My ceramic comes out of prayer.
May this prayer visit the world.

The art of ceramics – Joseph Abi Yaghi
How to promote a very talented artist? I’ve been asking myself this question for a long time, and I’m writing this letter to all those who really love beautiful ceramics.

My name is Birgitta; I come from Copenhagen, Denmark. I am a ceramist and I started my workshop 26 years ago in Copenhagen. In the evening I worked as a teacher in different art schools. I really enjoy teaching to feel the joy when students are successful in the learning process. In addition to making my own ceramics. I was a teacher until the day I left Denmark almost three years ago to live here in Lebanon.
I am writing this letter to promote a young Lebanese ceramist – Joseph Abi Yaghi. When I first met Joseph, he had been doing ceramics, learning from books. He did a lot of beautiful things and had talent, but he had never used the potter’s wheel.
Using a potter’s wheel is a difficult task; it usually takes years to become an expert. Joseph and I worked together for only five weeks in his small studio in Achrafieh. When teaching how to spin on the wheel, it is crucial to give students an idea of the sensations they should feel in their fingers as the wheel spins the piece of clay in their hands. So I sat down on the floor, cupping my hands over his. Joseph worked hard day after day, week after week, and bigger pots were growing in his hands. In a few months, he became an excellent potter. Joseph continued to improve his skills, he became an artist. Today he turns huge bowls and platters, finishing their beautiful shapes with incredible decorations and glazes.
Joseph is the most talented artist I have ever worked with and I am very proud of his work. Every time I visit his shop in Achrafieh, I am overwhelmed by the splendor of his ceramics. For example, a few days ago he showed me an amazing, huge, fine stoneware bowl with drop decoration on the outside and inside. If this bowl were exhibited in Copenhagen, London or Paris, it would be classified as international art at its best.