luis carlos reyes

    http://www.lcrva.com/sintitulo/

 Luis Carlos Reyes is a Pratt alum (2007 grad) who was among the first few "true visionaries" that I encountered as a professor. Luis had magic just under the surface and it was beginning to emerge. His aesthetic would guide him, stood before his words, drew him into design and intellect and the magic of creation. I am happy to have been there to watch the blossoming of such creative force. Luis is a good man, and I find him now, after years of travel and search for knowledge, back in his home town.... Better to let him tell it;

I dedicated the last couple of years to the science of ceramics. My love for ceramics and tableware took me to Pratt, and were I am right now.

I finished my studies with an intensive program in Japan, were I meet my Sensei, a master potter who's the 14th generation of his pottery studio.

Why?

The US is lovely, I learned to love her and respect her as my dear Colombia. The artist movement in Brooklyn is pretty fresh but my heart was always back home. And back in NY I was just another designer in line for a Job. I guess I was running away from the Rat Race.

I did a geology study of the region were I grew up, and found out that the richness of the minerals needed to produce ceramics is quite bast. Also I found out that nobody has touched this subject. Most companies, big corporations, use this minerals to produce construction materials (tiles for example) & toilets and such. Therefore I decided to go back to South America to start a more advanced pottery movement. Hopefully I will be able to teach local craftsmen the art of glazing and firing high temperature ware. And if I have time, I will express my self with design and some political satire of the mining industry that is darning our country dry.

Right now I have a lab were I refine and test all materials related to the project. And in a couple of weeks my pottery master from Japan will come to make sure all my formulations are right.

http://www.facebook.com/InSearchForAnagamaminerals  

As for the art side, I keep filling my sketchbook with stuff that only makes sense to me.

The Lab has a FB page I kept in English for the sake of my Japanese friends. As for the work I did in Japan, I am not sure if its design worthy. I went to Japan to learn a bit more about their sensibility towards design in general and architecture. The pieces finished in Japan respect the craft and I don't see them as design proposals. Hopefully in about 6 months I will have a design collection that will show what I learned at Pratt. Anyway the pictures are in my personal facebook page under the "Works at Kasen" album. The labs page is called "In search for Anagama". Anagama is a special type of wood fired kiln. The whole proces of firing it is a ritual that takes about 10 days. I am still searching for the quality, knowledge and an actual Anagama that will be built here in Colombia, when? a year or so.

So - Check out this website Luis has created - I was elated to see his work again!! Congratulations and I hope to hear more soon

http://www.lcrva.com/sintitulo/