Pottery And Food

[Carolyn Dorr]

From: Chris Campbell

 

Like many of you, I have become a fan of the cooking channels on television. It could be that I just love to watch other people work, or perhaps I’m just a “Foodie†at heart.

 

One of my favorite shows is ‘Molto Mario’ with Mario Batali. Not only does he cook up some great tasting Italian food, he also serves it on beautiful pottery. His various platters, bowls and dishes are uniquely shaped and decorated. His preparation does not stop at the stove, but carries through to the table. Often his choice is unexpected but wonderful. This potter waits with anticipation to see what kind of serving dish the meal will be presented in.

 

I know most of you use pottery mugs and dinnerware, but how many of you use your beautiful large platters and bowls at parties and mealtimes? Do they sit on display or are you enjoying their essential function?

 

What better way to spread the word about the joys of owning real pottery than to load them with food to share with friends and family? If you do this often enough with a variety of people, eventually they will see that having a selection of well executed, human made pots could be a good thing.

 

Potters Council is considering a conference crafted around food and pottery. We might need a larger venue however since this could be quite a popular event. It seems like such a natural combination … why didn’t we think of this sooner?

 

What a great idea for another calendar … Food on Pottery!

 

The next time you serve up something wonderful on pottery, take a photo and post it on the Potters Council Forum. We’d all love to see what you’ve created and get a variety of ideas on how to use our own pottery more often.<br style=""> <br style="">

[Guest JBaymore]

Chris and Carolyn,

 

When I am in Japan, I find that magazines and books about handmade pottery frequently show the work of a particular artist in a food presentation setting. It is a VERY common thing there to think in this manner. We are way behind in that regard.

 

The regular TV series "Yakimono Tombo" (Pottery Path) that shows there on Japanese national TV almost always includes a section where the host and the artist sit down and discuss the work over a meal served on/in the artist's work. The food becomes an integral part of the active on-screen discussion about the nature of the work.

 

So many clayworkers in the West have been running so fast to distance claywork from the seemigly evil word "craft" (god forbid!)........ even if people make plates and platters and bowls and such....... we carefully present them on nice white pedestals with high intensity spotlights. The trappings of "art" in the West. Japan does not make the same distinction that if it can hold a meal... it is not art.

 

We have much to learn.

 

Focusing on this idea is great. However let's not segregate it to some sort of side-grouping from all other claywork. Keeping it separate tends to place the idea in a "box". We strongly need to break down those absurd Western walls of "craft" / "Fine Craft" / and "Art".

 

As CM looks at publishing profiles and articles, and as ACERS looks at producing new books....... maybe it needs to be a serious editorial consideration.

 

best,

 

..............john

[Chris Campbell]

I agree 100% John ... I want to see pottery articles in mainstream magazines ... cooking, decorating, gardening ...

Doing this will spread the appeal of everyones pots and help with sales everywhere.

We have to get into peoples minds so they begin to want real pots in their daily lives

[Marcia Selsor]

I am doing a series of large serving trays that would work for Ethiopian meals. ..actually inspired by the idea.

Mario Batali has a book on Spain which I have as I am a big fan of Spanish food. My husband and I are avid cooks of Italian and Spanish foods.

Sounds like fun!

Marcia

[Seasoned Warrior]

I too am a great fan of Mario Batali and enjoy shows with him. His family's restaurant in Seattle (Salumi) is fantastic with one of the greatest charcuteries outside of Italy in my opinion. Ethiopian food is not exactly at the top of my list of favorite but maybe it should be (I've never met a fat Ethiopian and I could certainly stand to lose a few pounds, may be more like several kilos). I have a favorite Ethiopian restaurant in Los Angeles near the Museum of Natural History and I can certainly see that a large platter would be a very nice accessory to have if one were inclined to cook in the Ethiopian style. Actually, Marcia, do you have a good recipe for nan, I'd like to try making it? I've always said that if I had to be restricted to only one cuisine for the rest of my life it would be either Chinese or Mexican. Mexican pottery I find complements the food extremely well from the cazuelas to the casos and all the other clay dishes. I do enjoy pairing the foods with the indigenous accoutrement's. Maybe we could start a whole new trend: first there was wine pairings, then beer pairings how about pottery pairings to enhance the pleasure of a well-cooked ethnic meal???

