In 1987, the Cretan ceramist Manousos Chalkiadakis set up his studio in the outbuilding of a superb house in his native region. This is where he receives his visitors to this day.
THE VISIT OF THE HOUSE IS AS AWESOME AS THAT OF ITS WORKSHOP.
The artist settled in Paidohori (Apokoronas), a small village at the foot of the Lefka Ori (White Mountains) where he renovated the ruins of a Venetian-inspired house dating from the 18th century.
Manousos fires his creations at 1000 ° C without enamel before ironing them again in the oven at 1200 ° C, this time enamelled, using oxides of different metals (iron, cobalt, copper), and thus creating the colors that characterize his work.
Useful or not, he makes sure that his creations have a patina and texture that refer to the elements that made them up: earth, water and fire.
THE FORMAL DESIGN IS VOLUNTARILY FOCUSED ON AN ECONOMY OF EFFECTS.
House, boat, fish … everything is reduced to the essentials.
The coloring of the objects is far from uniform since the clay disperses it from edges to large surfaces, depending on their shape, during the creation process.
The formal design is deliberately focused on an economy of effects.
The artist-craftsman does not aim at the reproducing mimesis of reality. Rather, it focuses on the essential qualities of all things: the archetype that comes to mind when any of these things are brought up.
The artist-craftsman does not aim at the reproducing mimesis of reality. Rather, it focuses on the essential qualities of all things: the archetype that comes to mind when any of these things are brought up.
Speaking to you in their silent communication, the ceramic objects of Manousos stir up a repertoire of deep images within us, both familiar and unfamiliar. Like our own origins.
MORE TO EXPLORE?
INVITATION #1
Renata Leitao or the cosmopolitan spirit.
Renata Leitao or the cosmopolitan spirit. While a Cretan identity is clearly evident in the craftsmanship and lifestyle of its inhabitants, it does not…
INVITATION #3
Alexandra Manousakis : a wine tasting the Cretan terroir.
Each bunch of grapes is steeped in a distinctive spirit, containing and preserving the character of the ineffable Leftka Ori mountain
