ErtemaiTs New York
studio, 2008, with work
in progress.
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she says, so it was im-
portant that she had the
skills of both a maker
and a designer.
The potters, all men,
made traditional items
such as yak butter tea
pitchers, vases and hot
pots for cooking. In a
local instance of recy-
cling, the white decora-
tion on some pots is
created by inlaying frag-
ments of factory-made
porcelain bowls into the
wet clay. Their pots are
pit-fired with wood and
sawdust up to 200 de-
grees Celsius.
“After observing
methods of making for
a week,” Erteman says,
“I was able to direct
them to new designs
using their traditional
techniques." Her hope
was that new designs
would “appeal to the
local Tibetan markets
and tourists.”
Among the new de-
signs were condiment
containers for chili oil
and barley powder and>
aug/sep 09 american craft 04;
