The pottery that sold online at my 10% off sale several weeks ago went on its way when the sale ended. Thank you to those of you who came by or bought online!
Those who came to the gallery itself over three days (-this is as low-pressure as it gets, short of browsing my website for handmade work while you are in jammies-) bought goblets, bowls, washing cups and serving dishes. Decorative pottery, which is functional but also more whimsical and one of a kind, and also more expensive, did not sell quite as much. It does take a particular sort of buyer to have confidence in that, though. I can live with these for longer than for mugs, say, which I expect to sell sooner.
Pottery may not be basic to life like eggs or veggies, but it is life-enhancing. When you use an individual, handmade object in everyday life and in celebration of events, an element of warmth is added to the moment. Gift-giving opportunities come up sometimes, and it is lovely to give a quality handmade gift, signed by the maker. It is not far-fetched at all now and then to buy something beautiful that has been hand made, even if it may cost a bit more than something mass produced. Treat yourself! With some care (or left in the right archaeological site for millennia!) pottery will outlast generations of humans.
The thing about using pottery or enjoying and appreciating other art and handicraft, once you have purchased it, is that it adds a human element to our world, this world that is increasingly plugged into digital data and machinery, and decreasingly touched by the creative work of human hands. Some ancient pots still bear the fingerprints of the maker in the fired clay, as fresh and evident of human endeavor as when those loops and whorls lived on two creative hands and made functional art.
I find that many people feel uninformed and tentative in the face of an art form they don't know much about, particularly one that, like pottery, is art that also serves a day to day function. They seem to doubt themselves when it comes to spending the little bit more that American handicraft needs to command.
The moral of the story? You, the consumer of handmade goods, should feel free to deliberate a little, then if it still feels right, buy the thing you fall in 'deepest like' with. Odds are you won't regret it.