Biography

I graduated in architecture from the University of Malaga and obtained a medium degree in pottery from the San Telmo School of Arts and Crafts, Malaga. I continued to complete my ceramic studies by taking various courses with ceramists such as Kazuko Uga, Rafaela Pareja, Xavier Montsalvaje, Chisato Kuroki or Alberto Bustos, among others.

I’ve always felt drawn to the arts, to being able to design and create objects with my own hands, using them to show my vision. While studying architecture I came to realize that something was missing. I needed to be able to build things and express myself in a more direct and versatile way. One of the reasons I opted for pottery was because my uncle, Pablo Romero, is a professional potter, and I’ve visited his workshop and seen him working passionately since I was a child. I was attracted not only to pottery, but also to other disciplines.

I discovered the wide range of possibilities that pottery has to offer, not only for the variety of techniques and materials, but also for the challenge that it represents: the shapeless substance that ends up transforming into something quite different, sometimes transferring an idea that I had in mind beforehand into the object, and other times letting my hands take creative control.

Pottery requires energy and concentration. Throwing is a kind of dialogue between the clay and yourself. It doesn’t always come out as you expected and you often get surprises, sometimes good ones, sometimes not so good ones. Patience is necessary throughout this process, since pottery has its own rhythm and you can’t rush it. At the same time it’s greatly satisfying because of the results, the constant learning, and the challenges. At the end of the day you’re working with nature, and nature is indomitable, it never ceases to amaze.

Elaboration

Most of the pieces are made on a lathe and/or modeled, but there are a number of them that are made from plaster molds previously taken from different objects or pieces. As for the material used, earthenware or stoneware is used depending on the style to be followed, that is, the idea of the piece, the finish and its use: the most pictorial pieces, with more elaborate and colorful drawings and that are more decorative, are made in earthenware; and the most elegant and with more intensive use, such as crockery, are made of stoneware.

Earthenware

Earthenware is white clay, a low-temperature paste (fired at 990°) in which drawings with a great variety of color and detail can be made using colored pigments and on which a glaze is applied, which when cooked vitrifies and gives that smooth and shiny finish.

Stoneware

Stoneware is a high-temperature paste (fired at 1260°) and is more resistant and durable than earthenware, which is why it is used in tableware. Metallic oxides and enamels of various colors and textures are used for its decoration. With a finer finish, here the shape and the enamels makes the difference. If you want to know more about the ceramic process, don’t forget to visit the blog, where you can find a series of articles that explain different parts of this process in a simple way and with numerous examples.