Spanish artist gives Chennai a taste of porcelain

Spanish artist Rosa, who has hosted demonstration tours in Singapore, Japan and many European countries, was in the city to kickstart her six-city tour in India. 

“I have worked on many Indian sculptures like Shiva, Hanuman, Sita, Ram, Lakshman and even Mother Teresa. But I have never visited India before. This is my first trip to the country and I am enjoying everything - the people, the culture, the place. The only thing that’s a little difficult to adjust to is the climate,” she explains, laughing.

Referring to her work she adds, “I have always had a fascination for porcelain. I have been doing this for 27 years now. Each sculpture is created as an array of pieces that is later put together and decorated. From when these pieces come to me straight out of the kiln — with their true colours and nuances — to when it becomes a finished product, there are a lot of risks involved. 

The greatest pleasure in my work is reaching the point with every piece where I know I have side-stepped that risk. But, the best part is when I paint on the expressions of each figurine. It gives so much identity and life to the work. That’s when I know my work is complete,” she says.  

While Indian Gods and Goddesses have always been portrayed in bright and loud colours, the colours in this collector’s edition assortment are much subtler. Yet, the sculptures look very much Indian. 

“We create around 4000 colours in our labs exclusively for our products and there is a certain range of colours that’s common to our work. So, we have maintained these shades, which have an international appeal, and chose the shades we felt were closest to the Indian version for the collection. The glaze, finish, and style in this collection are a result of new techniques and materials we create in our labs,” she adds.  

Each figurine in the collection is recreated as 10 identical pieces and each cost around Rs 4.5 lakh.