One of my valued clients is Mr. Steven Branfman. In addition to being a renowned ceramic artist, he is actively involved in a truly wonderful cause, and I wanted to take this opportunity to share his work with you. I have included the links below so you can learn more about his story and activities. 

reference: The Potters Shop & School - A Father's Kaddish (Steven Branfman)

A Prayer in the Hands, A Bond Cast in Clay: Pottery Master Steven Branfman and the Story of "A Father’s Kaddish"

Steven Branfman is an internationally acclaimed studio potter, educator, and author. Born in Los Angeles and raised in New York City, his journey into art was inspired by a childhood rich in culture and guided by passionate mentors. Since beginning his career as a studio potter in 1975, he went on to establish "The Potters Shop & School" in 1977—a venue that has grown into an internationally recognized studio, school, and creative home for artists. Through his publications, worldwide workshops, and teaching, he continues to leave a profound mark on the field of ceramics.

The driving force behind Branfman’s work is the creation of exceptional vessels capable of enduring thousands of years of ceramic history, exploring volume, texture, color, and scale while preserving the timeless connection between contemporary expression and functional pottery.

Yet among all his works, there is one body of creation that holds the deepest, most personal significance: his "Kaddish Chawan" (Kaddish Tea Bowls).

Turning to the Wheel in Grief: One Bowl a Day

On September 27, 2005, Steven’s son, Jared, passed away from cancer at the age of 23 after a courageous two-and-a-half-year battle. Jared was an extraordinarily talented and passionate artist, athlete, and scholar. Even through the most grueling treatments, he maintained kindness, positivity, and a determination to live life to the fullest.

One week after Jared’s passing, Steven walked into his studio.

He stood, sat, looked around, and wept. Frozen in grief, his desire to create was entirely gone.

And yet, he sat down at the potter's wheel, picked up a piece of clay, and threw a Japanese tea bowl—a chawan. He inscribed it with the date and number, 9/27, 1/365. The next day, he made seven more. The day after that, one more. For an entire year, no matter where he was, he made one bowl every single day.

In Judaism, the Mourner’s Kaddish is a prayer recited daily for a year following the loss of an immediate family member—a prayer of praise and affirmation of faith intended to bring comfort to the grieving. Alongside reciting the Kaddish at the synagogue every day with his wife Ellen and son Adam, throwing a tea bowl daily at the wheel became Steven's own deeply personal Kaddish.

"Real Tea Bowls" Shared Between Father and Son

Although Steven had thrown bowls for decades since his student days, he had long viewed them simply as functional forms—devoid of deeper personal or cultural resonance.

That perspective transformed when Jared began studying ceramics. Jared was drawn to the complex, challenging form of the bowl and began creating authentic, expressive chawan. Father and son worked side-by-side in the studio, observing, critiquing, and inspiring one another. In that shared artistic bond, the roles of teacher and student blurred, and Steven learned the true depth and spirit of the chawan from his son.

Even when treatments left Jared too weak to work on the wheel, he turned to handbuilding and sculpting, creating vessels that were remarkably powerful and expressive. In just two years, Jared produced a body of work that reflected more growth and passion than many achieve in a decade. His bowls came from the very depths of his soul.

The 365 unglazed tea bowls Steven created during that first year after Jared’s passing were thrown in tribute to his son and to honor his memory.

Returning to the Kaddish Chawan Ten Years Later

For years, the 365 bowls sat prominently on a transparent plastic-covered shelf in Steven's studio, their true meaning hidden from visitors. Not a day passed without Steven gazing at them, holding one or two in his hands, and asking himself what would ultimately become of them.

Ten years after Jared’s death, in 2015, Steven finally returned to his Kaddish Chawan to glaze, fire, and present them to the world in an exhibition.

(In 2009, he had glazed and fired the very first bowl, 9/27, 1/365, for the book 500 Raku. Later, in 2014, he presented it publicly for the first time during an exhibition at Mayyim Hayyim, a ritual bath and gallery space where Jared had once visited—a meaningful milestone on Steven's journey.)

Upon deciding to exhibit the collection, Steven and Ellen agreed that it was right to let the bowls pass into the hands of others—a choice they knew Jared would support.

"Parents who lose a child face the heartbreaking reality that their child's memory may fade over time, and we do whatever we can to delay and prevent that."

Unless otherwise noted, the Kaddish Chawan are offered for sale at $325 each. All proceeds are directed to charitable causes in Jared’s memory, including the Jared Branfman Sunflowers for Life Fund at the Jimmy Fund/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, supporting research into pediatric spinal and brain tumors to help realize the dream of ending cancer.

A Lasting Legacy

Steven and his family continue to ride as "Team Kermit" in the Pan-Mass Challenge (PMC) annual bike-a-thon. The team is named after Kermit the Frog—one of Jared’s favorite childhood characters—and his motto, "It's not easy being green," which served as a source of strength and humor for Jared during his treatments.

365 bowls thrown day by day, imbued with love, grief, and faith. As these tea bowls find their way into the hands of people around the world, they carry forward Jared’s memory and his enduring legacy of helping others.