Artist Spotlight: Anita Rocamora

Submitted by: Maia Stark, SCC Gallery Assistant

Anita Rocamora, originally from Beziers, France, has been part of the Saskatchewan clay arts community since the late 1970’s. Rocamora has worked with other notable names in clay and pottery, learning from and collaborating with Jack Sures, Mel Bolen, Charley Farrero and Robert Oeuvarard, and was involved with developing North Star Pottery in Humboldt. In 1986 Rocamora relocated to Meacham, Saskatchewan, where she has a studio and home (ARTSask). Much of Rocamora’s work is made with porcelain, stoneware, and earthenware. Each hand-built piece of Rocamora’s work is unique, meticulously rendered and thought-out. The inspiration drawn from nature and narratives is apparent The topic of her work is often inspired by whimsy and organic forms: birds dance on the heads of young women; a beautiful vessel extends into a feminine face with a strong brow; small clay houses and seed pods hold stoppers like old-fashioned perfume bottles. Delicate patterns and soft yet bright uses of colour adorn much of her work. When talking about her practice, Rocamora states,

“I absorb ideas every day, every minute of the day, in the course of every activity which include[s] a lot of interaction with nature.  And I store this, whether I’m traveling, or reading, or reading quotes, or seeing images, or of things I see in my daily walks.  But when I’m actually working, aside from the technical aspect, I try not to think about it too much, because I find that I work best when I channel this information that I’ve accumulated in non-specific ways.  I find that where I live is very important to me.  I’ve lived in the prairies for many, many years now, and I find that it is the most giving landscape I know, aside from the ocean.  There are many other places that are very dramatic in more immediate ways, but the landscape of the prairies is subtle and vast and very spectacular, very dramatic for me.  I’m very attached to it.  So that’s the big picture.  The smaller picture is that my interaction with nature on a daily basis consists of walks, either around town or outside of town where I go and look at the migrating birds at this time of year, crocuses…And all of the familiar things that I see over the course of the seasons and over the course of the years in the areas that I visit are very sustaining.  And I know them intimately; I know them intimately through all of their phases from sprouts to seeds, so to speak.  And that is what sustains my inspiration.” (ARTSask)

More examples of Rocamora’s work can be found at the Saskatchewan Craft Council Boutique in Affinity Gallery. Rocamora’s work will also be available at the Wintergreen Juried Fine Craft Market, at the Conexus arts centre in Regina, November 14, 15, and 16!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.artsask.ca/en/artists/anitarocamora

This post appears as part of a series on WinterGreen as we gear up for the 2014 market. Join us for WinterGreen November 14-16 at the Conexus Arts Centre in Regina! More details here. You can find Anita at booth 34.