bowls - Page 2 of 2 - Peter Arscott

banana

February 25th, 2016/in art ceramics, Blog, bowl, ceramic art /by Peter Arscott

banana blue

You will not be surprised to know that we take our research very seriously at belatrova, so that when we talked about a name for a new range of bowls and decided it was to be “banana bowl“, we discovered the revealing fact that the inside of a banana skin can be used to polish shoes.

banana rub

What else? Well, it can also be used to calm an itchy mosquito bite, and did you know that on average each person in the UK eats about 100 bananas a year?

banana scratch

We could go on. And we will.

Bananas are the most popular fruit in the world, and the banana is, in fact, not a tree but a high herb that grows up to 15 metres. It is believed that there are almost 1000 varieties of bananas, the most commonly known banana being the Cavendish variety, which is the one produced for export markets.

froot scoop

Enough. The fact is that our bowls are banana shaped, and thus their name.

centrepiece

We really enjoyed making these bowls. The shape is a whimsical and it truly stands out in any setting, whether it has anything in it or nothing at all. It has enough personality to speak for itself: notice the herring bone motifs in some, all contained by the rich cobalt brush marks.

fruit bowl

A unique hand made bowl, unusual but really elegant, and ideal as a way to serve fruit, or snacks, though it really comes into its own when used simply as a table centrepiece. The three legs give it a steady balance and a charming retro look, say we.

banana bowl drying

Each piece takes days to make, from flattening the clay and passing it through the slab roller, shaping and cutting and letting it dry for over a week, then biscuit firing it to 1000 degrees. We shape them over a large round cement garden ornament, as you can see in the image above.

If you want to see more images of our banana bowls do visit a new online outlet that belatrova has teamed up with: Home of Artisans, where you will also see some more examples of our wave bowls, which we mentioned in our January blog.

And did you know that the derivation of the word banana is from the Arabic banan, which means finger?

ba

ban

banan

banana

Over the moon, on the crest of a wave.

January 24th, 2016/in art ceramics, Blog, bowl, ceramic art, design, pots /by Peter Arscott

moon power

Gazing at the Full Moon last night belatrova was filled by the wonder of the night sky. Somebody told us it was a Wolf Moon, and it turns out that full moon names reflect the goings on of that time of year, and this one is so called by American Indians because it is the animal’s hungry month, so February’s is the Snow Moon because it is the month most snow falls, Harvest Moon in August, Hunters’ Moon, and so on. And to top it all, five planets in the solar system are visible in a line this month: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn – a fabulous quirk of the Universe.

planetary alignment

Possibly as a result of this magical alignment belatrova has won ‘Best of Customer Service’ on Houzz®, the leading platform for home renovation and design (www.houzz.co.uk). The ‘Best of Houzz’ is awarded annually in three categories – Design, Customer Service, and Photography. Houzz ‘Best of Customer Service’ honours are based on several factors, including the number and quality of client reviews received in 2015. A ‘Best of Houzz 2016’ badge will appear on belatrova’s Houzz profile as a sign of its commitment to excellence and these badges help homeowners identify popular and top-rated home professionals.

So, a huge thank you is due to our customers who reviewed us on Houzz. We were chosen by the Houzz* community from among more than one million active home building, renovating, and design industry professionals.

Andrew Small, Managing Director of Houzz UK commented, “anyone building, renovating, or decorating looks to Houzz for the most talented and service-oriented professionals, and we are very pleased to recognise belatrova with our ‘Best of Customer Service’ award.

ceramic wave

Aware that all sorts of things happen during a Full Moon (arson attacks increase by 100% at the time of the Full Moon, murders treble around that time and passengers on flights are more difficult to handle, say harassed air hostesses) we at belatrova would rather let our minds float in all the apparently miraculous stuff associated with it. For example, the link between the Lunar Cycle and the tides is well established but still mysterious, but may well explain why we have started making large wave bowls this new year. We think you will like them: they are a perfect centrepiece for any dining table, and practical as fruit bowls or tureens.

blue undulations

more blue waviness

We have used the oxides of the Brushstroke Blues range to hand paint the wavy brushstrokes onto the undulating surface, which in turn has wave-like marks scratched in with a peineta or Spanish Flamenco comb. This last element, as you belatrovians instinctively know, is essential.

peineta

porcelain comb-over

straight out of the kiln

These wave bowls measure about 40cms x 30 cms, and weigh 6 lbs (2.7 kls), so they are robust as well as beautiful. Don’t let February’s Full Moon be a Blue one, cheer yourself up with a belatrova bowl and wave goodbye to the blues.

