Where Art Becomes Porcelain
After seven decades of revolutionizing the world of porcelain, we are thrilled to present Art Editions—a new art project that marks our entry into the contemporary art circuit with exclusive limited-edition artistic creations.
Art Editions represents a significant milestone in our ongoing diversification and an evident example of the brand’s potential for innovation, grounded in the know-how of its team of artisans and in the versatility of porcelain as a vehicle for artistic expression.
This unique creative space also opens the doors to an exclusive VIP community, the Art Editions Club. Anyone who acquires the most exclusive pieces in this new category will become a member of the community, with priority access to limited-edition pieces to be unveiled in the future.
“SOMETIMES THERE IS NOTHING TO UNDERSTAND IN MY WORKS, YOU ONLY HAVE TO FEEL”
Javier Calleja
is a Spanish figurative artist born in Malaga, where he lives and works.
After studying Fine Art at the University of Granada, he started developing his distinctive artistic style, notable for his instantly recognizable characters with big eyes and exaggerated features which capture the spectator’s attention.
Often accompanied with symbolic elements and introspective phrases, these characters invite us to enter a world suffused with emotiveness.
Since his beginnings, Calleja has managed to captivate the public with his unique vision and his ability to transmit universal emotions though his artistic creations.
For the occasion, Javier Calleja, one of the most sought-after artists of the moment, who came to Lladró through art promoter Gabriel Suárez, has created three original works for the brand that reflect his highly personal and unmistakable visual universe.
With the name
You Choose One
, a knowing nod to the constant decision-taking and crossroads that life presents us with, Calleja has created a composition with three porcelain and glass pieces.
The very first available edition of
You Choose One
is made up of 25 unrepeatable works, all different as each has its own decoration.
Hand signed by the artist, they come with an etching which also has Calleja’s personal signature. Another noteworthy feature of this collection is the packaging.
The packaging, which we always design specifically for each piece is given a new twist. For the first time, in the series You Choose One– Limited Edition of 25 unique versions, each box is unique and exclusive, just like the individual works.
Handmade in porcelain
Like all lladró creations, the works in art editions are the result of a painstaking handcrafted process that takes place, from start to finish, at the brand’s headquarters in valencia.
Behind their apparent formal simplicity these works hide the high degree of technical complexity that goes into the process of making them in porcelain through a unique artisan process which involves the best experts in
porcelain craft
.
In a fascinating process of molds, ranging from five to two hundred, depending on the technical complexity of the piece, the liquid porcelain solidifies and gives life to the different fragments that compose each creation. A magical jigsaw puzzle which is then recomposed by Lladró artisans in the assembly section and decorated by painting experts who apply the chosen colors, carefully outlining the tiniest details.
After a long process, the firing in the kiln finally arrives, the moment on which the ultimate success of each creation depends. In the kiln the pieces are subjected to very high temperatures and undergo a profound transformation with their size being reduced by up to fifteen percent. Once this process has been completed, the new creations like
You Choose One
are now ready to captivate us.
Art, an eternal
source of emotions
As the inaugural artist invited to participate in Art Editions, Calleja has exchanged painting, drawing, and sculpture for Lladró's handcrafted porcelain. The Spanish brand’s inhouse team of chemists, which has developed its own color palette of more than 4000 shades, has come up with new tones and finishes specifically for this first collection, and the result is truly outstanding. With no other motive than to evoke emotions, the artist invites us to reflect through the vibrant, colorful, and innocent-looking compositions. As is the case with this trio of characters that makes us think of the “Jiminy Cricket” we all have inside.
OPPOSING FORCES by
SAŠA BOGOJEV
Writer and curator
The concept of duality, the interplay between opposing forces, is, in a way, a simplification of the complex, multifaceted nature of human existence. Similarly, Javier Calleja's emblematic big-eyed characters, contemplating, declaring, or interacting with simple statements and questions, are metaphors for everyday life's concerns and hurdles. So, when focusing on the daily tug-of-war between the forces of good and evil, the Malaga-born, world-renowned artist conceptualized a trinity scene featuring a mischievous boy alongside an angel and devil feline friend. Coming to life in a collaboration between Lladró and this internationally acclaimed talent, You Choose One tackles the eternal question of the right choice by encapsulating the timeless and universal dilemma within the equally timeless and universally treasured material.
By unveiling their Art Editions series with Javier Calleja's first porcelain creations, Lladró celebrates seven decades of unrivaled porcelain mastery while embracing contemporary art's exciting and ever-evolving attitude. The universal and timeless allure of the centuries-old material, combined with Calleja's whimsical storytelling, becomes a delightful fusion of heritage and contemporariness through which the never-ending story of temptation and duality is being told. Speaking about the everyday moral Olympics and the difficulty of decision-making, the artist is actually touching on the Chinese philosophical concept of Yin and Yang. So, to see such a take coming to life through a universally acclaimed material invented thousands of years ago in the same region marks a fascinating intersection of contemporary artistry and the enduring tradition of porcelain craftsmanship.
Porcelain creations have adorned worldwide households for generations as family heirlooms, sometimes used to convey subtle messages or reveal social status. In a playful nod to this tradition, Calleja offers a lighthearted portrayal of one of life's most universal and most challenging struggles. His paintings' delicate and velvety allure is now materialized in handmade porcelain, a rigid material whose fragility reminds us of the transient nature of life and art. The three figures harken back to the symbolism often associated with such an ancient art form. Through a bold contemporary twist, the main character in the middle seems naively entertained by the conundrum — one side symbolizes purity, protection, and guidance, and the other represents temptation and mischief. With one shoe missing, a big toe peeking through the sock, eyes wide open in excitement, and a cheeky smirk on his face, the innocence gets washed away with the horns and a little devil tail. Indicating he's already made the decision but is still keeping his blameless appearance, he embraces the ethical rollercoaster and rides it with joy, suggesting that even in the face of moral ambiguity, a sense of humor can be your trusty sidekick.