Aztec Vase

Stepped bands of geometric relief wrap the body of this vessel, borrowing from the carved stonework of Mesoamerica: the interlocking frets, terraced blocks and repeating motifs that ran round temple platforms and doorways. The patterning is bold rather than fussy, cut deep enough to read as sculpture from across a room instead of dissolving into surface texture at any distance. It belongs in interiors that lean on natural materials and heavy shapes, so a shelf of pottery, a plant corner, or a hallway table that wants something with visual weight on it. Add dried grasses, seed heads or bare stems and it reads as an artefact; leave it empty and it holds up perfectly well as a standalone sculptural object. A single file, and an easy one to run at more than one size if you would rather have a graduated set than a single piece.