Stories about pots
I had a life changing experience as an apprentice at Cook on Clay in 2021. I remember exactly how my body felt when I was offered the opportunity: uncomfortable and excited at the same time. By taking up this step, I clearly stepped out of my comfort zone.
Fast forward to now, I am just amazed about the abundance and creativity this decision has brought into my life. Almost two years later, I have put together my work that was created during the apprenticeship and what we call with Robbie ( Co-founder of CoC) a library of seeds for my work going forward. These pots (or seeds) are in the early stages of my work with flameware (clay cooking pots).
During my apprenticeship, I totally fell in love with the flameware clay body and enjoyed learning about shape, volume, materials, as well as finding my voice. My intention is to evolve these seeds and make them final products. These shapes are the physical form of all the experiences at Whidbey Island that will forever remain with me and I’ll bring them to my studio practice.
I have figured out for myself that the artistic creations I continue to develop come from my daily experiences, and the same may happen to any creative person. One of my favorite authors, Elizabeth Gilbert talks about how we all are creative beings.
I want this space on the website to be a place where I
share and register the experience of creating pots and this experience may originate in memory, functionality or even recreating a shape that has been created millions of times but not with my hands or my interpretation of it
express myself more openly about my creative process. Sharing more on social media through writing, videos, etc and in other words expose myself on the arena as I am more of an introvert and publishing doesn't flow naturally for me. The numerous newsletters and books I’ve read from so many inspiring women have made me wonder why I haven’t started sharing yet. Now is as good as any time to start sharing.
About the pots
The shapes and functionality come from experimenting with Ravneet, my husband, with new recipes and ingredients. We come from two different culinary worlds. My Colombian roots deliver mild flavors, whereas his Indian roots bring a variety of spices and boldness, and this mix has helped me see cooking and serving food with a new perspective. Our kitchen exchange has inspired me to think about dinnerware and pots to accentuate the amazing colors and ingredients Indian and Asian cooking use, whereas tradition for certain Colombian recipes I grew up with.
The chocolate pot - Every morning my mom would serve hot chocolate for energy and to avoid me from becoming a coffee drinker from childhood. This has remained as one of the most vivid childhood memories from my home. Hot chocolate represents warmth, family memories and sweetness in life that I’ve tried to bring in this pot. The idea is to use a single pot to prepare hot chocolate and bring it to the table to serve and share the warmth and sweetness.
The Roti Pot - Roti(chapati) is a native flatbread from India that many may have eaten in Indian restaurants. In our home, roti is an important part of our diet. My husband grew up eating rotis, and as part of my curiosity and desire to cook for us, he taught me how to make roti from scratch and while learning, the idea of making a pot to cook rotis came to my mind and this is the first prototype, which is going through improvements as it’s being tested at our friends and family’s homes.
For my Colombian side, this same roti pot can be used for cooking arepas, which in a way are the Colombian equivalent of rotis.
The pots from the slide show were fired by Robbie in her Soda Kiln(atmosphere firing). I assisted Robbie in three firings and helped with loading, unloading, adding the soda and monitoring throughout the firing. It is a mastery and art to work with atmosphere firing and Robbie has done it for about thirty years. I feel honored to have been part of such firings while working with Robbie and this opportunity is the beginning of my journey with atmosphere firing. I don't know when I'll assist the next one as I will fire most of my pots in an electric kiln for now.
Stoneware mugs and bowls - Even though when I started the apprenticeship, I had been throwing for about four years, but my throwing and visual skills needed to be improved in terms of shape, intention and voice. I was missing out on how much information these shapes can express in terms of my voice as a potter.
From the slideshow (https://aleclaylab.com/stories-and-pots) there are two pieces of work that awaken my relationship with hand building. When I started connecting with ceramics six years back, I only wanted to throw and I was not connected with hand building. During the apprenticeship my body started connecting and wanting to experiment with hand building. Hand building is involved in making flameware pots, and that opened a new path.
Maryon Attwood, my other teacher (Co-founder of CoC) creates amazing Spirit Houses and has recently started a workshop, which I had the opportunity to participate in. From this special time with Maryon, this spirit home and box were the outcomes as through such handbuilding, I found a completely different way to have a mindful and free connection with clay.
Thank you for reading and being interested in my path. I would love to know your thoughts about the flameware pots - I can be reached at: