Bret Bortner Design in St. Joseph, Berrien County, United States | Design

Welcome to Bret Bortner Design, St. Joseph, United States. I have been Designing pottery since the early 1970’s. At the end of 2001, after twenty years of Designing and producing pottery (see History/Archives), I closed my production facility in Elgin, IL and began Designing for B.I.A. Cordon Bleu of S. San Francisco, CA. With the exception of a number of Crate & Barrel exclusives, this is the collection of white porcelain dinnerware, serveware, and tabletop accessories I created for them.

I believe that good Design is "tributary" in both senses of the word: it pays tribute to, reveres, that which inspires us, drawing upon the essence of a body of work or a style without simply imitating: and in Designing something new, one creates a small tributary stream that feeds, along with other "streams" of thought, into a larger flow of ideas that may, ultimately, define a new style, a new movement.

If there is an underlying theme, a Design "theory," in my work, it is the desire to find within each piece, each form, its essence; to create an object that imparts a simplicity and a humility that bring a sense of beauty and serenity to any environment.

In 2005, I built a new addition to the store, a clay studio, The Pottery Shop, where I create both one-of-a-kind and short run production items in earthenware, terra cotta, stoneware and porcelain. All Bret Bortner Design items created in this clay studio will be available exclusively at FORM. If you are ever in or near St. Joseph, Michigan, please stop in and see us at Bret Bortner Design. We are open seven days a week