A few lines that encapsulate the essence of a master potter’s romance with clay as a medium of expression reads as such;

“Clay chose me so that the earth would dance in my hands.I have learned through the process everythingthat is important to know in life,The grand traditions and the contemporary areembedded in the vessels formed by these hands,These pots relocate, reflect and preserve thecontinuity of the disappearing...”

These are the words of none other than Sheherezade Alam, internationally acclaimed and veteran ceramist of Pakistan, whose lifetime of devotion to the arts, and in particular pottery, has earned her an almost legendary position in her chosen field. Her most recent exhibition at Lahore’s Colour Gallery was an enchanting display of a collection of works that she had made in the past two-and-half decades and which epitomised her prolific output and simple yet mesmerising style.

Alam’s pottery is rooted in natural forms and rhythms; where in the circular movements of the potter’s wheel are handled to perfection. The rotund forms of her vessels exude an aura of wholesomeness that is earthy and sensuous and yet mystical in its sense of synchronisation with the workings of nature and the universe.

And yet there is also the element of commonality, and familiarity, as if the forms were simply an exalted form of vessels that have been made over the centuries by our traditional potters whose creations were geared towards utilitarian ends, but nonetheless had a sense of innate beauty and balance.

In fact, reverence for tradition and its incorporation into contemporary life is indeed the hall mark of Alam, both in her personal appearance and style of working. Her pottery continues to reflect her commitment to the preservation of local traditions which she so fervently believes in. Her recent efforts to establish a school ‘Jehan-i-Jehan Ara’ (named after her late daughter) to impart education in the traditional arts and crafts to children is also a part of the same endeavour.

Alam’s recent display of pottery encompassed various time spans of her creativity, but the display was of a free flowing kind, with a variety of vessels arranged in a manner that in a way was reflective of the continuity of the basic character of her work. The rotund forms in nature as well as in traditional architecture, such as in domes and arches, seem to be incorporated in the pottery, and the colours of the glazes are also reflective of the same.

So while one sees the colours of the earth, fire and even the sky and the firmament with its splashes of gold and metallic hues, there are the bright turquoise colours that one sees in our local tiles embellishing many a shrine and monument.

So as one gazes at the creations of Alam, it does indeed appear that

“The potter’s wheel doth echo, the rhythms of the universe, And clay the soul encases,This timeless craft is art profound,Be it bowls, vessels, or vases…”