Globular crackle glaze vessel – Alessandra Foletti
Lencan pottery meets Alessandra Foletti
Alessandra Foletti helped to establish training workshops in 1986 for female ceramicists in Honduras and organize production teams for creating traditional and contemporary Lencan pottery. The underlying theme of the project was to forge a creative fusion between anthropology and design by rescuing traditions and renewing them under a contemporary vision to reinforce cultural heritage and develop work opportunities that generate income for their communities. Her input, as an artist and a designer, was to introduce and market designs of sculptures, jewelry, paintings and ceramics that preserved their traditional handcraft techniques and decorative styles and motifs.
Alessandra has been surrounded by art since she was a child. “Art runs in my family: my grandmother used to paint, two of my uncles were jewelry makers, a cousin was a sculptor, and my mother painted beautiful compositions on silk. I was born in Trento (Italy) and my career in painting and ceramics began in Switzerland and Italy. I studied engineering in Switzerland, then anthropology in Mexico. In 1983 my husband and I moved to Honduras to work with the Lenca people and here I began an ethnographic research on their artisanal traditions, especially pottery. Thanks to the research I met many women ceramists, and I was able to publish a book together with the Honduras’ Anthropology and History Institute.”
Website
Email – [email protected]
‘Volcan de Fueg’o — Alessandra Foletti
Museum of America,, Madrid
Ceramic bead and leather mesh necklace – Alessandra Foletti
Lenca Ovoid crackle vase
The Lenca people are descendants of the Mayans and some of their techniques are pre-Columbian. The application of resist material to their sculptures and pottery are never identical, which makes them all unique works.
Rust glaze ceramic necklace – Alessandra Foletti
Ceramic bead and mesh necklace — Alessandra Foletti
Allesandra Foletti — ‘Serpienteem Plumada’ plate
Honduras
Honduras Lencan ceramic Andros vase
Ceramic beads and leather necklace
ACTA de Honduras
‘Andros 2’ — Lencan pottery
‘Cabeza de serpiente emplumada’ mosaic panel – Alessandra Foletti
Vintage handmade Lencasn vase
Andros red biomorphic vase – Alessandra Foletti
Beautiful feathers flower – Alessandra Foletti
Indigenous Mesoamerican Lencan bowl
Width 9.5 inches
‘Celaque Magic Forest’ wall art — Alessandra Foletti
Ceramic spiral ‘Messenger Pigeon’ – Lenca
Handcrafted from ceramic, this beautiful Honduran sculpture of a messenger pigeon is covered with spiral motifs in crackled alabaster and coal black. Designed by Alessandra Foletti, the sculpture, handcrafted using the ancient pottery burnishing technique of rubbing a flat stone on a surface to create a sheen. During firing, a resist technique similar to batik is used, protecting the natural color of the clay while the uncovered parts of the surface achieve a black finish.
‘Acatenango’ Handcrafted Lenca Ceramic Vase
Honduras
Alessandra Foletti tall vases
Alessandra Foletti
Cylindrical vase with spiral sgraffito motifs — Alessandra Foletti
Ceramic stretch bracelet, ‘Azacualpa Rainforest’
Designed by Alessandra Foletti, this stretch bracelet is a celebration of Lencan and Mayan artistry.
Shaped like a volcano, this ceramic vase evokes the pumpkin tones of sweet mamey fruit.
Lena Pottery-Alessandra Foletti
Alessandra Foletti
Alessandra Foletti
Alessandra Foletti
Alessandra Foletti — ‘Ferns. la tigra’ wall art
‘Heart sacrificed by Aztec sun’ – Alessandra Foletti
Alessandra Foletti turquoise crackle glaze volcan
Honduras dolorosa – Alessandra Foletti
Lenca Iguana on tortoise Medic grinding stone
‘Serpentine Loops’ – Black and white Lenca spherical vessel
Featuring swirl motifs in crackled alabaster tones against a coal black body
‘Life memories’ – Alessandra Foletti
‘Lunar Eclipsis’ plate – Alessandra Foletti
Alessandra Foletti (left)
‘Memory, Carnivorous Flower’ – Alessandra Foletti
‘Original Mystery’ – Alessandra Foletti
‘Rampage’ — Alessandra Foletti
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‘Substrates’ — Alessandra Foletti
‘Summer’ -Lenca Pottery ceramic bottle with crackle glaze and weave pattern
‘Sacred rowdy turkey’ – Alessandra Foletti
‘Sunset in Amapala’ – Alessandra Foletti/Lenca Pottery
‘The Origin of the World’ – Alessandra Foletti
‘Volcan Concepcion’ – Alessandra Foletti
‘Volcanic Lagoon’ – Lenca Pottery – Alessandra Foletti
‘Volcanic weave’ vases – Alessandra Foletti
Square Lencan ceramic bottle
‘Estrella Venus Roja’ – Alessandra Foletti
Black and white ceramic bowl – Lenca Pottery
Lenca ‘San Cristobal Lava Flow’ vase
Reminiscent of the shape of the San Cristobal volcano, this ceramic vase contrasts orange and black in a design from Alessandra Foletti. Shaped like a volcano, this ceramic vase reveals the pumpkin tones of sweet mamey fruit and features black, narrow paths climbing sinuously up the mountain. It is handcrafted with ancient techniques by Lenca artisans in Honduras.
Height 8.25 inches
‘Volcanic Years’ vase- Alessandra Foletti
‘The origin of the 3 worlds’ wall panel – Alessandra Foletti
Alessandra Foletti
