Melanie McFarlane

Melanie McFarlane is a clay artisan who specializes in hand building. Melanie believes that hand building mirrors mindfulness, each piece a vessel of patience, resilience and growth.

“I love the creative freedom of hand building. It provides me with a chance to explore texture and designs that emphasize natural imperfections as beauty, which allows the glaze to break in wondrous ways.”

One of Melanie’s favourite decorating techniques is sgraffito, where she scratches away a layer of underglaze or slip to reveal the clay beneath. For her, this process reflects how individual growth occurs when we explore our passions and potential.

Melanie’s decorative and functional pieces infuse everyday life with a touch of the imaginary. From grain elevator luminaries that glow with prairie nostalgia to tiny villages and mugs sculpted with character and charm, each piece is handcrafted with intention.

“Everything I create is meant to spark connection, whether it’s between myself and clay, between art and the rhythm of everyday life, or between people who find joy in a piece.”

Melanie’s pottery has been featured in two group exhibitions: Find Things Beautiful as Much as You Can (2023) and It Takes a Village (2024). She is also a published poet and author, and has supported the arts community for over a decade, serving in executive positions on boards of the Saskatchewan Festival of Words, Saskatchewan Writers’ Guild, and CANSCAIP Sask. She is a founding member of River Street Potters and Myth & Fire Creations. She resides in Moose Jaw with her family.

Sgraffito is a pottery decoration technique where you apply colored slip or underglaze to leather-hard clay and then scratch through it to reveal the clay beneath, creating bold, high-contrast designs.

Origins and Meaning

• The word sgraffito comes from the Italian sgraffiare, meaning “to scratch.”
• It’s related to the word graffito (and by extension graffiti), both rooted in the idea of inscribing or marking surfaces.

How It Works

1. Prepare the clay: The piece must be at the leather-hard stage to allow for smooth carving. It can take up to three days for the clay canvas to naturally set.
2. Apply slip or underglaze: A contrasting color is brushed or sponged onto the surface. For example, white slip on red clay or black slip on white clay creates striking contrast.
3. Scratch the design: Using a variety of tools, artists scratch patterns, textures, or images into the surface, exposing the clay body underneath.
4. Finishing: Once dry, the piece is bisque-fired, then glazed (often with a transparent glaze) and fired again to seal and enhance the design.

Why It’s Special

• High contrast: The scratched lines reveal the clay beneath, making designs pop.
• Tactile artistry: Each scratched mark is both visual and physical, adding depth and texture.
• Versatility: Works beautifully on functional pottery, decorative tiles, or sculptural forms.

“Everything I create is meant to spark connection, whether it’s between myself and clay, between art and the rhythm of everyday life, or between people who find joy in a piece.”