*About Houzz (www.houzz.co.uk)

Houzz is the leading platform for home renovation and design, providing people with everything they need to improve their homes from start to finish – online or from a mobile device. From decorating a small room to building a custom home and everything in between, Houzz connects millions of homeowners, home design enthusiasts and home improvement professionals across the country and around the world.

With the largest residential design database in the world and a vibrant community empowered by technology, Houzz is the easiest way for people to find inspiration, get advice, buy products and hire the professionals they need to help turn their ideas into reality.

Peter Arscott, Director of belatrova said, “we are delighted to receive this accolade from such a prestigious enterprise as Houzz. We work hard to ensure that everyone inquiring about our products enjoys dealing with us, and that those who buy a belatrova product are completely satisfied with it and enjoy having it in their home or commercial environment.”

the belatrova look

October 15th, 2015/in Blog, Latest News /by Peter Arscott

the way to work

This is a photograph of one of the paths that lead us to work at No9 Bankside. As you can imagine, the colours and environment change considerably throughout the year, and even the birds sound different – hardly a tweet in January but a choir in May. The walk is soothing and helps focus ones thoughts, and amidst the usual deliberations (Is the universe finite or infinite? Are there female leprechauns? Why do old men have hairs in their nostrils? How much deeper would the oceans be without sponges?), what came into mind recently was “How to explain the belatrova look?”

contemporary retro

retro contemporary

Mid century modern? Vintage 50s? Contemporary retro? Retro contemporary? Not really. It’s just that the belatrova team like bright, bold colours and satisfying forms – it’s age and experience that allow any maker and designer to judge with confidence the fashions and periods she or he has lived through, and to come up with something that looks both familiar and refreshingly new. That’s belatrova.

our neighbouring metal worker, on a good day

Add to this a contemporary rural community that provides know-how and support when dealing with different materials and processes – somehow our neighbours, a metal worker, a maker of Japanese screens, a textile artist and a ceramic sculptor, have some intangible influence on things – and if you add the fact that the three business partners are a potter, a painter and a pianist, you have a recipe for a unique creative business.

sputnik

What we are saying is that belatrova combines an awareness of contemporary style with the influence from childhoods spent in the era of sputnik legs, Mondrian geometry, rounded shapes and coffee tables, in other words the late fifties and early sixties (yes, last century) – but also bringing a contemporary artist’s touch to domestic design and introducing both fun and fine art painting into the home.

banana shaped

And so, not that you need reminding, distinctive hand made, hand glazed ceramic coasters, lamps, bowls, and large standing pots, contemporary designer coffee tables, and ceramic birdbaths on beautiful oak plinths make up the range of stunning products from belatrova. Here are a few images to whet your appetites:

Dizzy Gillespie

durden

platter

ceramic table

As most of you know, everything is made at our workshop in Ledbury, Herefordshire, which you are very welcome to visit; just give us a ring on 01531 634082 in case we are out delivering, or on an emergency expedition to buy olives for our Martinis. Warning: the picture below is not of a Martini, but an experiment involving apple juice and gin and other (secret) ingredients.

ceramic coasters for your cocktail

And by the way, a potter, a painter and a pianist deal respectively with mud, paint and ivory, so we thought at first we would find a name for our enterprise by making an attractive anagram of the three words. Luckily we went for “belatrova” – the only anagrams we came up with were “mad vino purity”, “via nudity romp” and “armpit undo ivy”.

a bat lover

Toodle pip.

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