Nuria Blanco, when every dish has its own story
An outstanding artist who, from her ceramic workshop, creates hand-painted tableware.
Nuria was born in Madrid just over 40 years ago, and after finishing her studies in Fine Arts at the Complutense University, specialising in Engraving and Printmaking, she has not stopped experimenting with drawing, engraving, painting, photography... Over the years, she has surprised with remarkable exhibitions and has received numerous awards for her precious ceramic pieces, in which she pours her dreams and obsessions.
In this interview, we talk to her about these derias made ceramics, which is her theme, and we enter a little into her home, which is ours.
Tell us about your beginnings, where did your vocation start?
From an early age I loved to draw. My father took me to a different museum every Sunday and I remember my fascination for the paintings at the Prado Museum or my first Monet exhibition at the Juan March Foundation. But who encouraged my parents to sign me up for painting classes when I was only 8 years old was my school teacher María Fernanda...
What do you find most satisfying about your work as a ceramicist, and is there anything you are particularly proud of?
I love to see my work displayed on a well-mounted table or on a wall after making a personalised plate mural. I am most proud of the large-scale murals I did for José Andrés' Jaleo restaurant in the United States and Casa Macareno in Madrid, or a 5-metre mural for a house in Mexico and another very special one that tells the love story of my clients and which hangs in their kitchen.
I have a lot of fun making compositions of many dishes that go together to create a drawing.
What is your creative process like, what are your sources of inspiration, any particular music while working?
My creative process always starts by collecting a lot of references from everywhere. Photos, books, internet, social networks... I file them in a folder of ideas and then transfer them to sketches or directly to the plate. I am very inspired by nature and everything old.
For work I like to listen to Billy Holliday or Nina Simone. I am also addicted to podcasts.
Favourite colour, book, film and record - in that order! ;D
Colour: Red.
Book: Tokio ya no nos quiere by Ray Loriga.
Film: Out of Africa.
Album: Roseland NYC Live by Portishead.
Is your home a reflection of who you are? Tell us what it smells like, your favourite corner, your favourite decorative object or piece of furniture, if you treasure a collection... And if you have a pet, introduce it to us!
I love objects and surrounding myself with beautiful things. My house and my workshop are a clear reflection of that, I think that everything I have is very personal and reflects who my boyfriend and I are, which is fortunate because we have very similar tastes.
I love collecting souvenirs from my travels and buying antique furniture and works of art. My house smells of Santa Maria Novella's melograno terracotta air freshener and fresh flowers I have bought.
My favourite corner of the house is the round table in the living room next to the window, full of plants and with a breathtaking view of Madrid from the tenth floor.
My fetish object is a Pat Andrea painting that presides over the dining room and furniture... a vintage floor lamp that I inherited from my friend Gustavo and that I have taken with me on all my moves.
I collect pencils and mugs of all kinds that I have collected at flea markets, museums and that I consider special, antique or different. There isn't a trip that I don't come back with a mug and a pencil in my suitcase.
I have two dogs, Antonia and Dub, 8 and 12 years old, that my boyfriend adopted from the pound.
If you could buy anything right now and take it home, what would it be? Anything!
A work by Louise Bourgeois.
A great plan at home always includes...
A beautifully laid table with flowers.
Do you have a signature dish?
My star recipe is cocido madrileño. I love recipes with a lot of garnishes and where I can show my dishes in different formats and where they go together, which is the main characteristic of my work.
Where is your favourite place in your city and abroad?
In Madrid, the Parque del Moro. In Paris, Le Marais.
After 16 collections, I can prove that when something has soul and quality, it continues to please.
Anything you want to tell us that we haven't asked you, speak now or forever hold your peace!
Well, I would like to tell you that 2023 was the tenth anniversary of my brand, something I am particularly proud of as it is a very difficult world.
Not only because starting out in ceramics and having your own business is complicated, but also because it is a field that is very much driven by fashions. Today you become fashionable and everyone calls you for everything and you are everywhere and then suddenly your work seems to be no longer valid.
Even so, I have struggled to prove after 16 collections that when something has soul and quality it can still be liked, and most importantly, I can continue to make a living from it. I hope I can continue to transmit my enthusiasm for what I do every day for many more years to come.
