A THWARTED PLAN TO BECOME A FURNITURE MAKER LED ELISA BARTELS TO START HER ARTISAN CERAMIC HOMEWARES AND SCULPTURE BUSINESS IN SYDNEY
How was Elisa Bartels Designs born?
Elisa: “I wanted to be a furniture maker, but discovered the best place to do so was Tasmania – but we couldn’t move there. Furniture-making combines art and functionality, and I found these same qualities in ceramics.”
What makes your products special?
“I don’t glaze my work, I use saggar firing: I put my work in tins with organic material, such as sawdust, seaweed, a mix of leaves, snakeskin and feathers, and the carbon released from the organic matter colours the clay.”
Do you have a personal favourite from your own range?
“My dinner plate. It takes a piece of Vegemite toast to Master Chef levels!”
What’s next for your brand?
“Along with an essential oil burner, I am refining the concept and design of my black fired tiles. I have visions of them being used in bathrooms and kitchens, both inside and out. I’d love to collaborate and am putting out feelers to interior and landscape designers.”
What are your top tips for caring for artisan ceramics?
“I want to create ‘modern heirlooms’ that are used daily, loved, cherished and passed on to future generations. This means that they have to be able to take the rough and tumble of the family home. I tell my clients, ‘If you have the time, it’s best to hand wash them. But if it’s a crazy day, put them in the dishwasher. If they chip, you’ve added your voice to the story of that object’.”
Shop the range at elisabartels.com.