Mădălina Teler

De Ceramică

Ceramicist

©Roald Aron

©Madalina Teler

The allure of repetition

Mădălina launched her studio, De Ceramică, in 2013
She studied for a year at the Sorbonne University, Paris
She loves making minimalist objects with line patterns

Mădălina Teler discovered the beauty of ceramics at a young age. She was ten years old when she first took art classes, and what at that time simply seemed like a fun activity later turned into a long-term commitment. She studied ceramics at high school and university, before enriching her artistic knowledge at the Sorbonne in Paris, where she spent a year. After returning to Romania, she took a master's in interior design and learned about the way people integrate ceramics into their living spaces. Mădălina loves decorative architectural elements and has a real passion for lines and the repetition process of drawing one line after another. The act of applying this pattern process to minimalist objects plays a therapeutic role for Mădălina.

Interview

©Horatiu Sovaiala

©Roald Aron

What are your specialisations?: I know how to make prototypes, moulds, slip cast and hand built ceramics. I sometimes make my own materials and glazes and I love the laboratory feeling of this craft. I enjoy trying new shapes, colours and textures, mixing materials and techniques. Experiments and new projects excite me the most.
How do tradition and innovation entwine in your work?: If taking an old craft – which we practise in the same way as people did before – and adapting it to current needs is innovation, then this is it. I try to make modern ceramics in a traditional way. I also do my best to act in a responsible manner, recycling materials and reducing waste.
What do you love most about ceramics?: I love the warmth, the texture, the earthy feeling and the endless possibilities of working with clay. I also like the process of transformation. The material passes from one state to another, taking on a new form, from dust to liquid and then to solid. You only see the finished object after the last firing.
What patterns do you usually use?: I have a passion for line and repetition, as they are therapeutic for me. One of my collections, Mundane Geometries, uses patterns inspired by decorative elements of architecture, like fences and grids. My local surroundings inspire me and I enjoy interpreting what I see in my work.

Mădălina Teler is a master artisan: she began her career in 2005 and she started teaching in 2014