bianca juarez
Rancho Santa Fe and Rancho Mirage, California Bianca Juarez Ceramics
“This series is called ‘Shooting Stars’ because the profile on its side makes me think of comets and shooting stars. My favorite thing about the series is the tension from the points surging upwards, as though they are bursting through the pot. I like geometric forms with a very expressive glaze, so I use a lot of lava glazes in my work. This one was fired twice to get the oxidation effect I wanted. I fire in an electric kiln to Cone 6. When the air in the kiln interacts with the glaze, it creates this bright, pitted, celestial look.”
Andres Anza
Monterrey, Mexico
Select pieces at Dragonette, Ltd. in Palm Desert
“Work with clay is an exercise in which I enter into communion with the material and my inner being. The forms I are a pretext to represent such a link, materializing in a series of organic figures. Paradoxically, they refer to unidentifiable elements in nature. Though they are abstract, these figures become a quest to define the forms they represent. Each work is an invitation to reflect on the duality between the imaginary and the real. In life, there is a natural reality we know and interact with. At the same time, we know and interact with a reality invented by ourselves, that is, the unreal — what we see and what we see in the piece.”
DEBORAH LEVIN
Santa Monica, California
Custom pieces made for Acme 5 Lifestyle in Yucca Valley
“My work is greatly influenced by my travels. I’ve seen a female potter kicking a wheel in rural Cambodia, potters spraying large ceramic pieces with glaze in Mexico City, and I met a 90-year-old female potter in Cuba. What I’ve learned from these encounters, paired with my many years as a ceramist artist, finds its way into each piece I make. I strive for a raw and organic yet sophisticated look, both functional and sculptural. My work has found a perfect home at Acme 5 Lifestyle because walking into the shop is like taking a trip around the world to discover unexpected treasures. At the same time, they honor the incredible surroundings just outside their front door. Sharing my passion for clay with others is still my biggest thrill in the creative process.”
ELIZABETH EISENSTEIN
Yucca Valley, California
ZZIEE Ceramics
“The Blob series was born out of my love of texture paired with my aesthetic inclination to make pieces with refined, graceful silhouettes. I find their forms to be a bit humorous, walking the line between serious and whimsical. I love it when someone feels compelled to reach out and (gently) touch one, drawn by their captivating textures. I began making the Blob vases strictly in black, which gave them a moodier tone. But when I started glazing them in this satin turquoise glaze, the blobs really began to visually pop. Now they remind me of something from another planet or from the bottom of a very deep ocean.”