Otto Heino, Ojai’s master potter, 1915-2009

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Otto Heino, a high-profile and prolific California studio artist-craftsman, died July 16. He was 94, yet despite his age -- he nonchalantly called himself ‘the oldest and the richest potter in the world’ -- he could still throw hundreds of pounds of clay each day.

Visitors to the Pottery, his studio and gallery in Ojai, often could watch him in action. Those who bought his stoneware pieces got a handwritten receipt from Heino, who wrapped and boxed every purchase.

An exceptionally hospitable man with many a tale to tell, he graciously allowed me to make this video and let me prowl around his living room, oohing and aahing at his original-edition furniture by Hans Wegner and other Danish designers.

Read the full obituary here. View photos of Heino’s studio and home, part of my Home cover story on Heino published a year ago, here.

-- David A. Keeps

Video: David A Keeps