Pottery is Regaining Popularity Worldwide Confirms Globally Recognized Ceramic Artist Nathaniel Mell

Inconsistent trends in the world keep areas of popularity forever changing. When the pandemic resulted in a global impact and social distancing was at its peak, pottery’s popularity soared as more people turned to perfect a new craft during stay-at-home orders. Though, pottery was already recapturing the public’s eye even before COVID-19 began. So what changed?

According to Nathaniel Mell, ceramic artist and CEO of Felt and Fat, the growth of pottery’s popularity is due to more people turning to it as an antidote from this digital age. The act of working with pottery forces technology users to put computers and phones aside, especially since clay-covered hands do not work well on a touch-screen.

A Slow, Conscious Craft

Pottery is a slow, mindful craft because it requires patience, steadiness, and concentration. One little slip and an artist can go from almost completing a piece to completely starting from the beginning. Ceramics has a long list of techniques that can be acquired through the craft’s learning process, making its medium considered highly versatile. While working with clay, some of the multitudes of methods include pinching pots, pressing molds, hand-sculpting pots, coiling clay, and slab pots.

Congruent with the mindset of Nathaniel Mell, ceramics is a healthy way to practice balancing the head and the heart. However, the balance between hand and heart can be challenging to practice. With distractions all around, the process itself is considered by many to be meditative. Though the pandemic significantly contributed to pottery regaining popularity, the trend started before social distancing and stay-at-home orders.

Pottery Before the Pandemic

As more people discovered the reviving energy ceramics could result in, the hobby was re-emerging its popularity vastly in Los Angeles. Businesses referred to as “pottery gyms” were making an appearance. In the term “pottery gym,” the word “gym” stands for the idea that a ceramics studio can be open to the public to use through a membership model. This membership mindset allows artists of any level to pay a monthly fee for access to at-cost priced materials and technicians to assist in exacting the glazing and firing process.

The Irony Behind the Trend

“The funny thing about pottery regaining global popularity is that so many are looking at the craft as an escape from the digital world, while social media is the one fueling the trend,” said Mell.

Though ceramics forces people to put down technology to participate in the craft, it does not stop newfound artists from the temptation to post what they have created once the clay is washed off their hands. Technology platforms such as social media have added to ceramics regaining popularity through businesses marketing “how-to” videos and products along with consumers posting their artistic talents and progress.

In the words of Nathaniel Mell, though it seems that people are using ceramics to run from the digital age, people can partially thank technology for bringing pottery back into their lives.

About Nathaniel Mell

Nathaniel Mell is the founder and CEO of Felt and Fat, a ceramic design and manufacturing studio serving both professional and at-home chefs. Mell started the Philadelphia-based company in 2014 after graduating from the Tyler School of Art at Temple University and working at the world-renowned Philadelphia Clay Studio. Today, Felt and Fat has a track record of working with over 100 restaurants worldwide, producing more than 30,000 pieces annually.