As a potter, I am constantly surrounded by clay. It’s my medium, my tool, and my canvas. But what many people don’t know is that a lot of clay goes to waste in the pottery making process. From trimmings to dirty water, there is a lot of material that is deemed unusable and disposed of in special sinks.

Being curious and always looking for ways to reduce waste, I began to wonder if there was a way to reuse this discarded clay. So I created a water filtration system to clean and reuse the water from my sink, and one month, instead of disposing of the clay particles in the trash, I decided to fire them. The result was a very unworkable clay but it sparked an idea – what if I mixed this “trash” clay with other clay trimmings?

And thus, the 💫trash💫 edition was born.

This series of objects plays with different mixing techniques, my favorite being nerikomi, where different colored clays are combined to create a marbling effect. But what makes this edition special is that it also incorporates my pottery sink waste, creating a unique and textured look.

One of my favorite pieces from this edition is an ashtray. It may seem odd to use discarded clay to create an ashtray, but for me, it represents the transformation of something considered “trash” into something beautiful and useful. The ashtray has a perfect hole to keep your goods suspended, making it a versatile piece that can even be used to hold a palo santo stick and scent your room.

But this collection isn’t just about creating functional objects. It’s about challenging the idea of what we consider valuable. Just because something is labeled as “trash” doesn’t mean it has no worth. By giving these discarded materials a new purpose and a new life, we can create beauty.

The process of creating these pieces has been a labor of love. It’s exciting to see the transformation of the clay, from something dirty and unusable to a unique and beautiful piece. But it also serves as a reminder to be mindful of our waste.

I hope that these objects will not only be enjoyed as functional pieces but also spark a conversation about waste and the potential for beauty in unexpected places.

Here, I would like to show you some of the pieces that I have made from the Trash Edition.