New Ceramics 1 / 2025

 

An Interview with Monika Grass

1.I know your work since many years, have seen huge wall panels, in different colors and shape. Last time in Portugal, at the AIC/IAC Congress 2024. How did you start with this way to work in ceramics?

It was all unconscious. The next thing I knew, I was already in the art world. I studied ceramics for three years at the Soares dos Reis Art School, but it never really interested me because it was so closely linked to industry, and I became increasingly interested in photography. When it came time to go to university, I didn't want to pursue sculpture because photography was calling out to me. I ended up not going to any course, photography was private and there was no money to pay for the course. So I set up my own little studio, still at my parents' house, and started making my first ceramic pieces. I was trying to find interest in what I had studied for three years, but I wasn't satisfied with the results. One day I received information that there was going to be an intensive course in sculpture and ceramic murals with the sculptor Arcádio Blasco in Coimbra, Portugal. I took the course and discovered another world in ceramics, I realized that there was another world after all, that ceramics is just a material with which you can do almost anything. From then on..... went on to break new ground. I did other specializations in Spain with Emilio Galassi, spent a short time working in the studio of the master Arcadio Blasco and never stopped. I was hooked. I admit it, it's my addiction 😊 😊.

2. Are you born as a creative person? Working with clay from childhood?

As I said before, it was all very unconscious.  I never had any relatives connected to the arts, much less ceramics, so I didn't grow up in that world, and perhaps that's why I never felt like I fit in with the so-called “normal” world.

3. Can you explain the materials you use, the firings - and why did you choose “clay“ in your special way!

In the early years I worked with earthenware, then I started working with stoneware and occasionally with porcelain. Stoneware is my material of choice, with which I have developed my ceramic sculptures and murals. I gave up glazing for good in 2005. I don't identify with them at all in the works I've developed. I like to work with the natural colors of stoneware, with different grain sizes, I buy some colors and then mix them to get more colors and gradients. Occasionally I work with porcelain, but it's not my favorite clay, unless I'm in China, when porcelain is the clay of choice. I'm increasingly fond of the idea of mixing clays with different behaviors, so that later, in my wood-fired kiln, I can obtain more shades and “defects” in the piece. A kind of challenge between me and the clay, with the fire and smoke having the final say. I was taught that with ceramics there are surprises.... so let them be real surprises :-) :-) !! In 2005 I also started working with a wood kiln and it's the only kiln I have. I produce the pieces in my studio in the center of Porto, pack them raw and drive 250 km to my wood kiln, which is in a small village in the interior of Portugal, in Bragança.  Only when I'm in an artist's residence do I adapt to the kilns in the space.

  4. It´s hard work with the big panels, but you do also work on beautiful smaller pieces:

     - what’s the reason/the idea behind - they look so different...?

Although I work on a larger scale than we usually see, I still feel that my works are small. My goal is to create large-scale murals and sculptures, but to achieve this, I would need resources and, above all, clients willing to invest in these proposals.

In Portugal, the tradition of tiles serves as a starting point for the creation of my murals. From there, I try to go one step further, transforming these initial references into volumetric forms, creating works that expand and gain presence in space. My work is based on essential themes: space, habitat, the mountain, the valley, the path, the garden, the territory - in short, the environment that surrounds human beings and the settings that have accompanied them since their earliest origins. I also draw on deep and universal feelings, such as falsehood, love, disappointment - emotions that are so intrinsic to the human condition.

The drawings that make up my works have a language marked by simple lines, always in search of a harmonious rhythm in the composition. The repetitions of elements create patterns that gradually recreate geometries that fade with faded colors, the result of the action of fire. My intention is to explore rough textures and brittle roughness, reminiscent of geological formations, such as rocky or sedimentary overlays, imitating the stratigraphy of the earth. In the end, they often look like paintings.

In recent years, I have dedicated myself to investigating climate change, using water as a central theme in many of my works. This is the main focus of my production in the studio. However, when I take part in artist residencies, I always try to absorb the local culture and context to create new works. Recently, I had the opportunity to be in China again, where I produced works with a different approach. The immensity of the garbage and the disparities between social classes were the issues that drove my work, serving as a point of reflection and criticism on the contrasts present in that society.

5. Besides technical aspects, - what is the inspiration for your highly aesthetic ceramics. What is your intention - your inspiration?

