There are few more, yes, Bero, Jiri Lang, Aleš Belin and so on. Although I agree with you on the “not on the same level”, they keep improving. Latest Pavek works are really something to look at but I don’t own any of his pieces (yet) so I can’t judge. Otherwise with Duchek and Lang I like how the beauty of their works fully reveal when you start using them. Like an additional layer unfolds in front of you. Well thought craftsmanship.Bok wrote: ↑Tue Mar 03, 2020 10:41 pmIs it really strong though? Seems to me it's those three and that's it. Not forgetting Novak's female partner Mirka Randova. Pavek to me is still a novice potter, not up to the level of Novak, still some learning and improvement to do.lUKAV28 wrote: ↑Tue Mar 03, 2020 9:07 amBut it does beat me why the Czech Republic has such a strong pottery scene. Maybe the success of Petr Novak put a spotlight on other potters like Pavek and Duchek and now even younger potters are building its names like Sklenicka. And the scene is even broader if you put woodworks by Ondrej (Samorost).
In regards to clay, I remember reading Novaks blog, where he mentioned getting the majority of his clay from Germany, where it is prepared industrially. My favourite pots and background story of his are the ones he made from clay taken from Sun Moon lake in Taiwan. That was also the occasion that I met Petr and his tea ware while he was having an exhibition in Taichung. I was surprised how small some of his pieces are, difficult to guess from his images...
As for Novak and Mirka, I am starting to appreciate their work more and more but it is really hard to get closer to it on their tea & pot club as they are sold immediately. Would love to grab a tea boat and a tea jar.
Also thank you for sharing the story. Didn’t know Petr used Taiwanese clay on some of his works. I can only imagine how would that work.