Dashi Bowl – / Ø 13,5 X H 9 Cm – Handmade Stoneware – Jars Céramistes

Each piece in the Dashi collection is entirely handmade in the Jars Céramistes workshops in Anneyron in Drôme. Since its founding by Pierre Jars in 1857, the profession of earthenware making has been passed down from generation to generation in the Jars factory: this centuries-old know-how has raised Jars to the rank of French Living Heritage Company (EPV label). Created by designer-ceramicist Pierre Cazenove, the Dashi collection displays a rustic chic look that honours the raw material, starkness and the object in all its simplicity. Dashi celebrates the art of the imperfect object, the spectacular marriage of raw earth and ash enamels. From these unique pieces emerges a poetry of material, a mix of strength and softness. These creations correspond perfectly to the emergence of the imperfect, which illustrates a marked return to respect for nature, including its bumps and rough patches. Stoneware is arguably the strongest and most natural ceramic. Unlike earthenware, terracotta clay is waterproof and non-porous, even without enamel. As a result, it keeps food hot or cold for a long time. Real treasures, the enamels are made from plant ash. Reconstructing an enamel with ashes and then standardising it is a long and difficult job. It’s at the cost of this artisanal work that the ashes give these colours and these particular materials, a unique depth of enamel. This know-how, like all the changing earthenware in this profession, enriches the magic of firing. Enamels make up an infinite palette: lively, deep, crystallised, crackled, matt or shiny tones. Dipped with a ladle, applied with a brush on an outline, or sprayed delicately by hand, the craftsman’s work is always beautiful and precise. During so-called Grand Feu firing, the enamel fuses with the stoneware. It then reveals its nuances and effects, its subtle, fascinating vagaries. Each item in the Dashi collection is unique: “neither quite the same, nor completely different”. A beautiful object that knows how to stand the test of time and last: first of all through its natural, solid material, but also and above all because it requires time and patience to take shape. Precise, subtle actions.