Pina Limestone Serving Platter — Medium

The Limestone Serving Platter makes room at the table not only for the food it carries, but also for the hands around it. Its form, like a large shell gathered from the shore, curves gently instead of resting in a straight line, creating a subtle transition between its edge and center. Handmade ceramic, it holds the marks of the clay without perfecting its shape. Set on the table, it draws the eye not to itself, but to what it holds. Beside the smooth inside of a seashell, the bare clay edge brings the earth familiar to the hand to the table. Vegetables or bread placed on it do not seem to come from another world; both belong to the same place, shaped by water and work. Sometimes a sense of belonging is felt this way, quietly. Without needing explanation, every day. When you set it in the middle of the evening table, the torn edge of the bread rests against the platter’s curve. A hand reaches out; someone across the table notices its shell-like form and pauses for a moment. Then the conversation picks up where it left off. You reach across from the other side of the table, too. The marks in the clay appear differently on every platter; the shell’s shape, though, keeps the same language. It is this small difference that lets it find its place at the table.