Jun 10, 2024
Paco Romero: Clay Landscapes
- By
Blaire Dessent
Paco Romero: Clay Landscapes
Jun 10, 2024
by
Blaire Dessent
Paco Romero: Clay Landscapes
Jun 10, 2024
by
Blaire Dessent
Paco Romero: Clay Landscapes
Jun 10, 2024
- By
Blaire Dessent
Paco Romero: Clay Landscapes
Jun 10, 2024
- By
Blaire Dessent
Paco Romero: Clay Landscapes
Jun 10, 2024
- By
Blaire Dessent
Paco Romero in the studio
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orking from a small studio in the mountains near Galilea, Paco Romero is deeply connected to his surroundings and the sense of peace that pervades this magical area. Born in Alicante, Romero studied fine arts, focusing on painting and sculpture at university, and then moved to Barcelona, where he worked with a ceramic artist, learning about the basics of ceramics and training in wheel throwing. Around eight years ago, in 2016, he moved to Mallorca, and began his own practice working with clay.  On the island, he began making functional ceramic objects – cups, bowls, teapots, vases, and selling locally in shops and markets, and more recently has moved towards developing sculptural and decorative objects for interiors and site-specific commissions. Since moving to Mallorca, Romero’s ceramic practice also shifted completely, as he began to focus exclusively on hand building techniques, which, he says, he “finds more organic and soulful for me”.

The natural world is infused in Romero’s ceramics – from the rich earth tones of the clay, to the natural tools he uses, such as stones and sticks, to help form his hand-built art works. He doesn’t use any exterior glazing, rather he chooses to keep the colours of clay intact, using local oxides or liquid clay, sometimes he mixes a slip of porcelain to infuse different tones. Everything is cooked in his gas kiln. “I want to create ceramics in a pure state and I like how with time, the surface will naturally change and show the ageing process,” he says.

Paco Romero x Contain
Paco Romero, Totem Sculpture

In his “Skins” series, rounded, oblong vessels feature swirling, painterly surface patterns that recall the different textures and patterns of marble, stones or even seashells. It’s not uncommon that some of his works get mistaken for actual stones, so uncanny is their connection. In others, collaged-like shapes of clay are embedded in the surface, fossil-like, as if they hold layers of history and memories of the land from which they come. His “Stratos” series is more textural, with moon-like surfaces that are very geological, stratified landscapes. Recently, he has been working with clay directly onto canvas in a very abstract and expressionist way, as well as on more sculptural pieces, including free-standing totemic sculptures that have a figurative quality to them. A series of these sculptures can be seen at the Nobis Hotel in Palma.

Romero likes the challenge and the tension that comes with working with clay, and how you have to let go in order to allow the material to come together naturally. This challenge was embraced in a new collection of light fixtures made in collaboration with Contain Studio. In 2023, Juan Peralta and Mauricio Obarrio, founders and principal designers of Contain, approached Romero about a lighting collaboration. “What interested us most about working with Paco was his technique and the sensitivity he has when working on the pieces. However, what we like most about Paco, and what we believe sets him apart, is the aesthetic of his creations,” explains Peralta.

It’s not uncommon that some of his works get mistaken for actual stones, so uncanny is their connection.
Paco Romero in the studio
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