Schwartzwald Expresses Alpine Aesthetic

As an attorney in New York, Brittany Hart Hillman Schwartzwald kept her hands dirty and rented a shelf in a pottery studio. Now she has a studio in her Candler Park home where she has a wheel, kiln and huge worktable.

The shtick that makes her business model unconventional is how the majority of her work is sold on Instagram, as well as using an honor system sale where she leaves her work up all year long on the front porch of her home — fans come to shop, and then send her money via Venmo.

Schwartzwald created this pair of life-sized jeans as her largest endeavor.

Make no mistake, her work is celebrated, unique and casts a very Zen spell. She also sells her pottery at festivals at Inman Park and Candler Park, and at Spruill Center for the Arts, Garage Door Studios, and The Green Flamingo.

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Schwartzwald said, “An alpine lake is my most preferred kind of ‘pretty,’ and that is often the vibe I am going for with my pottery. My glazes have names like: Georgia Pine, Sweetwater, Blue Ridge and Camila. But sometimes it is a song, like Taylor Swift’s ‘New Romantics’ and ‘Lover,’ which each have their own inspired colorway.”

After earning a law degree, working in New York, and having a son, she moved back to Atlanta. Thus, she took a hiatus from making art for almost a decade.
Judaica naturally dovetails into Schwartzwald’s style. She stated, “I started making

Judaica because the pieces we got as wedding presents didn’t really fit our aesthetic. I make Shabbat candlesticks ($72), kiddush cups ($72), Havdalah sets ($234), challah platters ($120), menorahs ($150), seder plates ($220), and mezuzahs ($54). I also make mugs, vases, planters, plates, bowls and serving dishes. Mugs are my best sellers. People love their coffee; and I want my mug to be the favorite one on the shelf, the one you reach for time and time again and hope isn’t dirty and in the dishwasher.”

Brittany’s hanukkiah would be delightful glowing in a window.

Schwartzwald gets her artsy mojo in the morning. She works out, and then “gets to work” listening to her favorite playlists on Spotify. She makes a rough to-do list and then starts weighing out the clay, spending three to four hours “throwing” at a time. After that, to avoid back problems, she switches it up to unload a kiln, do glaze work, respond to customers, update Instagram, clean the studio, order supplies, do the accounting, pick up materials, schedule festivals or ship work.

Growing up at Ahavath Achim Synagogue, Schwartzwald said, “My family has been in Atlanta so long, we’ve got relatives in Oakland Cemetery.”

As a child she was into art, ceramics specifically. She took classes at Callanwolde Art School and won the Piedmont Arts Fair Competition as a high school student. As a teenager, Schwartzwald crafted a pair of life-sized overalls. She labels that the largest and most ambitious piece she ever undertook.

She related, “I want my pottery to be like your favorite jeans, the ones that are cozy comfy and you reach for all the time. There is an energy transfer with the love I put into that mug you are holding in your hand; it just feels different than a machine manufactured mug.”

Schwartzwald’s orchid pot features an elaborate pebbled texture.

Pottery is Schwartzwald’s day job. Floral arranging is her hobby. Seasonally, she sells bouquets of flowers in her own vases. She also offers floral arranging classes ($125/person, minimum of 10 people) at her home. She also likes to hike, camp and travel. Schwartzwald volunteers with the Candler Park Neighborhood Association and Atlanta Public Schools.

Schwartzwald, and her husband, Alan, and two children Mack and Mimi, and belong to Congregation Shearith Israel.

She concluded, “I gladly commission pieces, so long as it fits my color scheme and vibe. I can’t recreate your grandmother’s favorite bowl.”

To purchase Schwartzwald’s work, please visit Instagram (www.instagram.com/b_hart_art); to book a floral class, please visit www.bhartart.com or email bhartartatl@gmail.com. Shop at her front porch using the honor system at 1320 Iverson St.