Sixth edition of Auroville International Potters’ Market to be held next week

The event, scheduled from January 26 to 28, about 40 national and international ceramic artists from different States in India and abroad

The sixth edition of the Auroville International Potters’ Market happening next week at the Visitor Centre will build on the renaissance that has swept through pottery art.

The event, scheduled from January 26 to 28, is expected to attract about 40 national and international ceramic artists from different States in India and abroad, who will join the artists of Auroville for an exhibition of their work.

As one of the oldest crafts, pottery has been acknowledged by archaeologists as a cornerstone of many ancient cultures. The art blossomed in the ancient Egyptian and Greek worlds, in India’s sacred idols, in Chinese and Japanese fine arts and the Italian Renaissance.

The variety of exhibits on show, ranging from functional tableware to new age collectors’ pieces, will serve to underscore the renaissance that pottery is undergoing as an artistic medium, especially its emergence as a contemporary art where material, craft, earth, science and chemistry meet the creative impulse, according to Auroville Art Service.

Since its inception in 2015 by the iconic Auroville potter Ange Peter, the International Potter’s Market has been among the flagship events in the universal township. Returning after the COVID-19 pandemic-induced gap, the sixth edition of the biennial event will carry forward the tradition of bringing together artists deeply passionate about sharing their creativity and building networks.

The event took inspiration from the pioneering work in the field by Ray Meeker and Deborah Smith who founded the Golden Bridge Pottery in the mid-1970s. The unit has cradled many of the best known ceramic artists not only from Auroville and Puducherry, but from all over India. The duo mentored and deepened the knowledge of aspirants until they could realise their independent artistic expression. “In fact, the renaissance initiated by pioneering artists a couple of decades ago has led to a generation of potters coming into their own and become more confident in an artistic sense,” a spokesperson for AV Art Service said.