When Ladi Kwali was a child, she began making pots with her aunt. Today, her elegant water jars grace collections around the world.

Early in her career, Ladi mastered hand-built pottery, in which the potter circles the pot, adding clay coils by hand. Later, in the Abuja Pottery Training Centre, she worked with stoneware, a clay that can be glazed and that appealed to the export market.

Working from the Gwari tradition, Ladi Kwali created pottery that kept the basic shapes and design of traditional Gwari pots while adapting them for new uses. She flattened the bottoms so they would not fall over and she used glazes that added strength and high gloss.