Why I Stopped Speeding Up My Pottery Reels

Pottery is a very cool and sexy process when filmed. It is mesmerizing to watch. But in reality it is a slow process. For social media we are only allowed to upload videos that are a minute or so long. Throwing on the wheel rarely takes one or two minutes. It is a much longer and more meditative process.

Because of these restrictions and the way social media works, the internet is now full of pottery videos that are sped up or heavily edited. The process looks faster, easier, and more glamorous than it really is. People who come to try pottery in real life often feel disappointed. Everything looks so effortless online, but it is not. It is slow, imperfect, and full of trial and error. It takes time to center, to fail, and to begin again.

I have decided to start uploading my videos in real time. Maybe just short fragments that fit within what social media allows. I might also share full versions on YouTube as a kind of real pottery channel. If you are reading this, I would love to know how slow pottery videos feel for you. Do they bring calm to our overextended nervous systems, or are they too slow to watch.

Truth is not always comfortable. Whether it feels good or bad, relaxing or boring, it is what it is. This is my small commitment to you, to keep showing what is real.