 

Best regards,

Charles

[Marcia Selsor]

I love Nan. I took an overnight train from Tashkent to Bukhara where at 6 am. my friend's mother was cooking stacks of Nan in a 5 foot beehive shaped pot with a fire in it. She slapped the 'tortillas' on the walls of the pot and removed them as they cooked to the proper temperature.In the house there was a huge central courtyard with a library upstairs where male guests slept. The women and children slept on a large kitchen table. I slept on the floor in a huge reception room. The Nan was delicious.

Marcia

[maryO]

From: Chris Campbell

 

Like many of you, I have become a fan of the cooking channels on television. It could be that I just love to watch other people work, or perhaps I’m just a “Foodie†at heart.

 

One of my favorite shows is ‘Molto Mario’ with Mario Batali. Not only does he cook up some great tasting Italian food, he also serves it on beautiful pottery. His various platters, bowls and dishes are uniquely shaped and decorated. His preparation does not stop at the stove, but carries through to the table. Often his choice is unexpected but wonderful. This potter waits with anticipation to see what kind of serving dish the meal will be presented in.

 

I know most of you use pottery mugs and dinnerware, but how many of you use your beautiful large platters and bowls at parties and mealtimes? Do they sit on display or are you enjoying their essential function?

 

What better way to spread the word about the joys of owning real pottery than to load them with food to share with friends and family? If you do this often enough with a variety of people, eventually they will see that having a selection of well executed, human made pots could be a good thing.

 

Potters Council is considering a conference crafted around food and pottery. We might need a larger venue however since this could be quite a popular event. It seems like such a natural combination … why didn’t we think of this sooner?

 

What a great idea for another calendar … Food on Pottery!

 

The next time you serve up something wonderful on pottery, take a photo and post it on the Potters Council Forum. We’d all love to see what you’ve created and get a variety of ideas on how to use our own pottery more often.<br style=""> <br style="">

 

[maryO]

Chris, you bring up a very interesting idea. Most potters I know also love to cook. There are many stoneware clay bodies out there that will work great as ovenware & clays designate as ovenware. I use an absolutely beautiful round dish that was made by Ellen Shankin for giant pies, lasagna, casseroles, it's my favorite go to when "entertaining". I love to serve up my food on my own handmade dishes - we eat off dinner plates that I handbuilt over 15 years ago. My salad bowl was made here by a local potter - Earl Heinz - I use this every single night. I would love to see a workshop built around making & serving in handmade pots. We all have so many questions - will it be ovenproof to what temp? microwaveable? can I make my own pizza stone? I envision a wonderful book - step by step pots & favorite recipes - at the very least! Perhaps Randy Brodnax can bake us biscuits in a kiln - best I ever ate!

 

 

[Mara Orsi Cammi]

Hello,

I agree with you all, we tend to separate art from craft, we look at and enjoy art, and that's it, it is not common ( even if most of us do so) to serve our meal in handmade plates or trays.

Our everyday life deserve beauty, just because is every day that we need to surround us of things that gives us pleasure, to look at, to touch or to taste.

Often, people that are cooking or entertaining on regular bases, use plates that are not handmade, or they do not care about. It is a challenge to present what you have cooked in a way that the food and the plate enhance each other qualities, be that the most sophisticated dish or a raw apple.

I can't be more open to start proposing way to connect our every day life with beauty.

 

Have a good day

Mara Cammi Orsi

 

an italian in Chile

 

http://www.maraorsiceramic.com

[Dimmie]

From: Chris Campbell

 

Like many of you, I have become a fan of the cooking channels on television. It could be that I just love to watch other people work, or perhaps I’m just a “Foodie†at heart.

 

One of my favorite shows is ‘Molto Mario’ with Mario Batali. Not only does he cook up some great tasting Italian food, he also serves it on beautiful pottery. His various platters, bowls and dishes are uniquely shaped and decorated. His preparation does not stop at the stove, but carries through to the table. Often his choice is unexpected but wonderful. This potter waits with anticipation to see what kind of serving dish the meal will be presented in.

 

I know most of you use pottery mugs and dinnerware, but how many of you use your beautiful large platters and bowls at parties and mealtimes? Do they sit on display or are you enjoying their essential function?

 

What better way to spread the word about the joys of owning real pottery than to load them with food to share with friends and family? If you do this often enough with a variety of people, eventually they will see that having a selection of well executed, human made pots could be a good thing.

 

Potters Council is considering a conference crafted around food and pottery. We might need a larger venue however since this could be quite a popular event. It seems like such a natural combination … why didn’t we think of this sooner?

 

What a great idea for another calendar … Food on Pottery!

