Marián Čurný, Jozef Hrabovský
The range of colours of folk ceramics is the result, to a certain extent, of the aesthetic sensitivity of its makers or user, but it is also based on the raw materials and work techniques. Tradition and the varied types of materials led to a differentiation in pottery centres, climaxing in the 19th century. Specific features of regional ceramics later became the object of research, as well as the starting-point of deliberate attempts to maintain pottery production in its local forms. The production of so-called smoke-fired, black ceramics has long been considered of marginal interest only, perhaps due to its discreet colour and only subtle variation between individual regions.