WOME N OF THE Photo Simone Noble
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OJAI VALLEY 2020
Sandra Torres Creating and changing
Austin Widger | awidger@ojaivalleynews.com
Ojai Studio Artists group, so I decided to apply because I like the community, and I like that it’s organized and it’s kind of a communal effort.”
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“Because you hold it, you can use it.”
ocal ceramic artist Sandra Torres uses a unique process to make her art, one perfected over years of study and creating in several countries. Born and raised in Mexico, where members of her family still reside, Torres originally trained as an architect and also has a background in business. She started working with clay at an experimental studio in Mexico City with a master ceramist about 20 years ago, and has worked in several studios in the United States.
She was a ceramic apprentice for Pieter Stockmans in Belgium, which then directed her to an artist-in-residence position in Hungary at the International Ceramics Studio. Torres visited China to learn about clay work as well. “At some point, I switched and I was working in business, and I really missed doing creative work,” she said. “I knew of some ceramic artists in Mexico and I always liked it, so that was kind of a way to get there. Then I just got really hooked into it.” Torres and her husband, who works for Santa Barbara City College, moved to Ojai in 2004 and raised their family here. When asked why the pair chose to move to Ojai from Santa Barbara, Torres said: “I like the size. I think it’s a very human size. The commutes are short, and it’s safe, and it has a great community in general. It’s also where my daughter was born, and she’s very attached to this community as well. So I like it a lot.” Torres said: “I had been working with clay, and I did the Ojai Detour. At some point, I had several friends who were in the
For the last couple of years, Torres has opened up her studio for the annual Ojai Studio Artists Tour, but is not sure what will happen with it this year. The pandemic has resulted in several canceled shows, including a large one in Palo Alto scheduled for July. Torres said her ways to increase exposure in general have changed. However, there are some online shows, “so that’s really great,” she said.
She now has a greater incentive to increase her online presence, so she is working on her website. Many artists have increased efforts to sell their work online, and have seen sales go up via digital purchases as a result. Her studio is in her house, “so, fortunately, I have been able to keep working,” she said. What sets her work apart from other ceramic artists, she explained, are her minimalist techniques. Torres has embraced the slip-casting technique with her clay work. She uses little glaze and varied color shades — as well as patterns and motifs — that contrast with the whiteness of the porcelain. “It’s utilitarian, and it’s small-scale, so it’s kind of domestic in a way,” she said. “Because you hold it, you can use it. I think the process I use allows me to do really thin work. My pieces are very thin, and that is very different. They’re very translucent.” Torres’ goal now is to keep up her productivity and momentum during the pandemic. She is focusing on keeping a good mindset and persevering to keep on working during this unprecedented time. She said she is seizing the opportunity “to do some experimentation, to create a new body of work.” To watch Torres at work in her studio, visit www.youtube.com/ user/torresbenavides.