Michael Smith's porcelain and stoneware pottery are clean-lined and functional with design hints from the Arts & Crafts era and free-form glass shapes.
Working with six glaze colors, including one called "Blair's Green", Michael creates multiple shapes like his Light Reitz Green "Chihuly Bowl Set" with undulating edges,deep red coffee mugs with faceted bodies or his signature "arched" series of serving bowls and casseroles. Wheel thrown, altered and decorated, the high fire pieces are dishwasher, microwave and oven safe. Glazes are food safe and lead free.
"For the past forty years, I have worked as a potter,
producing a diverse line of functional stoneware and porcelain.
I started with a four-year apprenticeship, the traditional method for learning the potter’s art.
In that setting, I learned basic technique, discipline, endurance
and the skills for making a living as a potter.
Function is the starting point and context for my work.
My best work is completed through the act of its use.
When I am throwing, marking or altering pots, the process becomes like a dance.
Listening to the music of the wheel, creating and interacting with the rhythms,
dancing on the edge of collapse.
When the last mark is made and the wheel stops, the pot,
like a photograph, captures the dancer in motion.
I strive to keep the movement alive in my work -
allowing it to evolve as I participate in its creation,
never losing the delight in creating pots that bring pleasure to everyday experience."
