Pottery making by Ari women artisans as their livelihood: towards the comparison of pottery makings in Southwestern Ethiopia

摘要

This paper examines the characteristics of Ari women artisans who make pottery in Southwestern Ethiopia, focusing on how they use local materials to make pots and how they ensure their livelihood by communicating with users who discriminate against artisans who produce pots. Analyzing the production by four potters in both the rainy and dry seasons, I found that their pots always sold out in the local market, even when the number produced varied because of the weather conditions. In interviews with users and makers, aimed at evaluating pottery making, users rated durable pots positively. They reported that some pots do not last long, even those recommended by their friends. Users tend to form a special relationship, known as jaala, with potters who make durable pots especially for specifi c users. Potters tend to develop and change their unique pottery-making styles by altering their hand and fi nger movement patterns, in order to produce durable pots that satisfy their customers. These fi ndings show that Ari pottery making not only has a technological element but also involves cultural and social processes, and that these factors determine how Ari potters select the raw materials to make durable pots that will satisfy their clients. I regard their hand and fi nger movement patterns as useful units to analyze each potter's learning patterns and process of creating new techniques and to compare with potter's technological variations among the several ethnic groups of Southwestern Ethiopia.