Art Illustration

#drawing #pottery #Vorja Sánchez #watercolor

Vorja Sánchez Brings the Past to Life in a Series of Uncanny ‘Ancient Pottery’ Illustrations

October 17, 2023

Kate Mothes

A sketchbook of various anthropomorphized pots.

All images © Vorja Sánchez, shared with permission

Beastly jugs and vessels with legs comprise the latest in illustrator Vorja Sánchez’s eclectic and uncanny menagerie (previously). A new print titled “Ancient Pottery” draws inspiration from a wide variety of stoneware urns, bowls, and statuettes from prehistoric cultures around the world, imbuing each of them with the lively features of animals or mythological beings. Produced from an original piece made with pencil, ink, and watercolor on cotton paper, the artist emphasizes the appearance of age, as if a patina has formed over time across the entire composition.

“I am fascinated by the simple and imperfect but pure and free forms of ancient ceramics,” Sánchez tells Colossal. He continues:

When I started to study them—my cousin is an archaeologist specialized in ceramics and gave me a lot of information—I realized that they shared a common essence regardless of their origin. The older they are, the more universal the language is. I found that very interesting. That’s why I decided, sharing the same space, to make an accumulation.

Sánchez is currently working on new pieces that focus on individual pots. You can purchase prints in the artist’s shop, and find more on his website and Instagram.

 

A print of a watercolor and pencil illustration of ancient pots given uncanny lifelike qualities.

A print of a watercolor and pencil illustration of ancient pots given uncanny lifelike qualities, photographed as it is held by someone.

A detail of a print of a watercolor and pencil illustration of ancient pots given uncanny lifelike qualities.

A detail of a print of a watercolor and pencil illustration of ancient pots given uncanny lifelike features like eyes and noses.

A detail of a print of a watercolor and pencil illustration of ancient pots given uncanny lifelike qualities.

A detail of a print of a watercolor and pencil illustration of ancient pots given uncanny lifelike qualities.

A print of an illustrated pot that has a monstrous, colorful face.

#drawing #pottery #Vorja Sánchez #watercolor

 

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