Design Stories: The Dragon of the West
Introducing Our New Blog Series: Design Stories at Donovan Pottery!
At Donovan Pottery, every piece of art we create has a story behind it, and we want to share these stories with you. Through this new blog series, we’ll take you behind the scenes, showing you the inspirations, the process, and the passion that goes into each design. From time to time, you’ll even see designs that haven’t yet made it to our mugs, giving you a sneak peek and a chance to help us decide what should come to life next.
We’re excited to hear your thoughts and hope you’ll join the conversation in the comments! Do you love the design? Would you buy it? Your feedback helps us shape the future of Donovan Pottery, so don’t be shy—we can’t wait to hear from you.
Now, let’s kick things off with one of my personal favorite designs, inspired by a beloved character from Avatar: The Last Airbender…
The Dragon of the West: Cozy Yet Fierce
As both a tea lover and a fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender, I knew I had to create a piece inspired by Uncle Iroh. For those who don’t know, Uncle Iroh is the tea-drinking, wisdom-sharing, heartwarming character that many—including myself—consider the true hero of the series. His blend of silliness, charisma, wisdom, and quiet strength has always been an inspiration to me. He’s the type of hero we all should aspire to be—dangerous when necessary, yet cozy and charming.
So, I started sketching. The result? A dragon sitting peacefully in a teacup, smiling. Despite its fearsome reputation, the dragon is at pure peace, nestled in a mug adorned with jasmine flowers (a nod to Iroh’s favorite tea). I was striving for a design that perfectly captures the balance of power and tranquility that I believe defines Uncle Iroh’s character.
From Paper to Pottery
Creating this design was a labor of love. Every scale and whisker was carefully drawn by hand, first in pencil and then digitally using Procreate. We’ve invested in a specialized ceramic printer just for projects like this, allowing us to take intricate designs and fire them onto our handmade porcelain mugs. This particular mug was thrown on the pottery wheel in our studio, adding that handmade touch that makes each piece unique.
The combination of the detailed dragon and the delicate jasmine flowers makes this piece both powerful and peaceful—just like Uncle Iroh.
What Do You Think?
Now, this is where you come in. We’re testing out designs for a potential Avatar collection, and we’d love to know if this one resonates with you! Would you want to see this design on one of our mugs? Do you have any ideas for other Avatar-inspired designs?
Let us know in the comments! Your feedback directly influences what we create next, and we can’t wait to hear your thoughts.
At Donovan Pottery, every piece of art we create has a story behind it, and we want to share these stories with you. Through this new blog series, we’ll take you behind the scenes, showing you the inspirations, the process, and the passion that goes into each design. From time to time, you’ll even see designs that haven’t yet made it to our mugs, giving you a sneak peek and a chance to help us decide what should come to life next.
We’re excited to hear your thoughts and hope you’ll join the conversation in the comments! Do you love the design? Would you buy it? Your feedback helps us shape the future of Donovan Pottery, so don’t be shy—we can’t wait to hear from you.
Now, let’s kick things off with one of my personal favorite designs, inspired by a beloved character from Avatar: The Last Airbender…
The Dragon of the West: Cozy Yet Fierce
As both a tea lover and a fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender, I knew I had to create a piece inspired by Uncle Iroh. For those who don’t know, Uncle Iroh is the tea-drinking, wisdom-sharing, heartwarming character that many—including myself—consider the true hero of the series. His blend of silliness, charisma, wisdom, and quiet strength has always been an inspiration to me. He’s the type of hero we all should aspire to be—dangerous when necessary, yet cozy and charming.
So, I started sketching. The result? A dragon sitting peacefully in a teacup, smiling. Despite its fearsome reputation, the dragon is at pure peace, nestled in a mug adorned with jasmine flowers (a nod to Iroh’s favorite tea). I was striving for a design that perfectly captures the balance of power and tranquility that I believe defines Uncle Iroh’s character.
From Paper to Pottery
Creating this design was a labor of love. Every scale and whisker was carefully drawn by hand, first in pencil and then digitally using Procreate. We’ve invested in a specialized ceramic printer just for projects like this, allowing us to take intricate designs and fire them onto our handmade porcelain mugs. This particular mug was thrown on the pottery wheel in our studio, adding that handmade touch that makes each piece unique.
The combination of the detailed dragon and the delicate jasmine flowers makes this piece both powerful and peaceful—just like Uncle Iroh.
What Do You Think?
Now, this is where you come in. We’re testing out designs for a potential Avatar collection, and we’d love to know if this one resonates with you! Would you want to see this design on one of our mugs? Do you have any ideas for other Avatar-inspired designs?
Let us know in the comments! Your feedback directly influences what we create next, and we can’t wait to hear your thoughts.
