September 05, 2025
Clay Culture Across Volcanoes, Deserts, Mountains, and Beyond
Within scorched volcanic plains, lush jungles, snow-covered forests and Mediterranean hillsides, one of the earth’s most precious materials, clay, remains the ancient, silent and patient medium for artists to experience the ground beneath their hands. It is hidden in the riverbeds and crumbles from canyon walls; its tones of rust, ash and slate echo the vast landscapes around the world.
To learn clay is to hold geography in your hands and for five VAWAA artists, clay is not only a medium, but a step into the past and a way to reconnect with creativity, nature, and meaning.
If you’ve ever dreamed of a ceramics retreat or a pottery vacation where you learn from real artists in their studios around the world, these mini-apprenticeships are for you.
Grounded in Clay: Five New VAWAA Artists You Can Learn From
1. Helsinki, Finland – Stillness and Strength with Eva
In Helsinki, VAWAA master artist Eva channels the stillness of Nordic landscapes in her work. Crafted from local, iron-rich Finnish earthenware found in southwest Finland, her pieces showcase the natural character of the clay and echoes the quiet simplicity of the Nordic landscape. For an artist with deep respect for her surroundings, nature, ritual and the slow, intentional process of making, she shares her expertise of the land.
Like the Finnish concept of “sisu” or grace under pressure, her forms feel steady and resilient, shaped by time and the elements. Certified in ecological practices, she incorporates natural ash and wild clay into her work, drawing on the material DNA of the surrounding Finnish forests.
If you're seeking a slow travel experience that connects you to nature, making pottery with Eva is a deeply grounding way to explore clay and calm.
Eva is crafting iron-rich Finnish earthenware on the wheel in her studio.
2. Reykjavik, Iceland – Raw Beauty with Ragnheiður
VAWAA master artist Ragnheiður brings decades of experience to a practice shaped by the raw, ever-changing landscapes of Iceland. Her work often blurs the boundaries between functional objects and sculptural forms—vessels, figures, and surfaces that feel both ancient and contemporary. She draws inspiration from Iceland’s elemental palette—glacial whites, mossy greens, volcanic blacks, and soft pinks—and mixes her own glazes to echo these natural tones.
Ragnheiður's way of communicating the memory of fire and ice exists within each product—a perfect match for adventurous travelers who want to learn ceramics in a land shaped by the elements.
3. Asturias, Spain – Biomaterials and Sculptural Alchemy with Manuel
Further south, in the UNESCO World Heritage region of Asturias, a village nestled between Spain’s green mountains and rugged coast, VAWAA master artist Manuel uses ground chestnut shells instead of clay —a sculptural material drawn from the forest floor. He shapes them by hand into forms that resemble traditional ceramics. Even though his pieces are not made from actual clay, they still mimic the rough textures and earthy tones of the region’s iron and mineral rich soil. The organic, porous, and textured chestnut shells that fall on the forest floor are the minerals and mud that form his unique pieces.
Blending nature and sculpture, he merges biology, design and patience with a deep sense of place to create sculptural objects, furniture and lighting. Surrounded by trees, his work becomes an alchemy of materials, molded like clay, carved like wood, and dried by the clean mountain air.
For those curious about new materials and sustainability, Manuel's VAWAA offers a rare window into a nature-inspired ceramics retreat unlike any other.
Manuel blending biology and design in his studio.
4. Athens, Greece – Hand-Built Elegance with Maria
Tucked along the Aegean Sea, Greece’s terracotta and pale limestone clays hold centuries of history. VAWAA artist Maria creates modern ceramic pieces that pay homage to the ruins and rituals of her homeland. She honed her skills while working in her family’s lumber trading business, surrounded by forests. In her practice today, she shapes clay into distinct hand-built forms, using pinching and coiling techniques.
Never relying on the wheel, she explores textures, finishes, and surface decoration so each piece can take on its own unique identity. It offers an opportunity to connect with a long history of clay-making, rooted in a region where ceramic traditions have lasted since ancient times.
If you're drawn to history, myth, and handcrafted detail, this pottery apprenticeship with Marta in Greece connects clay with culture like no other.
5. Netherlands – Color with Amrita
VAWAA master artist Amrita uses her upbringing in Sri Lanka, where she was surrounded by wild life, moisture, colorful hues and light, to create work that transcends continents. Now based in Hoorn, a flat, low-lying area of the Dutch countryside reclaimed from the sea, she throws with terracotta and porcelain clays with a focus on terra sigillata slip.
Inspired by the landscapes through her travels, she experiments with cyan to contrast the earthy tones of clay and even developed a unique cyanotype technique where a light-sensitive solution is applied and the Dutch sun imprints deep blue hues onto the surface.
Amrita's clay journey highlights a unique process that reveals the alchemy of porcelain, fire, smoke and sunlight. Perfect for creatives who love process, color, and a bit of unexpected magic.
Why Book a Ceramics Retreat with VAWAA?
These five artists are united by a deep understanding of what it means to listen to the land through clay. Whether it’s volcanic dust, crushed shells, forest bark, or ancient soil, clay tells a story—and through VAWAA, you become part of it.
With VAWAA, you’re not just learning technique. You’re learning to listen around you, under the Nordic snowlight, the Mediterranean sun or the volcanic mist, these experiences stay with you long after the clay dries.
Clay is not a monolith. It is alive, expressive, and varied. And VAWAA offers mini-apprenticeships that explore material and land and the beauty of the art of pottery.
Start Your Journey
You can browse all our ceramics and pottery-focused VAWAA experiences here. Whether you're interested in throwing on the wheel, hand-building, glazing, or exploring alternative materials like chestnut shells, we’ve curated meaningful, one-on-one apprenticeship in artist studios across the globe.
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But if something sparks your curiosity, don’t wait—book your VAWAA and feel the clay in your hands.
Explore all our curated artist apprenticeships worldwide and book one today.
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