About
The studio
A former print works on Karl-Heine-Straße, three benches along the north windows, and a kiln room that smells of hot stone. We have worked here since 2019.
Three makers, one kiln
Craft Studio Lab started when Mara Feld moved a second-hand wheel into a corner of a shared print workshop. What began as a few bowls for friends became a small series, then a catalogue, then a waiting list.
Today the studio is run by Mara together with Jonas Ried (wood) and Ilka Brandt (textiles and paper). We keep production deliberately small: no more than four series a year, each made between other commissions.
We buy clay from a family pit in Westerwald, oak from a sawmill near Grimma, and paper from a mill in the Erzgebirge that has been running since 1810. Offcuts become small objects; the rest goes back into the kiln as grog.
Visiting
The workshop is open to visitors on Thursdays and Fridays, 11–18, and on the first Saturday of each month. Groups of more than six people should write ahead.
People
Who you will meet
Mara Feld
Ceramics. Throwing, glazing and the endless trouble with ash. Studied fine arts in Halle; has been working with clay since 2011.
Jonas Ried
Wood. Joints, finishes and the packing bench. Trained as a Tischler in Leipzig and still measures everything twice.
Ilka Brandt
Textiles and paper. Weaving, folding and the studio’s archive of samples, which is larger than it should be.
The kiln
A 60-litre front-loader from 1994, rebuilt twice. It is not fast, but it is honest about temperature.