Hanatō

Hanatō is the studio of Joanna Kitchener, a Polish potter who has lived in Scotland for over a decade and works near Edinburgh. She studied Japanese language and culture in Warsaw and Kraków and spent two years living in Nara and Osaka, which shaped her approach to form. She makes both functional and sculptural pieces in stoneware, combining wheel-throwing and hand-building and mixing clay bodies to get the rough, uneven surfaces that have become her signature. Cracks, chipped edges and irregular colour are treated as part of the work rather than flaws. Her pieces are also stocked by independent galleries and shops in the UK and Scandinavia.