I’d have to double check this difference between pottery and ceramics, but if you hold in your mind that image of a mug or a plate shaped from clay, fired in an oven, and glazed and fired again, our idea meets in contemplation of this crafted thing, although craft seems to diminish its importance? Craft. There's another word. Associated with art, it is child's play. With writing, it is a life-long pursuit. Pottery-makers have their own designation too, they are potters. They manipulate their pieces in multi-step processes, making something useful out of a fragile material. Paul in a letter to the Corinthians wrote: “We have this treasure in earthen vessels…”

Pottery, like so many hand-crafted items, represents a disconnect between value and price... It is made of base material, requires the use of a specialized high-temperature oven, and for all that, can break just as consistently as glass. Its production requires skill and artistry. I'll have arrived one day when my kitchen cabinets display a complete set of dining ware sourced from local or next to local potters. The local scene abounds in talent. Uppercase is producing an encyclopedia of ceramics!