In the world of pottery, the journey from clay to craft is a collaborative process where tradition meets innovation. "From Clay to Craft: Elevating Pottery Awareness" delves into how artisans, deeply rooted in age-old techniques, depend on modern designers to bring specific designs and products to life. The artisans’ expertise in shaping and moulding clay is complemented by the designers' vision, who create the moulds that guide the creation of each piece. This partnership is essential in producing unique and functional pottery that resonates with contemporary tastes while preserving cultural heritage. By highlighting this collaboration, the article aims to raise awareness about the delicate balance between creativity and craftsmanship, and the vital roles each plays in sustaining the pottery industry today.
Finished Products — Black Clay Pottery
Bridging Rural Communities and Industries
It all started with rural communities, which are rich in traditional crafts and artisanal skills but often remain disconnected from larger industries capable of bringing their products to a broader market. To address this gap, government institutes like NIFT, NID, and IICD have incorporated craft documentation into their curriculum, sending students to rural areas to learn and document these crafts. This early exposure helps inspire future designers to collaborate with these communities, ensuring that the unique skills and traditions are not only preserved but also adapted to contemporary markets. The connection between rural artisans and the industrial sector is crucial for sustaining traditional crafts and integrating them into modern consumer markets.
Tyrshang Lurshai Pottery Centre
The Vital Designer-Artisan Relationship
The collaboration between designers and artisans is crucial for the evolution and success of traditional crafts. Designers bring contemporary insights, technical expertise, and innovative design ideas that enhance the marketability of artisanal products. This partnership allows artisans to integrate modern aesthetics and functionality into their traditional crafts, making them more appealing to a global audience. Designers help artisans refine their techniques, improve product quality, and create new designs that align with current trends while respecting traditional methods. This symbiotic relationship is essential for keeping traditional crafts relevant in a rapidly changing market.
The Female Artisans — Tyrshang
Rida Gatphoh (centre) with the Artisans
Challenges and Opportunities in Collaboration
While the designer-artisan relationship is beneficial, it comes with its own set of challenges. Differences in expectations, communication barriers, and varying levels of resources can complicate the collaboration. Designers must navigate these challenges to effectively work with artisans, ensuring that their contributions are both practical and respectful of traditional practices. Despite these difficulties, overcoming them presents opportunities for growth and transformation.
Communication between Rida Gatphoh and the Workers
The Shift Towards Factory Production
In today’s market, not all organizations rely on artisans for their products. Some prefer factory-made items, which can be produced more quickly and cheaply using machines and chemicals. These factory products often lack the organic and handcrafted quality that traditional artisans offer. However, for organizations committed to working with natural materials and preserving traditional skills, collaboration with artisans is indispensable. These organizations recognize that the authenticity and cultural value of handcrafted items cannot be replicated by machines. Artisans, in turn, need designers because they often lack access to broader markets and the ability to adapt their products to modern consumer preferences.
Mething Shylla - One of the Artisans at Tyrshang An Artisan working
Artisans double checking with Blemishes on the Products Marking Blemishes with Chalk
Lady reading the Instructions about the Design The Process of Polishing
Case Study: Tyrshang and Dakti Crafts
The Tyrshang community provides a practical example of the necessity for artisan-designer collaboration. Local artisans sell products like the “weiñ” a traditional tool used to make Khasi food such as “putharo,” in local markets. They have come to realize that partnering with designers is essential for expanding their market reach and improving their marketing strategies. Similarly, at Dakti Crafts, the designs are owned by the company’s designers, and the products, such as customized pots, are crafted based on these designs. This case illustrates how deeply artisans depend on designers, not only for product innovation but also for accessing and succeeding in the broader market.
The Crafted Pots
The Source of Black Clay and the Crafting Process
The pottery-making process begins with the sourcing of high-quality clay, which is essential for the durability and aesthetics of the final product. Artisans from Dakti Crafts source their clay from Sung Valley, a region known for its rich deposits of black clay.
Black Clay after the Cleaning Process
This clay is hand-harvested from the earth by the artisans themselves or local suppliers, ensuring that they maintain control over the quality of the raw material. Once the clay is collected, it undergoes a meticulous cleaning process to remove impurities, such as stones and organic matter, that could affect the texture or structure of the finished product. After the clay is prepared, the artisans rely on the designs provided by Dakti Crafts designers, which guide them in shaping and moulding the clay into functional and artistic forms. This reliance on designers for moulds and patterns is a crucial part of the process, as it ensures consistency, creativity, and market appeal in the final products. The collaboration between artisans and designers results in unique pieces that combine traditional craftsmanship with contemporary design.
Storage of Black Clay
Moulds and it's Function with Pottery
The Role of Moulds
At Dakti Crafts, the creation of pottery moulds is a highly detailed process that relies on the use of plaster of Paris (POP) and wood. The designers at Dakti Crafts are responsible for developing the specific designs, which are then used to create moulds without direct collaboration from the artisans. The process begins with a wooden model, carefully sculpted to match the exact design envisioned by the designers. This model serves as the basis for the moulds.
Once the wooden model is finalized, plaster of Paris is used to create a durable mould. POP is ideal because of its ability to capture intricate details while hardening into a sturdy form, which can be used repeatedly to produce consistent pottery shapes. The artisans then use these POP moulds to form the clay into the required shapes, following the specifications laid out by the designers. This mould-making process ensures that each piece of pottery meets the intended design and functional requirements, maintaining consistency and precision across the collection.
The Process of Mould Making and it's Role
Conclusion
The intricate collaboration between artisans and designers at Dakti Crafts reflects the balance between tradition and modernity in pottery-making. While the artisans bring generations of skill in shaping and working with clay, they rely on the precise designs and moulds provided by Dakti’s designers to meet contemporary market demands. From sourcing clay in Sung Valley to crafting moulds from plaster of Paris and wood, each step in the process is vital in producing distinctive, high-quality pottery. Though artisans and designers work separately in some aspects, the synergy between their roles is what enables Dakti Crafts to create products that are both rooted in cultural heritage and aligned with modern aesthetics. This partnership not only sustains the artisans' livelihoods but also ensures that traditional pottery-making continues to thrive in today's globalized market.
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