Pottery from Safi

What it is

Safi lies on the Atlantic coast and, according to the Maison de l’Artisan, is known for its blue pottery; together with Fez, Salé, Marrakesh and Tetouan it is one of the five main centres of Moroccan ceramics.¹ According to UNESCO, blue and white patterns are typical, and the potters make utilitarian objects, architectural elements and decorative pieces.²

The workshops are on Potters’ Hill and in the Potters’ Village; 1,500 to 2,000 people work directly in pottery, and the craft is passed on in families, in cooperatives and in training institutions.³ On the wheel, all kinds of pieces are made, right up to the roof tiles in demand in Morocco.⁴

History

Finds made in 1994 at Lalla Hniya Hamriya show ceramic production in Safi at least since the Almoravid period in the 11th century; it ceased during the Portuguese occupation (1508–1541).⁵ A document of 1821 shows that the city was again a pottery centre from the early 18th century.⁶

The Maison de l’Artisan links the blue style to potters from Fez who settled in Safi in the 19th century and made the city’s ceramics multicoloured.⁷ Naïma El-Khatib-Boujibar, quoted by La Vie éco, also names Fez as the origin of the potters who settled in Meknes in the 18th century and later in Safi.⁸ The master potter Boujemaa Lamali founded the country’s first pottery school in 1920, and since 1990 Safi has had the Musée national de la céramique.⁹

What it is made of

The potters use red clay and a clay slip as a coating for art pieces; the more metal the glaze contains, the whiter and smoother it becomes, and with little metal it turns yellow.¹⁰ According to the Maison de l’Artisan, very light clays and pieces with shining metallic reflections are also characteristic.¹¹ The shapes follow curved lines, and over time designs modelled on Persian and Chinese abstract art were added.¹²