Ceramics?
A couple of things came to mind:
1. Cheesy movie scene--two people at the pottery wheel, feeling up wet clay.
2. Ceramic hair straighteners.
3. Creepy doll faces. (they're porcelain, I know)
I mean, what does one do with ceramics? Put them in glass-fronted cabinents? No, I think that's crystal, or china, or something. Make heavy stews in them? No, that's cast-iron.
Anyway, you get the point. I'm always game for a trip, but I wasn't expecting much on this one.
I mean, how can you expect something like this?
Yeah, that's a mosaic of tiny ceramic fragments. It is on the side of a building, on the street, partially covered up by some cheap purses hanging on a vendor's rack.
How about this scene? These buildings are nothing special--they house dimly lit little restaurants or clothing stores where the shirts come in plastic bags.
The crazy thing is, we seemed to be the only ones that noticed the mosaics. It would be safe to say we were the only tourists in the entire city, and we were getting more looks than the art that was on the walls, around the plants, on the ground.
Sometimes there are just fragments, sometimes there are complete dishes--one building had dozens of little bowls affixed to the front, bottoms-out. And I've been using them for cereal all these years. Psh.
So we stepped into a shop (which are surprisingly scarce) to buy a few pieces. The proprietor was a little cold at first, but as our selections stacked up on his table (this stuff costs cents, you guys) he got a little more enthusiastic. He even let us peek through the side door.
After they hand-cast these pieces, a few ladies sitting in a dim, bluish room paint each piece with different patterns. And sure, they make mistakes. Maybe they drop a piece of pottery every now in then. But instead of throwing away their scraps, they use them, the way a baker might use stale bread to make bread pudding.
That's the floor of the shop.I don't think I have to say this, but I'm going to anyway:
I'm a believer.
No comments:
Post a Comment