Vase with flared neck

Notes

Elizabeth Mbatha joined the Rorke's Drift pottery studio in 1980 and was taught traditional coil pottery by women potters such as Dinah Molefe. Her work has been widely exhibited.

This piece is rooted in Zulu and Sotho pottery traditions, referencing the traditional forms such as the beer pot or ukhamba . The geometric motifs which cover the surface, are a common feature in indigenous crafts.

Rorke's Drift ceramic studio was founded in 1966 by Kirstin Olsson. It is housed in the Art and Craft Centre of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Southern Africa in KwaZulu-Natal. The studio produced a variety of utilitarian wares, including crockery, tea services, mugs, vases and bowls, as well as expressive, sculptural vessels. Wares were designed to find markets in Sweden and South Africa and recall both indigenous traditions combined with distinctly European forms.

The potters at Rorke's Drift set a precedent amongst South African black potters by signing their works on the base of the pottery and further adding the date and kiln data alongside the leaf logo of Rorke’s Drift. This practice copied Western potters who identified their works with potter’s marks, signatures or monograms.