Why is Handmade Ceramics so expensive?
And why you should buy it anyway!
Every potter and ceramicist I know has been frustrated by people asking them why their pieces are so expensive. I assume they meant expensive compared to a dish you can buy at the supermarket that was replicated a million time in a Chinese factory. The short answer is “because it takes a lot longer to make and it is unique”. But let’s break it down:
Making handmade ceramics takes several different steps. To make a mug for example, you need to buy the clay, wedge it, throw it on the wheel (or build it if you’re handbuilding), let it dry slowly while checking regularly so you don’t miss the perfect time to trim, trim it, potentially carve it and decorate it (which can take hours depending on what you are doing), add handles if needed, bisque it (first firing), glaze it and fire it again(final firing) before it’s completely done.
Centering
Opening
Pulling the walls up
Some techniques, like colored clay and Nerikomi, add a few time-consuming steps and make the material more expensive. Some types of firing, like wood firing, take a lot of effort, collaboration and energy.
Some pieces will crack or break at each step of the process, so if you start by making four mugs for example you might end with one or two that you can sell at full price. Sometimes you get lucky. Other times you lose an entire batch because of a malfunctioning kiln for example. And you cannot get back the time you spend on your lost pieces.
Last but not least, it takes a while to master ceramics. Experience is important. Plenty of things can go wrong, so even experienced potters have bad days, but they are just better at what they’re doing. When you hire a surgeon, you want him to have studied surgery for a long time and have lots of experience. You are willing to pay a premium for that experience. For some reason- because their life is not on the line?- people are not always willing to consider a potter’s experience worth paying for.
A potter who was asked another version of the “why is this mug so expensive?” which is “how long did it take you to make this mug? ” replied “it took me 15 years", because that’s how long it took to design the perfect process to make the perfect mug.
Mirror frame that broke during the drying process. A golden rule in ceramics: don’t get attached to your pieces until they’re gone through the last firing. And even then, they can fall or get broken during shipping.
Pottery is a slow skill. It’s maddening and awesome at the same time, because you’re always improving and there is no end in sight. You can always get better, and some days you’ll feel like a total beginner. It’s a very humbling craft.
Shaping
Shaping
Wired off and ready to dry
In conclusion, you can buy factory-made mugs for a tenth of the price of a handmade mug (or plate, or bowl…), so you don’t have to buy handmade ceramics. The reason people are buying them anyway is because they have a soul. They’re unique and beautiful. This is important when you’re interacting with an object every single day. Some are basically art pieces you get to take home and they’re useful too! A bargain!