It has more to do with geology, territory, land-use planning, human relations and not forgetting the tile tradition we have. With regard to what I see on Earth, the aim is to record what catches my eye and what I would like to see continue to exist. We're successively destroying everything, we still think we're superior to all beings on earth and that's why many of the works deal with human relationships, but in a more intimate, personal way. The ceramic murals I make are based on tiles, but with volumes and without glazes. I hope you feel both well-being and discomfort in some of the works. 

6. For 20 years, Sofia has represented Portugal at international symposiums in countries on several continents. How important is the experience with other cultures and artists in your work? Any you'd like to highlight?

It's through these symposiums and residencies that I grow. Every time I go abroad on business, I become a sponge. I always want to absorb everything that surrounds me, cultures, people, the natural or urban environment. Big cities don't seduce me, I can't absorb much because there are already cultural influences everywhere, but when these symposiums or residencies are in cities or towns, everything I feel is very positive. And seeing what other artists are doing and exchanging ideas is also extremely important to me. I've had very good experiences in almost all of them, for various reasons, but Gmunden, Austria was perhaps the symposium that brought together the most qualities, as well as Jingdezhen, China and Keskemét, Hungary.

7. Sofia is part of a generation of artists who have reclaimed ceramics for the major arts, looking at it beyond the conventional decorative dimension. How do you see the evolution and current state of ceramics in Portugal and the way it is valued (or not) compared to other arts?

I feel like I'm only halfway through everything I still want to do. I want to continue producing work, face new challenges, work more and more on a larger scale, for specific locations, have more exhibitions, do artistic residencies around the world, to grow as a person and as a ceramicist. And to get ceramics established in the world of contemporary art. It's a difficult place to be accepted, but I fight for it every day.

In Portugal? Yes, there are very few of us who work with ceramic material for sculptural works and who have technical knowledge. I've never liked making bibelots. I've always been fascinated by the idea of exploring the material to the limit. And the more I work, the less I know about ceramics. Ceramics is in fashion, every day I see workshops opening, selling bibelots and giving training.... But it's all a lot of hype.

Ceramics in Portugal has a long way to go. We're light years behind most countries and there isn't even a degree in ceramics in Portugal.

6. You are member of IAC/AIC - what are you expecting for yourself / the future of this organization?

I was the first Portuguese to join the academy in 2013. I was already aware of the opportunities and events organized by the academy, thanks to conversations I had with my master, Arcádio Blasco. It was precisely he (along with Rafa Pérez and Alberto Hernández), who recommended that I join the academy, saying that I had already proven my worth and merit to join the IAC. Unfortunately, when I received the news that I had been accepted, Arcádio had already passed away, which makes my presence at the academy a tribute to him.

I am, however, very critical of the direction the academy has taken. I'm concerned about the entry of many people whose artistic quality is, to say the least, questionable. What I feel at the moment is that it's enough to pay an annual fee and get a few subscriptions to be admitted, as if it were a “golf club”. In other words, quality and merit, which were once fundamental criteria for selection, seem to have lost their importance. I know several good artists who are leaving the academy for this reason. It's always better to be fewer but good than many and bad.

I hope this scenario changes. That the academy recovers its selection criteria, so that members feel truly motivated to value their work and contribute to the development of the institution. I believe that the academy should promote and support its members more actively, creating an environment in which everyone feels encouraged to stay in the institution and collaborate with each other.

"Fardos de lixo" - 2024

Porcelana, fios dourados e almofadas de cetim.

150 x 18 x 25 cm

O que é lixo para uns é ouro para outros.

O contraste entre o luxo e a precariedade social é explorado através de uma reflexão sobre a imensa produção de resíduos na China, o segundo maior produtor de resíduos do mundo. As classes mais desfavorecidas, muitas vezes invisíveis, encontram um meio de subsistência na reciclagem de resíduos em troca de pagamentos irrisórios.

Esta obra traduz esta dura realidade em peças de porcelana, moldadas como “fardos” cuidadosamente executados. Algumas são pintadas com delicadas narrativas que parecem contar histórias de resistência, enquanto outras são envolvidas em fios dourados, simbolizando o escasso valor atribuído ao seu trabalho. Cada peça repousa sobre almofadas de cetim vermelho, que remetem para a veneração de relíquias preciosas, contrastando ironicamente com a origem humilde do material.