 

The next time you serve up something wonderful on pottery, take a photo and post it on the Potters Council Forum. We’d all love to see what you’ve created and get a variety of ideas on how to use our own pottery more often.<br style=""> <br style="">

 

 

 

From: Dimmie

I have done a workshop with Sylvie Granatelli that ws focused on food and pottery. She would be a great addition to this conversation!

[KrisK]

Chris, you bring up a very interesting idea. Most potters I know also love to cook. There are many stoneware clay bodies out there that will work great as ovenware & clays designate as ovenware. I use an absolutely beautiful round dish that was made by Ellen Shankin for giant pies, lasagna, casseroles, it's my favorite go to when "entertaining". I love to serve up my food on my own handmade dishes - we eat off dinner plates that I handbuilt over 15 years ago. My salad bowl was made here by a local potter - Earl Heinz - I use this every single night. I would love to see a workshop built around making & serving in handmade pots. We all have so many questions - will it be ovenproof to what temp? microwaveable? can I make my own pizza stone? I envision a wonderful book - step by step pots & favorite recipes - at the very least! Perhaps Randy Brodnax can bake us biscuits in a kiln - best I ever ate!

 

 

 

 

I tried to research online some of those questions and never really got great answers... making a pizza stone, ovenproof ?? The feel of personally made serving and bakeware pieces enhances the enjoyment of both the preparation and the eating of the food. I am so enjoying my exploration and growth in pottery.

 

Kris

[GJPagano]

I've been studying the Japanese way of tea in all it's aspects including Cha-Kaiseki, the meal served with a formal tea. What really drew me to this course of study (as a one time chef and a would be potter), is the attention paid to choosing the right ceramics that will enhance the food item as well as the seasonality of the dish.

 

There are a couple of magazines that I purchase at a Japanese book store (unfortunately in Japanese only) that illustrate the visual and emotional connection bewteween food and pottery. I'll post the names once I get home. What I like about this, is that it's not limited to just Japanese traditional foods and pottery. The same aesthetics can be applied to any food and pottery. It's all about juxtapostion, color, texture, season...everything to create a visual harmony that creates a moment when food meets pottery on the table. Very cool stuff.

[kilndoc]

OK, time for me to NECRO this thread and to chime in with my 2 cents.

 

One of my favorite moments in clay came at a reception for the Cone Box Show Jurors a few years ago. There we were, eating food off of some of the most fabulous ceramic pieces I had ever seen. Not run-of-the-mill, everyday pieces; some of them could stand as show pieces. When I asked our host why she was using THOSE pieces she said, "The artist intended them to be functional, didn't they?".

 

Another favorite quote that I'm fond of is "If pottery didn't break, potters wouldn't have a job". Functional work is intended to be USED. We spend so much of our time making every piece precious that we loose touch with some of the real value of our art. Not to completely romanticize things, but I believe part of the intrinsic nature of ceramic art is the process by which we begin with the most basic of materials (ground rock) and turn it into something that has staggering complexity of value. Ceramic art can be beautiful, informative, reflective, and all those other descriptors that are important to art historians and collectors. Yet its value can go further in that ceramic art can also be functional, and that it is relatively permanent (much of the historical record of ancient times comes from functional pottery shards).

 

For those reasons, I agree 100% with you Carolyn. Bring on that conference...I'll be there. In the meantime, lets take the call for submissions one step further. Local pottery clubs, groups, or guilds usually have group activities. Propose to YOUR group that your next gathering should be a pot-luck, where food is served on pottery that YOU must also make and bring along with the food. Take pictures and submit them to the forum as Carolyn suggested (and send the recipes as well )

 

 

As far as the calendar....or an online digital show (shows like an ad at the top of the forum page; new one each day depending on number of submissions). "Putting the function back into functional pottery". Submission photos must show work that is IN USE, and must also include the recipe for the food or drink that is being used".

 

Comments?

 

 

 

[Carolyn Dorr]

Sounds like a fabulous idea... at your next group/guild/class meeting... do a potluck and require that it be on pottery and bring the recipe... And of course we all want to see pictures and recipes...

 

I am working hard to put a conference together for 2012 with this theme.

[Guest JBaymore]

I am working hard to put a conference together for 2012 with this theme.

 

EXCELLENT! There is a great need for this. Hopefully there will also be a great interest in this.

 

And Carolyn, how about the annual potter's calendars have a specific edition added to the mix that shows pots WITH food... and has the recipe included on the page?

