František Špička’s father was a construction worker with artistic talent, painting still lifes and illustrating the chronicle of the fishing association. However, he only recognized honest work, so he disagreed with his son pursuing the art he desired to study. After graduating from high school, young František found employment in the depository of the Archaeological Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, where he drew found artifacts.

Later, when he began studying art history, which he did not complete, a friend convinced him to pursue restoration work, which led him to Nove Bane. Here, he fatefully met the master potter Ján Schnier, through whom he developed such a passion for pottery that he moved to Nove Bane and spent up to 14 hours a day working on ceramics with the elderly potter. At that time, Ján Schnier was no longer active, but he still knew how to throw pottery, and his advice on clay and the craft was invaluable. František Špička passed through a school of craft and life with him, like former apprentices learning from a master. He learned how to prepare clay, engobes, how to throw, decorate, model, and everything a good potter needs.

Just a year after starting with Ján Schnier, he was already supplying products to the ÚĽUV and after three and a half years, he began making a living through ceramics (1976). He set up his first workshop in a small house in Nove Bane where he lived. Later, he shared a workshop with another potter in a former blacksmith’s workshop in Kozárovce, and eventually set up a workshop in a cottage on the outskirts of Nove Bane, which he bought with his family. From the ÚĽUV, he obtained an older chamotte kiln, although firing in it was not ideal, so he eventually replaced it with an electric one.

From the beginning, he focused on producing traditional products such as pitchers, pots, mugs, plates, bowls, and piggy banks from the areas of Nove Bane, Brehov, and Pukanec. These old pottery centers influenced each other in the past; for example, the potters from Nove Bane used to visit their colleagues in Pukanec, which meant they were technologically close to each other. František Špička drew his Nove Bane patterns from master Schnier, and his first designs were also created by the ÚĽUV artist Eva Kramplová, or they developed them together. At the suggestion of another ÚĽUV artist, Janka Menkynová, he also tried patterns from Halič and Gemer, but the distinctive decoration known as “kukučka,” characteristic of that kind of pottery, did not suit his style of work. He remained faithful to the Nove Bane painting style, which he had already mastered. Later, he also discovered Bela pottery, very time-consuming but exceptionally interesting. Its coloration resembles that of Nove Bane, but the patterns, in terms of fabrication technique, are completely different.

A special chapter in František Špička’s pottery story is the clay. He stuck to the beautiful red clay of Nove Bane from the beginning despite the significant waste it produced. At one point, he even made a living by selling clay — digging it up, transporting it, processing it, soaking it, grinding it roughly and finely. He prepared tons of clay with his sons. Today, he no longer produces clay, instead sourcing it from Myjava. It is finer than Nove Bane clay, with less shrinkage, making it suitable for larger products. He only digs up white clay, the base for colored clays, on the hill in Nove Bane, adding metal oxide solutions to color it.

Since he himself got into pottery thanks to the willingness of an experienced potter, he pays it forward. In Banská Bystrica, he helped establish a pottery workshop at the Regional Crafts Center of the ÚĽUV, where he also led courses. In collaboration with the municipal office in Hybe, he set up a workshop in the village and undertook the revival of traditional Hybe pottery production. Nowadays, he leads courses there for those interested in local pottery. He also demonstrated the pottery craft and led courses in other places, where enthusiasts can also learn in his ceramic workshop. He participated in a joint exhibition of potters at the ÚĽUV and in Frankfurt and represented Slovakia at the International Biennial of Ceramics in Prévelles, France, in 2010.

That same year, he was awarded the title of Master of Folk Art Production for his active involvement in traditional pottery, which had become his lifelong passion.

(Source: Čechmánková, N.: František Špička – Master of Clay. In: Craft, Arts, Design. 12, 2011, No. 4, pp. 12-15)