Meeting artists in Ñamarín and Saraguro – The Potter

Meeting artists in Ñamarín and Saraguro: Part 3 – The Potter – Saraguro, Ecuador

We conclude this InMyDreams-Grand-Prize-award-winning 3-part program with the wonderful work of Angel Lozano, a potter and ceramacist in Saraguro. Actually it’s Angelito, as his father, the potter who started their shop Ceramica Lozano, is also Angel. Angel the younger is taking over most of the work now and we really appreciated him (and his nephew, who couldn’t stop trying to eat the clay!) showing us their studio and process.

Studio sign for the family Lozano – Angelito also paints and sculpts!

Part of the studio with pieces ready for carving and glazing…

Angel’s nephew – cute as can be and he loved playing with us! Like so many Ecuadorian kids, his parents are in the US sending back money so he’s staying with his extended family.

Compared to the processes of the other artists we visited in Ñamarín and Saraguro, I think Angel’s would be the most matching to what folks see in more modern studios today. He uses electric wheels, plaster molds that have to be replaced every 4-5 years due to use and even a kiln imported from the US! True, the kiln is over 30 years old, lovingly upkept, the glazes are often made with local materials and there are a few re-purposed machines used for making the clay and slip, but I’d guess much of the process remains the same. Not being a ceramacist, though, perhaps I’m way off…

Angel pours clay slip into a mold of a mug.

He makes sure the slip fills to the very top, waits a bit as it settles, repeating until it stays like this…

…then he pours out the slip so that he has a hollow mug form inside the mold!

After drying for a day or so, he can remove the mold and then the mug will air dry for another day before being cleaned and carved. Here you can also see the wall of molds on the right and some of Angel’s figurative sculptures in the back.

Now, what better way to show the cleaning and carving than with video? No better way, I say, so here you go:

Pottery Demo 1 – Angel cleans a newly cast mug (with nephew cameo)

Pottery Demo 2 (this is a long one so feel free to fast forward) – Antonio adds the design of a local indigenous woman to a mug

It amazes me how fast and confident he was in that 2nd video with carving the design! Recognize the hat and other elements from the women weavers? THAT’s Saraguro to me!

Carved Saraguro woman – check out the video for the whole process in about 6 minutes!

Here’s a few more pieces in process around their shop awaiting cleaning, carving, glazing and/or firing…

The Lozanos focus on designs of local culture – maize is a staple in almost every daily meal.

Another Saraguro woman with a local Andean background.

The Lozanos mostly work on commission pieces and cast to order. Each piece is then hand carved with a design (if desired), hand glazed and kiln fired. They are truly gorgeous! It’s times like these when it’s really hard to be travelling with only backpacks for a year, as it’d be REALLY nice to have some of their work in our kitchen! Angelito said they ship, but I think we’ll have to hold off as who knows when we’ll be back to the States. If you’re interested though, he said you can email him a photo and he’ll carve that image on pieces for you – bring on that set of personalized platters! (ceramicalozano@hotmail.com)

His nephew was too cute not to add in one more photo!