About Clay Kitchen Portugal
Clay Kitchen Portugal is a place where creative people meet with clay in their veins. What began as a personal search for the right conditions to make ceramics slowly became something larger: a place where people gather around clay, fire and time. A studio built not only to produce work, but to host processes, conversations and long firings that shape both objects and people. Clay Kitchen Portugal is a ceramic studio and retreat space rooted in wood firing, community and the landscape of Alentejo.
Our Story
Clay Kitchen Portugal was created with the intention of building a fully equipped space dedicated to ceramics — a place where making could happen without rush and without compromise. From the beginning, the focus was on creating the right conditions: generous workspaces, shared facilities, and a kiln that would invite collaboration. In 2020, this vision took physical form with the construction of a large wood-fired kiln, designed as a train kiln with a Bourry firebox and crossdraft chamber. Built collectively and fired collectively, the kiln can hold up to 750 pieces, depending on their size. But the story of Clay Kitchen is not about dates or buildings alone. It is about the people who pass through, the exchanges that happen around the kiln, and the shared energy that grows with every firing.
Vision & Philosophy
At Clay Kitchen Portugal, process matters more than results.
We believe ceramics is not only about finished objects, but about attention, patience and presence. Wood firing teaches this especially well: it cannot be rushed, fully controlled or done alone. Fire asks for commitment, collaboration and trust.
Our philosophy is grounded in:
- Shared processes rather than individual production;
- Learning through doing, observing, and exchanging;
- Respect for material, fire, and traditional techniques;
- Openness to experimentation and uncertainty.
Clay Kitchen Portugal exists to support artists at different stages of their practice, offering space to explore, reflect and grow within a living community.
Why clay, why fire, why here?
Clay connects hands to earth. Fire connects people to time.
Wood firing sits at the heart of Clay Kitchen Portugal because it brings together technique, unpredictability and collective effort. Each firing becomes a temporary community — shaped by long hours, shared responsibility and the rhythm of the kiln.
Set in the quiet landscape of Alentejo, Clay Kitchen Portugal offers distance from distraction and closeness to nature. The land, the light and the slower pace of life are part of the experience, creating space for focus, reflection and deeper engagement with the work.
This is not a production studio. It is a place to slow down and let things unfold.
The people behind Clay Kitchen Portugal
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David Trueb
Founder, Manager & Facilitator Clay has been part of David’s life for as long as he can remember. For him, ceramics is a way to bring people together through shared effort, curiosity, and fire. Clay Kitchen grew from his desire to create a place where makers could meet, learn from one another, and work with clay in a meaningful way.
Irene Nunes
Co-Manager Irene began working with ceramics over a decade ago and has been part of Clay Kitchen since the very beginning. She brings continuity, sensitivity, and a deep understanding of the space, supporting both the daily life of the studio and the people who pass through it. Together, they care for Clay Kitchen as a living project — constantly shaped by its community.