About Raoul

I grew up in a home with saltillo tile floors, ornate talavera platters hung high on the wall, and china tea sets from my great grandma arranged on a shelf out of my reach. I became fascinated by the mysterious ghostly shadows from newspapers on the tiles and the unattainably beautiful designs painted on the plates and cups which heavily influenced my appreciation for ceramics today. Most importantly of all, as I grew up and got taller I could reach the mugs hung on cup hooks below the cupboards before I could reach the glasses and bowls above them. As a result for much of my life I primarily ate and drank from mugs which resulted in me developing a lot of critical opinions about the design of cups as I figured out what features I liked and didn't like. I carried those opinions with me even after I was able to reach the other dinnerware.

As I progressed in ceramics my forms became more refined and thoughtful. I was very inspired by teachers, classmates, and artists like Simon Leach and Tom Coleman. Those inspirations pushed me past the basic preferences I had about cups from growing up to strive for more life, personality, and balance within my cups rather than focusing solely on functionality and homogeneity. I believe cups are undeniably the best form to display those things. They have to be designed around the surface they reside on, the liquid inside it, and the hands and lips of the person using them, all of which makes them a more interesting vessel.