Sgraffito (in Italian "to scratch") is a decorating pottery technique produced by applying layers of color or colors (underglazes or colored slips) to leather hard pottery and then scratching off parts of the layer(s) to create contrasting images, patterns and texture and reveal the clay color underneath.
The layer(s) of color can be underglazes or colored slips. This piece is an example of one technique and what can be achieved through solid just positive space retaining as the negative space is scratches out.
This piece is made in mid-fire porcelain. It is hand-built with thin slabs of clay as it gloriously features such light weight. These thin slabs, become translucent upon firing to maturity as the glass content inside the clay body melts.
This beautiful black and white urn is an exceptionally well-built despite it's complex material composition along with a complicated minute pattern of carving.