Made by hand on the potter’s wheel, one piece at a time, in a 19th century carriage barn in the Berkshire Hills of Massachusetts, Daniel Bellow Porcelain offers a full line of fine dinnerware. Belloware (sorry, couldn’t resist) is non-toxic, dishwasher and microwave-safe, and with proper care should last for hundreds of years.

My work is all about form. I single-glaze most of my work and let the kiln do the rest. I use a downdraft gas kiln I built from scratch in 2003, a cube of firebrick 54 inches square and six feet high so I can stand up inside to load. I fire in a reduction atmosphere, which yields a rich glaze surface and colors that make oxidation glazes fired in an electric kiln look pale by comparison.

Things that are made by hand have a life of their own, a spirit, that machine made objects, no matter how well designed, are lacking. Surround yourself with useful, beautiful things made by real people. A life well-lived is itself a work of art.

Work by DANIEL BELLOW