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the secret of their strength is hidden inside: the creators score
lines into one of the layers and spool in galvanized steel wire,
which Phid says can “stretch” a bit more than the concrete. As
the final shaping is done and the screed is pulled away, there
will be no unsightly exterior seam lines.

In the next state, the pots cure in a separate room with mists
and radiant floor heat. Aided by the moisture, crystals grow
through the concrete matrix, giving it strength. Phid says when
the pots leave Lunaform they have 90 percent of the concrete’s
full strength, and that full strength is reached in about 100 years.
After curing, the pots are sandblasted. They may be carved
or decorated at different stages in the process. A “pine cone”
amphora is carved by four people working around it before it
dries. They may texturize the pots with rock salt, tossing it on
randomly and picking it out as the pot dries. Ferns, letters, or
other stencils may be sandblasted into the surface.

The color, added after sandblasting, is also applied in several Shown with Lunaform’s first and signature pot, the “Luna,”
is company co-founder Phid Lawless.
layers resembling pancake batter. It may be texturized, too, and
base coats plus weathering washes and metallic finishes create
a variety of colors and patterns.
Injecting air into the drain releases the suction of the concrete on the
mold. Some of the urn molds collapse; the larger ones have cabinet latches.
The biggest pots are big enough for someone to crawl inside to collapse the
mold. The whole process of creating each pot takes about three weeks.
Lunaform makes all its own molds, materials, and tables. A new piece
might be created when a customer likes an existing shape but wants some-
thing bigger. “No one is really copying Lunaform. It’s too much work,”
A view of the gallery
Phid said. From the first 190-pound signature pot – named after a pregnant
cat, Luna, who had a big belly – the company’s work can now be found across
North America, from giant reliquary urns for whole families in a Vancouver
cemetery, to a set of spheres destined for a development in Florida where a
sculptor will add bronze turtles to the “eggs”. Besides decorative urns, am-
phoras and planters, the company makes lanterns, birdbaths and bowls for gas
fire pits and fountains, and have occasionally made animals. Some of Luna-
form’s creations have reached New Zealand and others are on cruise ships.
Students help in the workshop in the summer, and the rest of the craftsmen
continue throughout the year.

“Technically speaking, I’m supposed to be an architect,” Phid said.
He’s designed and built solar homes, but enjoys this much more because he
gets to do more design work, and he enjoys painting and sculpting. Other
manufacturers call their poured concrete pots “cast stone,” he said, adding,
“There’s no such thing. God did some casting with stone, maybe.”

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A pot in the early stages of construction is turned on a wheel as
concrete is layered on, and shaped by the screed in this frame.

These photos show two very different
designs and finishes of pots on location
at Lunaform in Sullivan. Both photos
are courtesy of Lunaform.

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