Ceramics
Hijo de Epigmenio: For the Love of Spanish Crafts
Juan Manuel Gil López is the son of (hijo de) Epigmenio, hence the name of his shop Hijo de Epigmenio. I first met him when I visited his central Madrid shop in August 2019 on the last day of my month in Spain. The handmade artisan items on display fascinated me. Many were unfamiliar and he…
Read MoreEspacio Intermedio: The Space In-Between
Espacio Intermedio is an online gallery for artistic crafts led by Cristina Vallejo, an architect and the founder of the furniture and contemporary craft studio ELSUR, and Marta Redondo, an architect, specialising in the design, management, and direction of exhibition and museum projects. They joined forces with the mission to promote creatives who work in that “intermediate…
Read MoreCreating During COVID
Spain for Design reached out to three artists who were among the first to be profiled on these pages. Speedy, the new work by renowned Spanish artist Felipao, the artistic name of Felipe Garcia-Bañon Sanz-Briz, has its basis in Chinese mythological traditions and his reflections about life under COVID-19. Last year, I was in the process…
Read MoreBauhaus Inspired Exhibition at the National Museum of Decorative Arts in Madrid
In collaboration with the Francisco Alcántara School of Art of Ceramics, the National Museum of Decorative Arts in Madrid has organized an exhibition that features the 2018-2019 students’ final projects. The exhibition celebrates the centenary of the influential early-twentieth-century Bauhaus style and the survival of its pedagogical model. The exhibition is part of the museums’ Design and Pedagogy…
Read MoreSACo: Showcasing Contemporary Spanish Artisanship
“SACo’s genesis arises from the experience of a group of artisan firms in Spain that sensed the need to come together to improve their exposure and commercialization capacity inside and, especially, outside Spain. As an organization, we will promote artisans that create contemporary designs, who make their products mainly by hand with a high level…
Read MoreProfile: Yukiko Kitahara: Eastern Influence
“I am the daughter of a family of sushi chefs in Tokyo. I have been taught the importance of tableware since childhood and that it must be enjoyed with all five senses, First, with the look, the composition, the relationship of the plate with the food. Since then, I have always liked porcelain. My grandfather…
Read MoreNew Pieces for Mas Creations collection by Masquespacio
Ana Hernández and Christophe Penasse, co-founders of Valencia-based studio Masquespacio, have launched several new pieces to add to the collections of their new brand Mas Creations. Block Chairs is a family of dining chairs that is notable for its particular form, contrast of materials, and color. Composed of marble, stainless steel, wood, velvet fabrics, it…
Read MoreWoodic: Bringing Technology to the Traditional
Woodic -a contraction of wood + ceramic- is the ceramic art studio that Natalia Suarez opened in 2018. A graduate of the University of Barcelona in Fine Arts with a specialty in design, she pursued further education in Artistic Ceramics at the Barcelona Arts and Crafts School in Llotja, San Andreu. Natalia’s work reflects her…
Read MoreCeramica Soluna: Faces and Masks
Originally from Madrid, María Tejada (“Marietta”) creates ceramics from her studio, Cerámica Soluna, in Cudillero, Asturias. She came to the craft by chance, through a friend who was studying it in Madrid. She took courses to learn more about it and moved to Asturias in 2006, where she continued to perfect her technique. Her pieces-…
Read MoreCristina Mato: Clay in Motion
Cristina Mato is a ceramic artist, based in Oviedo. “I started ceramics as a hobby 15 years ago. I immediately knew that it was my calling. I kept at it, taking lessons at the Escuela Municipal de Artes Plásticas de Oviedo, and participating in workshops with ceramic masters. The beginning of my artistic career took…
Read MoreAsturias for Artisans
Asturias has a wealth of artisan traditions, notably in wood, metal crafts, bladesmith (knives from Taramundi), and pieces made with azabachea (jet stone). Artisans in Asturias continue to work in traditional crafts, but many are making them contemporary by, for example, using technology in their processes. Others are dispensing with traditional ways of making and finding their…
Read MoreTado: The Little Shop of Ceramics
“All those who build a house around a tree or a rock and who make this tree or rock a beautiful and useful addition”. Tado owner Sylvie Fiachetti about her inspiration. Tado is Sylvie Fiachetti’s shop in the Las Letras neighbourhood of Madrid. She has been attracted to well-made objects since childhood. With no formal…
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