A small town in Jalisco is home to Isrrael de Jesús Ibarra Barrera, son of renowned ceramic artist Martin Ibarra. He lives across the street from the town’s sixteenth century church whose lofty wall surrounds the colonial structure.  Often you will see colorful balls, earthenware virgenes, engraved with geometric designs, drying in the air on top of the wall. The pieces are the art of Martin Ibarra who supports a family of elders and youngsters from the damp clay of the surrounding hills.

Isrrael's style is still developing after the death of Martin in 2020. He would like to embody the spirit of his father and famous grandfather, Sixto Ibarra Galindo. Sixto died in 2001 and had worked with clay over 40 years, after discovering an ancient cenotaph in the foothills near his home. The workmanship and whimsical nature of the pre-conquest pottery found at the burial site, inspired young Sixto to begin experimenting with the medium.

Isrrael wishes to carry on the tradition of creating his ceramic art using all natural pigments and molds sometimes for the bases of his virgins. The decorative hollow clay balls and eggs covered in intricate motifs sketched on the surface by hand are an Ibarra trademark. No two pieces are exactly alike, each being formed and molded by whatever inspiration strikes at the moment. Martin instilled in Isrrael a healthy sense of humor — essential for an artist working with the sometimes-capricious natural clay. During the rainy season, pieces can take two to three days longer to dry, and once his creations are hardened, he cannot be sure they will survive the firing process of the home-built wood-fired kiln.

Juarez 119

San Juan Evangelista, Jalisco

ibarraisrrael725@gmail.com

33 1861 6711 WhatsApp