About
Artist Statement
Using wood as fuel to harden clay is an ancient technology. I am searching for the byproduct that the wood burnings leave behind. The wood burning allows the fire to touch each piece, create an autobiographical mark, and tell the story of its encounter with the fire. Its surface is left rich in texture, ranging from rough to smooth, and is saturated in a wide range of colors, including shades of red to chocolate brown, yellow to green, and from slate blue gray to the metal hues of carbon steel. My goal is that the work can display an aesthetic beyond the surface treatment of the fire or the technique.
Artist Bio
Hadi Abbas makes strong, utilitarian pottery rooted in the architectural tradition of India, Persian stone carved vessels, and cast ironware produced in the Southeast United States. His forms are sculptural, complex vessels fired in an anagama wood kiln. Abbas has taught at the University of Central Florida for 30 years, teaching handbuilding, wheel throwing, and raw materials.