The art world is quite a lonely world. Interview with Silvia Granata by Waldemar Kerschbaumer for Klimt02 Barcelona.

What led you to use porcelain as the basic material for your artworks?

I choose porcelain as I was looking for a material that would allow the three-dimensionality of my works to emerge without interfering with them. I use porcelain as a painter would use a blank canvas. It is a discreet material that does not stand out over the composition and leaves space to the form.

Ho scelto la porcellana perché cercavo una materia che lasciasse emergere la tridimensionalità dei miei lavori senza interferire con essi. Uso la porcellana come un pittore userebbe una tela bianca. E’ una materia discreta che non emerge sulla composizione e lascia spazio alla forma. 

Your art is constantly evolving. Which technique do you currently favour?

My works are handmade and are the result of various techniques. The base of these work is often made from a slab. Whether it is a geometric shape, a bowl or a more abstract form, I most often leave a little room for chance: I use the porcelain slab as if it were fabric, helping it to take a shape without guiding it completely. On this base I then create my compositions made of coils cut into many tiny elements.

Tutti i miei pezzi sono realizzati a mano e sono il frutto di varie tecniche. La base dei miei lavori è spesso realizzata a lastra. Sia che si tratti di forme geometriche sia che si tratti di ciotole o forme più astratte. Quasi sempre lascio un piccolo spazio alla casualità: uso la lastra di porcellana come se fosse un tessuto, aiutandola a prendere una forma senza guidarla completamente. Su questa base realizzo poi le mie composizioni fatte di colombini tagliati in tanti piccolissimi dischetti.

Which piece are you particularly proud of?

The last piece made.

Where does your inspiration come from?

My works are always very personal and tell about life and relationships. At the moment I am working on the fading of memories and the fragility deriving from that.

I miei lavori sono sempre molto personali e raccontano di vita e relazioni. In questo momento sto lavorando sullo svanire dei ricordi e sulla fragilità che ne consegue.

How do your clients perceive your work? Do you have in mind who or how it will be used?

I am often amazed at how people see my work. I like it when they see exactly what I wanted to tell them, but also when they see something different and feel emotions that are not the same as the ones I wanted to convey. I am happy that they can be interpreted in a completely personal way by those who look at them or choose them.

Spesso mi stupisco di come le persone vedono i miei lavori. Mi piace quando colgono quello che ho voluto raccontare, ma anche quando ci vedono qualcosa di diverso e provano emozioni che non sono le stesse che io volevo trasmettere.  Sono felice del fatto che possano essere interpretati in modo del tutto personale da chi li guarda o li sceglie.

How do you feel about having to put a price tag on your creations?

It was difficult in the beginning and became easier with time. Experience also teaches how to price a work. I think it was crucial to find the right market to sell my art at a fair price.

E’ stato difficile all’inizio ed è diventato più facile col tempo. L’esperienza insegna anche come stabilire il prezzo di un’opera. Per me è stato fondamentale trovare il giusto mercato per vendere la mia arte ad un prezzo equo.

Do you have an underlying concept that you express in articles, books, galleries, museums, etc.? What do you think of contemporary Italian ceramic art?

The aim of my works is to represent a community and the relationship between its components: the distance or intimacy between people, the balance between the whole of humanity and the individual, the juxtaposition between the fragility of each entity against the solidity of the whole as in a human society.

This is portrayed through the repetition of a multiplicity of related elements. Thousands of segments are cut from porcelain coils and applied one next to the other in order to represent flows: a structured rhythm made of full and empty spaces, of concave and convex particles, of shades of colors.

Though all the elements look similar to each other, however, they are always different and unique almost amounting to a declaration of individuality.

When does porcelain become art?

It is not easy to answer this question, because the line between art and craft is often quite subtle. Perhaps I could say that when porcelain loses its function as an object of use it is moving towards art, although in saying this I do not want to generalise in any way. I believe that art also requires qualities that go beyond craftsmanship such as intentionality and a thought behind it.

Non è facile rispondere a questa domanda, perché spesso il confine fra arte e artigianato è abbastanza sottile. Forse potrei dire che, quando la porcellana perde la sua funzione di oggetto d’uso si sta spingendo verso l’arte, anche se dicendo questo non voglio assolutamente generalizzare.

Credo che l’arte richieda anche qualità che vadano oltre la maestria nella realizzazione come l’intenzionalità e un pensiero che ne sia il fondamento.

You make part of the artist collective „Italiano Plurale“, what prompted you to be part of it?

The art world is quite a lonely world. Being part of a collective is important as it works to create a network of support and sharing experiences.

Il mondo dell’arte è un mondo abbastanza solitario. Essere parte di un collettivo è importante in quanto funziona per creare contatti e una rete di supporto e condivisione di esperienze.

What is next on your calendar?

Since ceramics has become my full-time job, I have found myself getting more and more squeezed into my in-house workspace. After searching for a long time, I finally found a bigger studio that I am renovating, where I will move within a few months and where I can finally work on bigger projects without space limitations.