Handmade in Egypt
Fayoum hand-painted ceramic cup · Palm frond
Hand-painted Egyptian ceramic cup made by artisan Mahmoud Yousef in Tunis, Fayoum. Wheel-thrown using Nile Valley clay, this cup is decorated with delicate palm frond motifs in confident, flowing strokes of sage green and navy. Small enough to hold in one hand and fully glazed, this cup is ideal for coffee or tea.
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The Craft. Made from clay sourced from the Nile Valley, each piece is wheel-thrown and left to dry for twelve hours before two kinds of slip – one of ball clay (rumaadi) and one of kaolin (tashiika) – are applied. Figurative motifs inspired by the rural life in the Fayoum oasis are the sketched with outlines incised through the slip and colours added by brush. A clear glaze is applied over the entire surface before the pieces are fired in the kiln (furn), where precise control of temperature, air circulation and smoke over several hours ensure that form, colour and glaze are sealed in a single pass through the kiln.
The Heritage. The roots of pottery-making in the verdant oasis of Fayoum go far back in history, some saying to pharaonic times, some further back still, as certain techniques that do not involve the use of a wheel are still practiced there today (such as in al-Nazla village). Other villages in the oasis, such as Tunis, have turned to pottery-making in more recent times. The craft has flourished in Tunis since the Swiss-born potter Evelyne Porret made the village her home and opened, together with her husband Michel Pastore, a Pottery School there in the 90s, to provide the village children with the skills needed for their innate artistic talents to emerge and bear fruit. Today, those students have opened their own workshops, exhibiting true artistic talent and reverence for their mentor whilst keeping the ancient craft alive.
The Maker. Mahmoud Yousef is a master potter who eagerly joined the Fayoum Pottery School at age ten. His love of clay began even earlier while playing on his family's farm, using clay to model the rich wildlife of the oasis. Mahmoud continues to work with clay today in his own workshop, as stylised animal and vegetal motifs, particularly the jolly donkey, keep springing out from his steady hand.
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