Sandra Torres
Ojai, CA
Biography
Originally trained as an architect, Sandra Torres eventually transferred her creative outlet into clay work. Her ceramic education started under the wing of a master ceramist at an experimental studio in Mexico City. She then continued hands on learning in Southern California in three different studios. Her ceramic education was augmented by traveling to China and Mexico to learn about traditional clay work and techniques. An apprenticeship at Studio Pieter Stockmans in Genk, Belgium, had a great impact on her work, and later directed her to be an Artist in Residence at the International Ceramics Studio in Kecskemet, Hungary. She currently works at her home studio in Ojai, California.
Artist Statement
The character of my current work resides in the contrast and modulation of different color shades. The color softness and sharp edges, result into a dramatic chromatic composition in contrast to the white, translucent, and matte porcelain surface and accentuate the simplicity of the shape. Porcelain, in the thinnest of its expressions, demonstrates a life of its own, moving to the heat of the firing and resulting in an imprint of its own memory.
My desire for delicate looking but with a sturdy body inspired me to use slip casting as my preferred process, and my interest for unglazed surfaces led me to develop a selected palette of color using soluble salts to achieve watercolor-like effects.
