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Porcelain figures

Concha Laca, Ilán Martin1983

Gordailua, the Gipuzkoa Heritage Collection Centre

Gordailua, the Gipuzkoa Heritage Collection Centre
Irun, Spain

Ronde-bosse figures depicting two couples performing folk dances. They are attired in conventional outfits for their place of origin (the Basque Country and Galicia).

The base of the piece with the Basque couple is stamped "BIDASOA" in a laurel wreath, all in blue; at the bottom, "Spain” also in blue. Inscription: “Hand decorated underglaze”.

The base of the Galician figure is stamped "BIDASOA" in black, in a green laurel wreath; at the bottom is the inscription MADE IN SPAIN (in English), also in black. Ilan Martin, 83.

These figures are the result of a laborious process that begins with the preparation of the sculpture in plaster. In this case, the original sculpture from which the moulds were made was by artist María Concepción Lacan. The figures are built from plaster moulds. Each piece comprises various parts.

Once the different parts of a figure have been made in the moulds, they are joined to create the final figure. This is then fired at 800 ºC to create a figure in bisque. During this process the piece loses around 30% of its volume.

It is then hand-painted (as in this case) or decorated with decals and fired again (at 1300 ºC) to fix the colour or decoration.

Bibliography:

Álvarez, Marian ; Jiménez, Maite ; Mujika Goñi, Amaia. Euskal lozak eta portzelanak : XVIII-XX mendeak = Lozas y porcelanas vascas : siglos XVIII-XX. Bilbao: Euskal Museoa = Museo Vasco, 2009. 469-511.

Details

  • Title: Porcelain figures
  • Creator: Concha Laca, Ilán Martin
  • Date: 1983
  • Provenance: Porcelanas de Bidasoa lantegia (Irun, Gipuzkoa)
  • Type: Ornament
  • Medium: Porcelain

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