What Are Ceramics?

What is the difference between studio ceramics and contemporary ceramics?

• Answer:

  Studio ceramics is a small operation run by one or at the most a few people, they are more prone to making one-of-a-kind items like a painter and his/her canvas. The contemporary, I assume you mean the mass produced or the factory setting. They receive designs set down by corporate, and yes the designs change all the time but, thousands are made and less valuable. In my opinion the free spirit of imagination flies higher than the corporate jet of contemporary ceramics. I agree with your opinion about studio ceramics. However, I work for a company called Country Love Ceramics in the UK and we tend to supply to "contemporary" ceramic studios. Typically, this is "paint your own pottery" businesses. Our customers buy bisque (pottery blanks) from us and then they sell the blanks for decorating in their studios or home-based businesses. The end result is an individual, uniquely painted item with sentimental value. For example, one of the most popular activities is painting a plate or mug with a child's/baby's footprints or handprints - it's such a lovely keepsake. I guess the biggest difference is that, unlike a traditional pottery studio, our customers do not make the pieces from clay themselves.