Sue Schwartz

Artist Bio

For over 30 years, Sue Schwartz’s pottery has focused on the pit firing process.  Inspired by ancient ceramics, the pottery is hand burnished and fired in the sand at Bay Area beaches.

The pit fired clay is not glazed and is intended to be decorative, or used for dried flowers, or other dry items. 

The colors come from the firing process and added organic materials. Seaweed and copper bring out red, gold, and deep brown and black occurs where pots were buried in the sawdust base of the fire.  

The process involves digging a shallow pit, layering sawdust, pots, cow dung, wood and paper.  Results depend on the weather, wind, heat, and pit fire “spirits” that guide the process.

In recent years, Sue expanded her work to include wood and soda fired pottery and traditional glazed stoneware.