Cappadocia Pottery Workshops
Although the first things that come to mind at the mention of Cappadocia, the ‘Land of Beautiful Horses’, are the fairy chimneys its name is identified with and the view left by the flying balloons at sunset, there are also plenty of experiences you can enjoy at their very best in Cappadocia. The experience inside Cappadocia’s pottery workshops is one of them. The pottery-making experience, where you can see the miraculous qualities of the earth combined with art, is possible in Avanos, one of Cappadocia’s 3 main tourist centers.
Why Is Avanos Pottery Famous?
In Avanos, pottery is a craft whose history goes back to the Hittites. This tradition has been passed down from generation to generation for centuries. What made Avanos an important center for pottery making is its natural conditions — and, of course, the artistic spirit of the people combined with those natural conditions. The soft, clay-rich earth collected from the beds of the Kızılırmak River forms the raw material of the pottery. The minerals and materials in the soil are what make it suitable for pottery making. The earth along the banks of the Kızılırmak, which has flowed for hundreds of years, is worth its weight in gold for Cappadocia’s pottery workshops thanks to its composition. The town of Avanos lies 16 km north of the center of Nevşehir. The town’s history also stretches back to the Hittite period. In fact, the town’s name comes from its ancient name, ‘Venessa’.
Archaeological research shows that the pottery made when settled life began in the region was used by the people living here at that time. During the Seljuk and Ottoman periods, the pottery made here was used in trade. It is known that passing caravans, whenever their routes brought them here, bought plenty of pottery. We can say that the fame of Avanos pottery began with the first Turkish settlement in Anatolia. Even in the Ottoman and Republican periods, pottery making took an interesting turn: knowing this craft began to be sought as a condition for men to marry. As a result, Avanos pottery emerged with a strong reputation and high quality. In the ceramic museums in Avanos, you can see these historical objects as well as the works of recent artists.
How Is Avanos Pottery Made?
Although it looks easy from the outside, making Avanos pottery requires attention and effort. Even years later, you will not forget these pots that you made with your own hands, touching the mud and the earth. Because as well as witnessing the stages of production, you shape it with your very own hands. Let’s look together at the stages of this work, also known as the ‘Art of Avanos’. I think those who want to learn about Cappadocia’s pottery workshops will also want to know the details of this experience.
Turning Earth into Mud, and Mud into Dough
The raw material is prepared like ordinary dough. The soft, clay-rich Avanos earth collected from the Kızılırmak riverbed is first finely sifted until it becomes perfectly clean soil. The sifted earth is then turned into a dough with water. It can take up to a week before the material that has become dough is ready to use. So when you go, you will be using ready-made dough, but you can still witness the sifting of the earth and its sorting by composition at Cappadocia’s pottery workshops.
Turning the Dough into a Work of Art
Your way of working changes according to the shape of the product you are going to make. If a wide plate is desired, machines with wide molds are preferred, especially in mass production. In individual production, however, a material called plaster of Paris is used. This material is made of gypsum and comes ready with a hollowed-out interior. You pour the dough into this plaster mold, wait about 45 minutes, and then pour the dough out again. The plaster then absorbs some of the water from that dough and holds enough clay in its cavity to become a plate for you. After waiting a certain amount of time, you can take your wide plate out of the mold.
The most fun way of working, though, is shaping by hand on the potter’s wheel. Here, while adjusting the spinning speed of the wheel with your foot, you first press with your thumbs to make the dough rise. Then you define the form of the product with your hands. Touching the clay and creating a work of art from it truly calms the human spirit.
Cappadocia’s pottery workshops are among the activities I recommend you visit when you go to the region. Along with activities like a horseback riding tour in Cappadocia or a balloon tour, the pottery workshop experience will also be good for your soul. You can enjoy this experience, from the transfer to the workshop session, by taking advantage of the activities offered by MDC Hotel.
