Bay Area Favorites: Heath Ceramics Factory

There’s a special kind of magic that happens inside the walls of the Heath Ceramics factory in Sausalito. For those who aren’t familiar with the company, Heath Ceramics is an institution in Bay Area arts. Founded in 1948 by Edith Heath, they’re one of the longest standing ceramics companies in America (quite possibly *the* longest, but don’t quote me on that) and “considered among the most enduring examples of mid-century design” (you *can* quote Heath on that).

A few weeks ago, Len and I paid a visit to the Heath Ceramics factory in Sausalito to check out their Open Studios weekend. We’d done the factory tour two years ago, but went on a day when they weren’t in production. This time, we had the pleasure of seeing the process first hand. This tour was, to say the least, completely enlightening. I’m always seeing Heath products flash by on sites like Svpply and Pinterest, and it’s usually paired with a caption like, “Things I want”, “Need to have this”, or simply—“WANT but $$$$$”. There’s something to be said about HOW these products are developed, iterated, and carefully crafted. To be able to transform a formless slab of manganese clay into timeless pieces of usable art—well, that’s pretty mindblwoing. It takes a ton of training to become a craftsman at Heath. It’s important to be mindful that the thing you’ve pinned/buy-later’d/tumblr’d went through a process. Passed from one set of hands to another, and landing in yours.

More photos from the Heath Factory