:Four hands create two styles of ceramic art

After years of friendship, clay artists Ricky Maldonado and Porntip Sangvanich are exhibiting their ceramics for the first time together at the Creative Arts Center Gallery in Burbank.

Maldonado and Sangvanich, both from Los Angeles, first met at Otis College of Art and Design more than 10 years ago where Sangvanich was teaching. Maldonado never had her as a teacher, but he would ask her for help.

“I answered everyone’s questions,” Sangvanich said. “I didn’t even remember him when we met later on.”

The two lost touch for several years, but met again at an art show. Because of their shared interests in ceramics, Sangvanich has been unable to forget Maldonado since, she said.

Their three-week show is meant to have a fun, childlike atmosphere, Maldonado said. It’s called “Four Hands,” to represent the paint or clay prints that children make with their hands when they are young.

“The show is what we can do with our hands,” Maldonado said.

The fun theme of the art show parallels the two artist’s lively and fun relationship, he said.

Because of their playful relationship, Sangvanich thinks of him as a brother.

“I can beat him up too,” she said.

Maldonado jokingly calls Sangvanich his auntie, because he goes to her with any problem he has.

“Porntip knows everything and she gives you direction and shares her experience with you,” Maldonado said.

Creative Arts Center Gallery Director Frances Santistevan, a Glendale resident, said she’s extremely pleased with the exhibition so far.

“It’s one of the best shows of the year,” she said. “It’s very unreal. People come to the show and can’t believe that it’s all handmade.”

Maldonado and Sangvanich both work with the same medium, clay, but in completely different ways. Maldonado’s pieces are mainly coiled and he has a distinctive style of using dots and lines in all his work. Sangvanich’s pieces, on the other hand, are extruded and more modern looking.

The artists are very pleased with the way their work complement each other.

“They’re so different and yet they go so well together,” Maldonado said.

Not only are the two artists’ styles different, the way they got into ceramics has some notable differences as well.

Maldonado first got interested in the medium 15 years ago when he took a class at the Creative Arts Center. The teacher taught him how to make pinch pots and later how to coil-build, and he fell in love with that technique.

“After learning how to make them, I couldn’t stop, I just built, built and built,” Maldonado said.

For Sangvanich, getting into ceramics was more of an accident. Her family had a lumber business, so she had initially wanted to become an architect and take over the business. However, her older brother beat her to it, and she said she didn’t want to work under him, so she decided to go into product design.

When one of the classes she wanted wasn’t being offered, she took a clay class instead. Once she was in the class, she knew that’s what she wanted to do with her life.

“No one can control me, except my hands,” she said.

There was no ceramics major in Thailand, where she resided, so Sangvanich moved to the United States to pursue her dream.

“My father told me when Apollo 11 landed on the moon that humans can do whatever they want if they put their mind to it,” she said. “I wanted to work with clay badly enough and I did it.”

Both artists are different by nature, but their love for clay brings them together.

“Clay is soft and warm,” Sangvanich said. “It gives me good feelings and it can make anything happen. This is not work for us, we love what we’re doing.”

“I love the smell of clay,” Maldonado said. “I can smell the earth. It makes me feel good. We’re making artifacts that will last forever.”

The two artists are now undertaking something bigger than making art pieces. Maldonado has started a nonprofit organization called Maldonado Foundation of Students in Ceramic Arts, which is raising funds to start The Clay Institute of Los Angeles. Maldonado hopes the institute will be built by the year 2010 and he plans for it to be of great size for people of all ages interested in working with clay. Sangvanich is on the board of advisors for this project.

“It’s going to be a world-class institute with teachers from around the world, two galleries and a dormitory for people who don’t live around the area,” Maldonado said.

Until the school opens, the two plan to keep on producing art and continue to work together.

FYI

WHAT: “Four Hands” featuring ceramic artists Ricky Maldonado and Porntip Sangvanich

WHEN: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday until July 27

WHERE: Creative Arts Center Gallery, 1100 W. Clark Ave., Burbank

CONTACT: (818) 238-5397gnp-ceramics.1.08-BPhotoInfoF91SRCE720060712j21w2mncTAMMY ABBOTT News-Press and Leader

(LA)Porntip Sangvanich looks over her playful ceramic design, “Playground,” on display at the city of Burbank Creative Arts Center Gallery’s show, “Four Hands.”gnp-ceramics.2.08-CPhotoInfoF91SRCGL20060712j21w37ncTAMMY ABBOTT News-Press and Leader

(LA)Ceramist Ricky Maldonado is showing several pieces like this one, titled “Vertigo 6,” in the exhibit, “Four Hands,” at the city of Burbank’s Creative Arts Center Gallery.