The Great Pottery Throw Down: The Final: 1920s Art Deco Punch Bowl & Decanters

March 15, 2021 12:39 PM - Season 4, Episode 10

In an art deco-inspired final, the potters make a punch bowl and decanter, before facing the tiniest throwing challenge ever set. Who will be crowned the series winner?
posted by ellieBOA (12 comments total)

Sorry this is late, I went on Instagram unthinkingly this morning and got spoiled for the winner so waited until tonight to watch!
posted by ellieBOA at 12:43 PM on March 15, 2021

essexjan you called it last week!
posted by ellieBOA at 12:43 PM on March 15, 2021

I think all three finalists did an amazing job but the winning punchbowl set really was the best, in both form and function. The decanters in particular were stunning.

This is such a lovely show to watch. The camaraderie and support between the contestants is lovely, the judges are always kind and Siobhan has been just wonderful.

I'm hoping there'll be a new craft competition to watch soon. The Interior Design one on the BBC finishes tomorrow, we've just finished Landscape Artist of the Year and so I'm stuck with Masterchef and the dreadful gurning, talentless Gregg Wallace. I'll still keep watching Masterchef though, as I like the arcs of these types of shows, where someone's skills improve week by week until they are producing something so amazing I can only gasp with admiration.

Here's hoping the Sewing Bee will be back soon, or a new season of Project Runway or something like that.
posted by essexjan at 1:39 PM on March 15, 2021 [2 favorites]

This was a final where the winner was clear as soon as the finished products were revealed. I was worried Adam was going to get dinged solely because he chose a non-UK style of Art Deco, but in the end his own designs did him in.

Thus concludes another wonderful season of the show. Thank you to the fine posters on Reddit who enable this US-resident to watch these beloved gentle reality craft competitions.
posted by Anonymous at 3:34 PM on March 15, 2021

I haven’t seen seasons 1 and 2 of Pottery so am planning to watch those next if you fancy a rewatch or even first watch too?
posted by ellieBOA at 11:39 PM on March 15, 2021

I'm happy to do a rewatch! I think I can find them if I sail the high seas (if you know what I mean).
posted by Anonymous at 6:08 PM on March 16, 2021

Yay! I do a UK VPN with the All4 site. I’m aiming for 1 episode every few days.
posted by ellieBOA at 11:00 PM on March 16, 2021

I am surprised! I saw it coming, but I did not like her set as much as the other two. I did like Adam's bowl and cups best, but I think that even if his decanters had been perfect they would have been doomed by Miami style deco instead of UK style. I admit that, much as I love art deco, none of these were particularly to my taste.
posted by jeather at 3:39 PM on March 17, 2021

I just read online that this season is going to be shown in the USA on HBO Max from 1 April. I hope you guys get to see the previous seasons too.
posted by essexjan at 7:24 AM on March 23, 2021

Oooh, and I just saw a trailer for a new series called All That Glitters, which is another craft competition show, this time for jewellery-makers. Sadly, the downside for me is that the host is Katherine Ryan, who I can't stand, but I'll still watch it.
posted by essexjan at 3:05 PM on March 23, 2021 [1 favorite]

And life got in the way of a rewatch from me! Feel free to post one.

Essexjan, I'll be watching All That Glitters when it starts.
posted by ellieBOA at 12:26 AM on April 10, 2021

All three of the finalists were great, but Jodie definitely had the broadest success with her final pieces. (Although my wife would argue that at least one of her decanters was more Art Nouveau than Art Deco.) Adam’s decanters were just a poor design and poured poorly. Peter’s concept was strong (the sunset cups and then moon ladle!), the execution just didn’t land and it looked messy.

I was glad they didn’t do another porcelain final challenge, those always came across as too technically challenging for the potters to really have a chance to show their best at the end.

Rich was great as a judge, and it was fun to see him do the demo for one of the throw downs.

All four seasons are available on HBO Max in the States. The episodes are longer in the first season (or was it the first two?) so the pacing is very different. I remember each episode feeling like it was four hours long (in a good way).
posted by jimw at 9:46 PM on April 17, 2021