High on pot
July 31, 2004 | 12:00am
My love for plants started when I was little. I grew up seeing my grandparents spending much of their free time tending their huge gardens in Mandaluyong, Batangas and Baguio while my parents are ardent collectors of various ornamental plants and bonsai.
In 2001, I went on vacation in New Jersey and stayed with my friend Allan de Leon, who has a vast collection of exotic African succulents – robust, abstract, almost bizarre-looking. I was so astonished by his beautiful collection – one can only marvel at the wonders of nature! Seeing his collection made me say to myself: This is want I want to collect, and collect seriously. After getting into bonsai, ferns and bromeliads, I find cacti and succulents so weirdly wonderful.
But here in the Philippines, where do you start? Just about then, there was a boom in the cactus industry when the vegetable farmers of Benguet started bringing home some cacti and growing them in their cool climate. Now, every corner in Baguio has stalls selling cacti, mostly of the common variety. To find the rare variety, one has to travel the far, bumpy and dusty terrain of Benguet.
I later joined CSSP and met other collectors who were willing to sell their seedlings and other rare specimens. With over 200 cacti and succulents in my collection, I started looking for pots that could complement and enhance the beauty of the plants. But most of the pots available on the market were either terra-cotta, plastic or ceramic decorative vases. Then the thought hit me: Why not make them myself?
I remember sometime in the late ’80s, there was this small pottery shop in Legaspi Village facing Makati Cinema Square selling beautiful handmade pots. The shop is called Pansol Pottery and it is owned by potters John and Tessie Pettyjohn. I remember telling myself then that this is an art form that I would enjoy. Scenes from the movie Ghost flashed in my mind.
Then last year, I found that Pansol Pottery has moved to Glorietta mall and further down the corridor is a display area called Artspace. That time, there was a student exhibit of the Pettyjohn-Mendoza School of Pottery. Seeing the creative works of the students made me say to myself, "Hey, I can do that, too!" Holding and admiring the works rekindled my interest in pottery. This time, I was more serious to take up the lessons. My interest could not remain on the backburner anymore.
I and my wife Lally enrolled at the Pettyjohns’ school in Greenbelt, Makati. There, we met a small but active group of potters. I immediately rolled up my sleeves, so to speak, and got my hands dirty with clay. It was like playing with mud like a kid all over again. The feeling of throwing clay is very much like dancing – your hands, feet and eyes must keep in sync with the movement of the clay on the wheel. Since then, I spent most of my Saturdays in school, creating pots of different shapes, sizes and colors. I no longer limited my work to pots but went into household items, too! But that’s another story.
Now, my passion for pottery has been as all-consuming as my search for rare succulents! I have gone as far as Tiaong, Quezon to throw some clay at Ugu Bigyan’s place and to Sagada to make some of my pots! Now, I have hobbies that go well together (another being photography – my exhibit of black-and-white photos is ongoing until end of Aug. at Bistro 110, Palanca St., Legaspi Village).
What you see here are samples of all my hobbies, which happily complement each other. Some of the featured pieces will be on display in the student exhibit of Pettyjohn-Mendoza School of Pottery. The exhibit is slated on Aug. 27 to Sept. 8 at Artspace, Glorietta 4. If you happen to be in the mall, please do visit the exhibit. Who knows, you might also say to yourself, "Hey, I can do that, too!" Yes, you can!
For those interested in making their own handmade stoneware pottery, they may contact the following:
• Pettyjohn-Mendoza pottery school, Greenbelt Makati, 812-0766
(Adee Mendoza, 0920-8336820)
• Ugu Bigyan, Tiaong, Quezon, 0425459144 or 0425458689
• In Sagada: Lope Bosaing, 0920-7992960 or Mike Say-awen, 0918-4517435
• Pottery Exchange, Eastwood City, Libis, 687-4015
In 2001, I went on vacation in New Jersey and stayed with my friend Allan de Leon, who has a vast collection of exotic African succulents – robust, abstract, almost bizarre-looking. I was so astonished by his beautiful collection – one can only marvel at the wonders of nature! Seeing his collection made me say to myself: This is want I want to collect, and collect seriously. After getting into bonsai, ferns and bromeliads, I find cacti and succulents so weirdly wonderful.
But here in the Philippines, where do you start? Just about then, there was a boom in the cactus industry when the vegetable farmers of Benguet started bringing home some cacti and growing them in their cool climate. Now, every corner in Baguio has stalls selling cacti, mostly of the common variety. To find the rare variety, one has to travel the far, bumpy and dusty terrain of Benguet.
I later joined CSSP and met other collectors who were willing to sell their seedlings and other rare specimens. With over 200 cacti and succulents in my collection, I started looking for pots that could complement and enhance the beauty of the plants. But most of the pots available on the market were either terra-cotta, plastic or ceramic decorative vases. Then the thought hit me: Why not make them myself?
I remember sometime in the late ’80s, there was this small pottery shop in Legaspi Village facing Makati Cinema Square selling beautiful handmade pots. The shop is called Pansol Pottery and it is owned by potters John and Tessie Pettyjohn. I remember telling myself then that this is an art form that I would enjoy. Scenes from the movie Ghost flashed in my mind.
Then last year, I found that Pansol Pottery has moved to Glorietta mall and further down the corridor is a display area called Artspace. That time, there was a student exhibit of the Pettyjohn-Mendoza School of Pottery. Seeing the creative works of the students made me say to myself, "Hey, I can do that, too!" Holding and admiring the works rekindled my interest in pottery. This time, I was more serious to take up the lessons. My interest could not remain on the backburner anymore.
I and my wife Lally enrolled at the Pettyjohns’ school in Greenbelt, Makati. There, we met a small but active group of potters. I immediately rolled up my sleeves, so to speak, and got my hands dirty with clay. It was like playing with mud like a kid all over again. The feeling of throwing clay is very much like dancing – your hands, feet and eyes must keep in sync with the movement of the clay on the wheel. Since then, I spent most of my Saturdays in school, creating pots of different shapes, sizes and colors. I no longer limited my work to pots but went into household items, too! But that’s another story.
Now, my passion for pottery has been as all-consuming as my search for rare succulents! I have gone as far as Tiaong, Quezon to throw some clay at Ugu Bigyan’s place and to Sagada to make some of my pots! Now, I have hobbies that go well together (another being photography – my exhibit of black-and-white photos is ongoing until end of Aug. at Bistro 110, Palanca St., Legaspi Village).
What you see here are samples of all my hobbies, which happily complement each other. Some of the featured pieces will be on display in the student exhibit of Pettyjohn-Mendoza School of Pottery. The exhibit is slated on Aug. 27 to Sept. 8 at Artspace, Glorietta 4. If you happen to be in the mall, please do visit the exhibit. Who knows, you might also say to yourself, "Hey, I can do that, too!" Yes, you can!
For those interested in making their own handmade stoneware pottery, they may contact the following:
• Pettyjohn-Mendoza pottery school, Greenbelt Makati, 812-0766
(Adee Mendoza, 0920-8336820)
• Ugu Bigyan, Tiaong, Quezon, 0425459144 or 0425458689
• In Sagada: Lope Bosaing, 0920-7992960 or Mike Say-awen, 0918-4517435
• Pottery Exchange, Eastwood City, Libis, 687-4015
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