Dear You Ceramics - Chala Toprak

I started out as a fashion designer in my hometown of Istanbul; however after nine years, I craved a break from the fast pace and long nights. Swapping one metropolis for another, I found a home in Brooklyn in 2019, where I was curious to try a ceramics class. From the first moment I worked with clay, I knew this would become a permanent fixture in my life. Converting a corner of my apartment into a “Tiny Studio,” I found solace at the pottery wheel where each day I happily discovered a liberty this art form provided me. What started as a hobby quickly developed into something more as I found creative freedom and felt compelled to pursue ceramics full time. ‘Dear You’ was founded during the pandemic when I discovered that people appreciated and wanted to buy my porcelain pieces.
Often, I start with something in mind and let my hands do the work in tandem with my eye. I employ wheel-building and hand-building (coiling) techniques to ensure each piece is an original; sometimes among the petals you may find handprints and/or fingerprints. My pieces are fired in
the gas kiln at Gasworks NYC Studio, one of only three studios using gas-fired kilns in New York. The porcelain offers a luminescent quality, which allows me to adorn my pieces with paper-thin petals and blooms. Still relative newcomer to ceramics, I love exploring techniques and styles as 
‘Dear You’ itself blooms. Join me on my journey…
— Chala Toprak of Dear You Ceramics