Moroccan Pottery experience with Vid Polončič

Moroccan Pottery experience with Vid Polončič
22st to 29th Octobre 2024

Was introduced to pottery in 2011 when researching various aspects of clay and ceramic production processes under the mentorship of academic sculptor and potter Eva Peterson Lenassi. He is currently enhancing his knowledge and sharpening his skills under the guidance of Štefan Zelko from Prekmurje, one of the few contemporary traditional potters in Slovenia whose practices are UNESCO protected as intangible cultural heritage. Today, Vid leads his pottery workshops and creates in the Pottery Atelier of the Slovene Ethnographic Museum in Ljubljana.

POTTERY WHEELS

The pottery wheels are light, portable and of fascinating design. Each wheel is a unique product that, in addition to its design, also contains traditional knowledge and manual skills related to the craft. I want my pottery wheels to be artistic products of aesthetic beauty.

Website: https://www.loncic.si/

https://www.instagram.com/loncic.pottery.studio/



Day 1

MARRAKECH- ROUTE TO THE SOUTHEN MAROCCO ( about 280KM )

Departure to the Moroccan south by crossing the Haut Atlas through the Tizi N'Tichka pass (2260m), before going to skoura,  we will visit a UNESCO world heritage centre , The ksar of Aït-ben-Haddou "The ksar", Is a group of earthen buildings surrounded by high walls, is a traditional pre-Saharan habitat. The houses crowd together within the defensive walls, which are reinforced by corner towers. Ait-Ben-Haddou, in Ouarzazate province, is a striking example of the architecture of southern Morocco

MORE
Day 2

POTTERY WORKSHOP: EXTRACTION FROM EARTH - PREPARATION OF Clay  - SHAPING

After breakfast we will visit  Aziz, the maalem (master craftsman ) who will welcome you during your pottery internship.

With the donkeys you will go next doors  ( about 30 minutes away ) to extract the clay that will be used to make these traditional pottery. Aziz will explain the  preparation process. Lunch at the house of Aziz.

Afternoon devoted to the preparation of the dough; work and knead it with your hands, tread it with your feet and make a ball to pass over the tower.

Then  with Aziz you will learn  the technique of shaping clay by turning and mastering the traditional potter's tower, as well as the technique of molding. Which are the two most widely used techniques in southern Morocco.

MORE
Day 3

WORK ON THE LATHE AND MOLDING TECHNIQUE

Depending on what you have done the day before, the morning will be devoted to the technique of shaping clay by turning and mastering the traditional potter's tower, or the technique of molding.

Finish of your object and let it dry . 

Lunch on site before .

Dinner and night at the kasbah.

MORE
Day 4

BALADE DAY  IN THE PALMERIA - PREPARATION OF THE OVEN

Today your objects are ready to be put in the traditional oven.

You will walk in the palm grove with your guide. This will be an opportunity to meet families busy growing and irrigating their plots. At the end of the afternoon we will go to Aziz to prepare the oven for cooking your pottery.

MORE
Day 5

OUARZAZATE - M’HAMID - ERG CHEGAGA 

8h, departure from skoura to Mhamid through the Drâa valley. Lunch in Mhamid, then take the 4 × 4 to  Chegaga dunes (the highest and largest in Morocco). Arrived to the bivouac. Dromedary ride, sunset. Dinner and night at the bivouac .

MORE
Day 6

RETURN TO SKOURA (280KMS)

After sunrise at the top of the dunes, breakfast and return to Ouarzazate-skoura

MORE
Day 7

RETURN TO MARRAKECH (280KMS)

Departure passing through the house of our potter to recover your objects and return to Marrakech while crossing the Paddling Paddle. Stop in Telouat to visit the fortified ksar, and have lunch. Arrival in Marrakech at the end of the afternoon. Free dinner. Night at the riad.

