Suárez, Natalia

Suárez, Natalia

Born in Laviana, Asturias in 1976. Designer and ceramist. Graduate in Fine Arts, specialising in Design, from the University of Barcelona and a Higher Graduate in Artistic Ceramics from the School of Arts and Crafts of Barcelona, Llotja, San Andreu. In the village of El Valle, in Candamo, she created a design workshop in ceramics and wood, materials that give name to her brand WOODIC, in which she designs and creates unique and totally handmade pieces in a commitment to honest designs based on the feminine imaginary, mythology and the forms of nature.She is also a dynamiser of the rural environment through workshops and activities.

1970s

iain

Spanish

Artisan

397

x x

current,43.461498,-6.039444;

Suárez, Natalia

https://woodic.es/

TEXT

Born in Laviana, Asturias in 1976. Designer and ceramist. Graduate in Fine Arts, specialising in Design, from the University of Barcelona and a Higher Graduate in Artistic Ceramics from the School of Arts and Crafts of Barcelona, Llotja, San Andreu. In the village of El Valle, in Candamo, she created a design workshop in ceramics and wood, materials that give name to her brand WOODIC, in which she designs and creates unique and totally handmade pieces in a commitment to honest designs based on the feminine imaginary, mythology and the forms of nature.She is also a dynamiser of the rural environment through workshops and activities.

LAPONTE_PR_01

674

hola@woodic.es

facebook,https://www.facebook.com/woodic.es;instagram,https://www.instagram.com/woodic.es/;

ceramics

At the University, she is Graduate in Fine Arts, specialising in Design and Higher Graduate in Artistic Ceramics.

Yes, she is currently running workshops in hand and slow wheel pottery for adults and children. These are introductory classes to try out techniques and develop pieces that he teaches in hes rural studio. He also conducts kintsugi workshops, the Japanese art of soldering pieces of ceramic fragments with gold.

Carmen Pérez Maestro

female

incomer

Design and pottery manufacture

Although the craftswoman is Asturian, she is not from the specific place where she lives and has her workshop

Mainly plaster for prototyping and white earthenware for the final objects. Some of her creations include wicker, woven by a local craftsman.

full-time paid job

The clay is bought on the internet and does not know its origin. Many of the glazes she used were imported from the UK, but because of Brexit the tariffs have risen so high that she can no longer buy them.

Ceramic is 100% recyclable. The residues of each piece produced are reused in another piece, even with the fragments of broken objects he has made mosaics for reuse.

She works with plaster moulds whose prototypes he designs digitally. She makes 3D prints of the moulds and then manufactures the piece using the casting clay technique. Casting clay consists of pouring liquid clay into a plaster mould. This mould absorbs the water, leaving a layer of clay in a solid state. For the surfaces, he uses different treatments, such as engobes or glazes. Ceramic objects are fired in the oven. She produces some objects hybridising ceramics and vegetable fibres braided by another craftsman.

Use the computer to create the designs, the 3d printer to make the plaster moulds, the roller, knife, and wooden tools to process the clay. He also uses the potter's wheel.

He takes special care of his tools, because if, for example, the potter's wheel breaks down, there is no one around to fix it. His favourite tool is the knife, with which he has a ‘love-hate’ relationship. When she was a student she stuck it in her hand, but she likes it very much because it is a specific tool of a potter's craftswoman. She also loves the potter's wheel. She has three, two to teach and one to work on her own.

Electricity

Ceramic is 100% recyclable. The residues of each piece produced are reused in another piece, even with the fragments of broken objects he has made mosaics for reuse. lead is no longer used for enamels because it is a pollutant. Sometimes gold is used, and the plastic containers are deposited with a label in specific places for this purpose.

The working and workshop space is the same. It is a small building with large windows and a mezzanine inside, built next to the artisan's home. It has an approximate internal size of approximately 35 square metres. In the central part of the lower floor there is a large wooden table and on the sides there are shelves with objects made by the artisan and her students, as well as moulds, clay and tools.

Artistic objects for sale to the public (vases, plates, lamps), objects commissioned by individuals or companies (e.g. award trophies, personalised objects, branding etc.).

Firstly as a creative experience for the craftswoman and secondly as an economic livelihood.

Basically she sells through her website. She also receives many commissions because her pieces have been seen at fairs and exhibitions.

She offers workshops to learn how to make ceramic objects and kintsugi workshops for small groups. She also offers an activity called ‘create memories’, where babies' handprints are put on ceramic plates.It also offers the Family day for a specific pottery workshop for the family and the Clayparty to celebrate anniversaries or birthdays.

Yes

Individuals and companies

No

Yes, because she considers her workshops as part of a cultural tourism offer. Both domestic and foreign tourists participate in these workshops.

El espacio es una oferta turistica cultural en la que se valora procesos y lo que se hace en los entornos rurales de una forma respetuosa…asi nos apoya de manera económica pero también nos ayuda a generar redes. "

She is a member of the group of ceramists of Asturias, of Nexodos (a contemporary creation collective that develops projects linked to peripheral territories, the enhancement of alternative spaces and the promotion of new formats for citizen participation) and collaborates with several public institutions such as the city council and ‘el Camin real de la Mesa’ (a local development group). Its very important for her to create a network of rural women and she is very interested in getting involved in research projects both in universities and museums.

The biggest challenge is the transfer between generations, both for life in rural areas and for the profession. The biggest challenge is generational renewal, both for rural life and for the profession. Natalia also calls for academic training spaces, where young people are trained in rural areas.

necesitamos una escuela de arte, una escuela de artesanía, una universidad rural…necesitamos un espacio donde la gente joven venga a formarse en lo rural

https://nexodos.art/natalia-suarez-woodic-nexodoscandamo2024/ https://www.elconfidencial.com/empresas/2024-09-19/natalia-suarez-woodic-bra_3954222/