 

best,

 

.................john

[AmeriSwede]

I am working hard to put a conference together for 2012 with this theme.

 

EXCELLENT! There is a great need for this. Hopefully there will also be a great interest in this.

 

And Carolyn, how about the annual potter's calendars have a specific edition added to the mix that shows pots WITH food... and has the recipe included on the page?

 

best,

 

.................john

 

 

 

...possibly including a recipe for the glaze and for the prepared dish.... would be wonderful!

 

 

[Guest JBaymore]

I am working hard to put a conference together for 2012 with this theme.

 

EXCELLENT! There is a great need for this. Hopefully there will also be a great interest in this.

 

And Carolyn, how about the annual potter's calendars have a specific edition added to the mix that shows pots WITH food... and has the recipe included on the page?

 

best,

 

.................john

 

 

 

...possibly including a recipe for the glaze and for the prepared dish.... would be wonderful!

 

 

 

I was meaning the food recipe....... but I guess that I can see where that wording of mine was confusing .

 

best,

 

..................john

[AmeriSwede]

I am working hard to put a conference together for 2012 with this theme.

 

EXCELLENT! There is a great need for this. Hopefully there will also be a great interest in this.

 

And Carolyn, how about the annual potter's calendars have a specific edition added to the mix that shows pots WITH food... and has the recipe included on the page?

 

best,

 

.................john

 

 

 

...possibly including a recipe for the glaze and for the prepared dish.... would be wonderful!

 

 

 

I was meaning the food recipe....... but I guess that I can see where that wording of mine was confusing .

 

best,

 

..................john

 

No confusion, John. Your idea was a great idea! I was only thinking that with the printing of the recipe of the (eatable/prepared) dish that the inclusion of the recipe for the glaze on the dish (in those cases where glazes are wonderful) would be a nice touch also. Perchance I made it appear confusing....sorry!

 

 

[Carolyn Dorr]

Wow! Totally terrific thinking... love when good minds come together... I will see if I cannot put together the following options...

 

I know from previous experience (another job) that it is extremely difficult to photograph food... So what we could do is have members submit a picture of the piece and they must include the recommended food uses and one recipe for food. And optional is glaze recipe...

[Guest JBaymore]

I know from previous experience (another job) that it is extremely difficult to photograph food... So what we could do is have members submit a picture of the piece and they must include the recommended food uses and one recipe for food. And optional is glaze recipe...

 

 

Yeah.... I've used shaving cream for "whipped cream" and other non-food items to make the stuff look good in the past. Luckily things have changed a bit, since we now have the ability to use cooler lighting sources.

 

Unfortunately, I think that leaving the food itself out might lose a lot of the "sizzle" of the idea, Carolyn. Then it just becomes another pot picture on a calendar with a (food) recipe attached.

 

If people are interested in submitting images to this idea.... they just have to KNOW that it will be harder to accomplish than just shooting pots. Hopefully they will rise to the occasion and challenge. Then either invest some time in learning by trail and error (and/or some discussion here) or hire a pro to make the shots.

 

If the word gets out in enough time, people will be able to plan for it.

 

best,

 

...................john

[WillowTreePottery]

I'm a food channel addict and my eyes are always "peeled" for the various chefs who use ceramic dishes to serve their dish, or those who have them on display in their sets.

 

I wish I were not so far away from all of you, I'd love to attend the conference. I have an idea, several years a group of us here put together a small cookbook with our favorite pots and our favorite recipes for a fundraiser. It was a huge success and contained great recipes that I still use today. Maybe one of the outcomes of the conference could be a committee that could work to put one together

for the Potter's council. The only necessity is a really good camera ,(or a friend with one.

 

Kathy

[GEP]

I've been wanting to photograph my pots with food for a while, to use in my marketing materials. This thread has motivated me to try it! So here are my first attempts. What do you think?

 

Mea

[Carolyn Dorr]

Nice pictures... For calendar use we need a solid background... made me hungry...

 

You know, we will give it a try for a calendar this year.... if we receive enough entries we will do it...

 

I will be announcing call for entries for calendars in July...

 

Thanks for sharing...

[WillowTreePottery]

Nice pictures... For calendar use we need a solid background... made me hungry...

 

You know, we will give it a try for a calendar this year.... if we receive enough entries we will do it...

 

I will be announcing call for entries for calendars in July...

 

Thanks for sharing...

 

 

I will be looking for the announcement Carolyn,

Kathy

[Guest JBaymore]

Me too.