MORE
Day 8

MARRAKECH. DEPARTURE

Depending on your flight schedule, airport transfer and departure

MORE

Southern Morocco

Discover the riches of southern Morocco; sand dunes, plateaus and oases. From Marrakech, you cross the High Atlas, descend to the Daraa Valley, cross the great zagoura and Mhamid desert. In addition, you will discover all the wealth of the Zagora region: the stage city for the caravans who went across the Sahara to bring back the precious salt, gold and ivory from Timbuktu. Under palm trees, fruit trees and crops, a multitude of villages and sumptuous kasbah are available to you. You will leave Zagora via the Drâa valley by the road leading to Ouarzazate, and from there will join the pearl of the south: Marrakech.

YOU LOVE

The tasting of Berber dishes accompanied by mint tea

- The walk on the back of camels in the dunes

- The night in a bivouac at the feet of the dunes of Erg Chebbi

- Visiting the old Koranic library and pottery workshops in the Tamgroute region

- Lunch and discovery of the kasbah of Ait Ben Haddou, jewel of UNESCO

- The oases of Telouet and the gorges (Dades and Toudgha)

- Visiting the Boughafe souk, the ruins of Sijilmassa and the oases of Zagora

- Free visit to the city of Zagora

- The visit to the Djemaa el Fna market place in Marrakech.

Included services :

- Private luxury vehicle with A/C and fuel for all the trip.

-Driver-guide (English speaking).

-Accommodation at Hotels, Riads, Guest house (rooms with bathroom and air conditioning ) + full board

-Camel Trek to overnight in nomad desert bivouac with guide (Private tents)

-Several stops to take pictures , drink coffee and W.C

-Exploring Kasbah, Oasis and Valleys


These prices do not include:

- Round trip flights to Marrakech

- Alcoholic or non-alcoholic consumption taken during meals

- The supplement for a single room.

- The visit price of certain monuments,

- On-site purchases.

Gallery Photos :


Do you have pre-booking questions? Please contact us.

contact us quick question

Good To Know

This pottery tour to Morocco has been specially curated to make sure we are photographing in the best light possible. You will learn about the best time of day to photograph and how to overcome challenging lighting situations. Relaxing when the light is harsh and shooing when the light is good.

Expect sunrises and sunsets over the Sahara Desert, portraits of the Berbers of the desert and private photoshoots with traditionally dressed men and women.

Don’t expect the typical tourist locations! Where others might go in, we go around. This is a custom designed travel tour, by a photographer, for pottery enthusiasts. Expect sunsets in the Sahara, Camel Caravans on the dunes, perfecting your street pottery in Marrakech and dinner under the stars deep in the desert.

Prepare to lose yourself in the musical magic and cultural richness of this Berber-Arab-Spanish-Portuguese-French exotic land.

On our pottery Tours, we like to take our time. In each place, you will get to fully explore the location. This means you will discover all the hidden gems and meet people on a deeper level.

We want to make sure you have time to get the best photographs possible. That means if you feel like taking a break, and skipping a location or exploring on your own, that’s not a problem. We are here to support your photographic passion, and if that means taking a break that’s fine by us!

Morocco is a country of extremes unlike no other. From the cities of Fez, Marrakech, and Casablanca whose streets come alive with the aroma of exotic spices and the sound of Andalusian music. To the silence and tranquility that can only be found high in the Atlas Mountains or deep in the Sahara Desert.

We invite you to get lost with us in the labyrinth like streets of Morocco’s medieval cities and colonial towns, before finding sanctuary (and mint tea) in the tranquility of the Riads.

Journey with is into the Sahara Desert where you will watch the sunrise above the highest golden sand dunes. For those of you craving adventure, you will have the option to journey even deeper into the desert on a camel for a 2-hour trek to spend the night in Berber tents dining under the stars.

This pottery tour has been specially curated to offer you an authentic taste of Morocco. With a mix of medieval cities, colonial towns, rolling mountains, rugged coastlines, and golden desert. Morocco really is a photographers dream. Adventure awaits you on our photo tour to exotic Morocco.

Comments (0)