From generous bowls to tall, tapering pots, each piece is a tribute to his love of texture. Expertly thrown, with their grainy exteriors in dark earthy shades and softly coloured contrasting interiors, at first glance these ceramics appear to be fashioned from a more solid material. Yet pick up any of these pieces and you will discover that they are feather-light and deceptively delicate.

His commercial career began while he was still at college when, having approached Liberty, Sotis was given his first commission. 'I was still producing coilwork at the time,' he says, 'long thin lengths of clay that are coiled round to make the object.' At the end of the Liberty contract, he realised this type of work was too time-consuming and turned his hand to the wheel.

Sotis's first commission using the wheel was for The Conran Shop and it was this contract that finally made him decide to settle in the UK. It also gave him the confidence to set up in business and purchase the small studio in Fulham where he has now worked for the past six years.

Material benefits

Along with the lure of future work, another reason to stay in the UK was the clay, which is very different from any Sotis had worked with before. He uses a clay from the home of pottery - Stoke-on-Trent - that is very rough and textured, with fine, stone-like sand particles, but highly malleable. This allows him to achieve his characteristic fine yet textured finish. He fires his pots-at 1,000°C and, once they have cooled, you can feel the tiny stones over the enlire surface. However, prior to firing, he can alter the surface appearance by scraping away the fine stones to reveal small indentations. Customers are always surprised by how light Sotis's ceramics are, but this is his intention. 'While I try to make my work as light and fine as possible/ he says, 'I want it to appear heavy, as if it were made from another material, such as wood or stone.' To Sotis the sign of a good piece is when people ask him what it is made of. Inspiration comes from many sources, but they are always organic. Current favourites include tree bark and black volcanic rock.

Shapes are simple, since Sotis believes it is important that people recognise and identify with each piece. Although he has experimented with gloss finishes, he prefers mall glazes and natural oxides, such as copper and iron. His choice ot colours reflects the objects of his inspiration: natural deep earthy-brown tones contrast with soft sky-blues, while charcoal-greys arc teamed with chalky whites. It is fortunate that Sotis likes to work quickly, because once the powder oxides he uses are mixed with water, they dry out and revert to powder within a few seconds. Then the oxides and glazes are applied and the pots are re-fired at 1,2HO°C. Working at such high temperatures and with such thin clay, Sotis is aware of how much can go wrong. Pots have stuck to the bottom of the kiln, oxides have reacted to certain glazes, causing pots to warp and sometimes the kiln breaks down, which means pots are fired at the wrong temperatures. 'There is a lot of trial and error in my work - even the position of a pot in the kiln can influence the outcome,' explains Sotis, 'but this has led to some interesting and unexpected results.' He also finds that people like the surprise element of his work - they appreciate the fact that every piece is going to be different. 'It's the nature of handmade objects and as long as I like the results, I'm happy.'