The Nitty Gritty Details of Danny Kaplan Studio

Spotting a Danny Kaplan original piece from across the room takes a trained and educated eye. Oftentimes they pass off as priceless relics that have been handed off by ancient kings, traveled great distances and overseas just to be converted into a centerpiece on a coffee table somewhere on the upper east side. No disrespect to Tut or one of the Henry’s but after giving further inspection of a Kaplan original - we prefer Danny’s creative mind and process over ancient history any day.

PHOTOS COURTESY DANNY KAPLAN STUDIO

Brooklyn Artist, Danny Kaplan,
Is Larger Than Life.

Just so, his hand-thrown table lamps and clay folded vessels are also similarly scaled. His enthusiasm and vision evolved after becoming exposed to traditional pottery making during his childhood holidays, to bespoke markets tucked away in the South of France. It was there and then that Kaplan received an early education on the symbiotic relationship of beauty and grit. Completely self taught, Kaplan is in a constant state of evolving both his skills and his meticulous projects. Monochromatic earth tones of smoothed marble and textured and glazed ceramics define his personal signature.

His studio is a pre-war former bottling factory that offers generous space to best serve the tremendous kilns for his large scale projects. It is here that each and every made-to-order piece is molded into life from its design sketch conception. A variety of ceramic techniques are used during the formation process including wheel throwing, coil and slab building and glazing. After the final step occurs, the piece whether it be a table lamp or chair, feels both contemporary and primitive and uniquely covetable.