commercial clay companies, the inherent connection between ceramics and the land has become abstracted. The very use of wild clays in this craft can be a profoundly enriching way to connect with the landscape we call home and literally build relationship with it.
We will gather at the beginning of the week to create and decorate clay vessels, shaping something that can hold a bigger prayer for your life, memories of our time at the gathering, and the teachings of the pit fire process. On the morning of the last day, we will meet to light and feed the fire, tending our delicate pieces through their transformation. Morena Pez who is teaching ‘Embracing the Art of Ancestral Ceramics’ will co-guide the firing with Hosanna.
Hosanna White will be sharing Shaping Earth & Fire: Elemental Pottery.