What is garbage to some is gold to others.

The contrast between luxury and social precariousness is explored through a reflection on the immense production of waste in China, the second largest producer of waste in the world. The most disadvantaged classes, often invisible, find a way of making a living by recycling waste in exchange for derisory payments.

This work translates this harsh reality into porcelain pieces, molded like carefully executed “bales”. Some are painted with delicate narratives that seem to tell stories of resistance, while others are wrapped in golden threads, symbolizing the scant value placed on their work. Each piece rests on red satin cushions, reminiscent of the veneration of precious relics, ironically contrasting with the humble origin of the material.

The Spell of Sofia Beça Ceramic Artwork

 

While preparing a review for Terrart magazine (number 64, 1st semester 2024, Barcelona, p. 60-61), I have had the great pleasure of getting to know the work of Sofia Beça (Porto, 1972), one of the great ceramists of Portuguese lands, who is developing her activity, especially in the field of sculpture and murals made of fired clay.

Through the work of such a simple and humble material as clay -apparently only with her hands, but in reality -with her brain and heart, in unison- she is capable of recreating captivating spaces through the magic of her art -where the ceramic element- becomes the real protagonist, inviting the delight of all the senses. For, the contemplation of her works allows us to feel -caressing her pieces- perceive with the touch, the textures of the finishes chosen by the author herself, while visually she introduces you into the small world of plastic beauty -simply natural and human.

After a magnificent formative preparation in the specialty in the field of ceramics, at the Soares dos Reis School of Decorative Arts in her native city, in the late nineties and other specialization courses: Raku and especially sculpture and murals, under the mastery of great teachers such as Emidio Galassi and Acadio Blasco, the latter, considered by herself as her great master, she pursued her path that she had chosen by vocation, steadily with perseverance, tenacity and enthusiasm, tracing, thus, a career path based on fundamental principles that distinguish her for her talent and excellence in the results achieved. She is currently a member of the International Academy of Ceramics.

Since 1997 he has been exhibiting successively - individually and collectively. One of the first was at the Museum of Pottery of Barcelos, later exhibiting her works in several renowned galleries, which we mention below, as well as in museums dedicated to the ceramic theme in Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands, etc. Precisely because of her participation in other events, collectively - both in exhibitions, symposiums and international biennials, she has deserved the recognition of being one of the Portuguese ceramists with more international projection. Her work has been present in Japan, Argentina, France, South Korea. Austria, Tunisia, Egypt, Poland, Germany, Denmark, China, Latvia, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Slovenia, Russia, Hungary, ... even with commissions to beautify some public spaces, all over the planet.

She has been awarded a large number of prizes and recognitions, since 2002, especially in various competitions in the Iberian Peninsula, international ceramics competitions, etc., some of them shared with other artists.

In general, he delights us with a very careful work, technically impeccable, inspired by vital facts - intrinsically human activities - such as walking or wandering, following the earth as a common thread, not only for the raw material used, but also as his own idea - source of inspiration - from which emanate the slogans, meticulously chosen to make many of his works. In fact, all of them are linked to a theme that imbues them with meaning, in addition to giving them a life of their own that can be perceived by those who contemplate them with sensitivity and desire to contact with authentic art.

Selecting some examples, we refer to space, habitat, mountain, valley, path, garden, territory ... in fact the envelopes of the human being and its scenarios from its most remote origins.

Now, well, it is also inspired by feelings, such as falsehood, love, disillusionment, ... so intrinsic to human life itself.

Technically, he uses stoneware as raw material, which, once worked, is fired in a wood-fired oven. The designs, in general, of simple outline, always looking for a compositional rhythm that is reached harmonically as if it were a musical piece. In his works, the repetitions of elements are interspersed in a rhythmic and harmonious way, recreating geometries of blurred coloration. In this way, the chromaticism and tonalities are achieved by the action of fire, always, eagerly inquiring, rough textures, brittle roughness, similar to many of the geological formations, such as rock or sedimentary overlays, thus reproducing the sequencing of a stratigraphy.

Skill, mastery of technique and exquisite taste, essentially the result of approaches, ideas meticulously calibrated through a deep reflection on the human in our small planet, its weaknesses, but also showing how sublime a small work of ceramic art can be.

Margarida Genera i Monells

Prehistorian and archaeologist