Chaozhou Gaiwan V - Wild Clay

Wild Clay Chaozhou Gaiwan - by Muzuri Ware

A vessel shaped by earth, for tea from the mountain.

Made for 工夫茶 · gongfucha, this stoneware gaiwan brings the landscape into the act of brewing. Its generous bowl shape gives our Phoenix Dancong space to open, while the fitted lid allows the tea to be poured with precision, leaf, water and vessel brought together through the rhythm of the ritual.

The vessel begins with wild Cornish clay, hand-harvested by Kyri, blended and layered with other locally gathered clays and river sediment. Drawn from coast and river, the materials carry different traces of the landscape into the body of the vessel. Rather than a single uniform clay, the finished stoneware holds something of the geological variation of the places from which it came.

Inside, a smooth green-toned glaze brings a quiet contrast to the rawness of the exterior. Created from a blend of wood ashes, including oak, walnut and longan ash, the surface connects the vessel to two landscapes at once, the wild clays of the UK and the ash of longan wood used in the final roasting of Dancong teas.

Outside, the glaze is deliberately left with a rough, granular character. Built around the ashes of walnut and oak and other mineral elements, it settles unevenly across the surface, forming earthy browns, soft beige and hints of mossy green. Grainy and weathered, it recalls the bark, lichen and vegetation found across exposed mountain surfaces.

The result is a gaiwan that feels less like an object placed upon the mountain, and more like one shaped by it.

岩 · Rock Collection

Earthy, tactile and grounded. The 岩 Rock collection draws from the rocky character of Yanwu Peak, its stone, texture and mineral presence.

Muzuri Ware by Kyri Mouzouris

A ceramics studio founded by Kyri Mouzouris in Highgate. Drawing on architectural design and practical training in carpentry, blacksmithing and ceramics, Kyri creates functional ware through a material-led approach, exploring landscape, geological processes and the character of locally sourced materials.