
Most of the potters in Masbagik Timur have been trained either by the Lombok
Handicraft Project or by one of the several development projects managed by the Department
of Industry. It is thanks to these training programs that people of Masbagik Timur, most
of whom have only primary school education, no w boast a collective experience that
includes the intricacies of the art of potting, and the creativity to experiment, improve
and refine their designs in accordance with market demands.
Masbagik Timur pottery is unique for its finishing a characteristic which
potters from other village have as yet been unable to imitate. Furthermore, the firing and
glazing process in Masbagik Timur, being free of hazardous chemicals such us the diesel
that is used in Banyumulek and Penujak, is completely occupationally sound.
Although the craft of potting in this village is a complex and delicate one, the tools of
trade are simple and include no more than clay, water, coconut husks and coconut oil.
The fruits of development are
clearly visible in Masbagik Timur; satellite dishes, the adorn the roofs of almost every
Bapak Haji Masdar, points out: 'The abundance of satellite dishes is probably the most
visible evidence of prosperity here. But more than that, just about everybody in this
village has made the pilgrimage to Mecca, and some people have even done so several times.
Of all the villages in the villages in the province of West Nusa Tenggara, Masbagik Timur
has the highest average income per capita. An this is all because of the ceramics
Industry. Officials records put income from Sales of Masbagik Timur pots at Rp 5 billion (
approximately five hundred thousand US dollars, ed). Imagine that!".
Whether Masbagik Timur's ceramic Industry can continue to boom in the
context of the current economic crisis, however remains in question. On the one hand, as a
result of the crisis, order from Australia, Japan, Germany, England and America have
increased by up to 50%, and Masbagik Timur potters are working extra hard to fulfill this
demand. But on the other hand increased demand from overseas for Indonesian handicrafts
has resulted in a shortage of containers. At the time of writing, the potters of Masbagik
Timur had been waiting six months, and were still yet to secure a container to export
their completed orders.
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