Shock of glazes
- Jacopo followed several paths before becoming a ceramicist
- He is inspired by Japan and the tea ceremony
- His work is instinctive and sincere
Jacopo Lupi is a man of many lives: he studied engineering, went to law school, and worked in IT. While living in Canada in 2016 he took up what was a popular hobby: a ceramics course. Little did he know that this was to become his passion and full-time job. Back in Milan in 2019, he opened a small studio in the Porta Romana district and started giving classes to support his activity and his research as a ceramicist. Today he manages the thriving workshop, having given up teaching to concentrate on his work. Jacopo’s creations are mostly wood fired, functional and artistic, and he also works on commissions he feels in tune with. When asked, he talks about his style as straightforward, where material matters and stands out, to reveal the different layers and colours of soil and nature.
INTERVIEW
It is a mix of tradition and innovation, and for me it means carrying on an ancient art form, using the resources that exist, for example the open-source glaze database, or the opportunities offered by communication on different channels (physical and digital).
My ceramic work is instinctive and sincere, constantly evolving thanks to the wood firing. For example, a bowl will evolve into something else as you shape it and if you can spot it among many other creations before firing, it means you are defining your own style.
I feel like Rosseau the Douanier: I have never been to Japan but the country, its art and ceramic tradition are where I draw my inspiration from. The tea ceremony, the Mingei movement and Bizen ware all embody a function and an appearance that intrigue me.
Making ceramics has a therapeutic, meditative aspect. It requires patience and love. The outcome is a surprise every time. Every piece has its own soul. There have been pieces I did not want to part with, unless I knew they would end up with people or places that meant something to me.
