COOL FRIENDS

Ivana Brenner

By
Coolstuff Team
•
September 22, 2023

Meet Ivana, the artist and sculptor behind Domingo Ceramics. Through this project, Ivana creates one-of-a-kind, functional ceramic works of with her signature addition of 22k gold luster. We’ve loved Ivana’s works for years (as some long-time readers may remember) and are so excited for you all to learn a little more about her work!

What led you to your interest in ceramics? ‍

I got into functional ceramics through my sculpture. My practice has always been intuitive and process-based, involving material research focused on clay and paint skins. At the beginning of my career in Buenos Aires I was working mainly with paint in a three-dimensional way, directly on the wall. At some point I felt the need to move into space and make work that could feel more fleshy and be free-standing. Clay allowed me to work more freely in this way and make sculptures that are abstract yet bodily and sexual. Because my background was in design but I was leading a visual arts practice, I was always oscillating between these two fields, so it was only natural to start making work that inhabited that in-between space. 



What is the intent/vision behind your ceramics brand, Domingo? ‍

I conceived Domingo during my time as an artist-in-residency in Paris, when I experienced the art of hosting and setting the table to welcome family, friends, and lovers. Domingo means Sunday in Spanish, the day that in my native Buenos Aires we gather together with family and friends to share a meal. 

As a design project, Domingo captures my creative universe in functional items with the intent to make it accessible to a wider public, bringing people together around the table and offering an excuse to share quality time with your loved ones. You know this idea of bringing out the porcelain set for special occasions? My vision for Domingo is the opposite of that: living with a functional piece of art, using it and enjoying it every day. 

And even though Domingo started out as a design project in Buenos Aires, it is now very tied to art and to this city: I was only able to produce it the way I wanted it once I moved here, I make every piece by hand here in NYC using porcelain and 22k gold, I take the photos myself, do the art direction - I just want these objects and images to exist in the world. ‍

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What’s your favorite part about the New York creative community? ‍

Generosity and collaboration. As an immigrant, my experience is very much tinted by how we support and help each other in our communities, and I feel like this also translates to the art community. Since I got here I have been blown away countless times by the generosity of my colleagues and mentors. Fellow artists love sharing resources and making connections and this means you meet amazing new people all the time, opening up opportunities for unexpected collaborations. 

I also love the vastness of it, and the transdisciplinary dialogue between different creative communities. There’s so many incredibly talented people here that you can really create your own NYC.
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What’s your favorite place in NYC? ‍

I have a few favorites! I really love my neighborhood, Bushwick, because everyone speaks Spanish and it feels like home. On my block we look after each other, share food, etc. I love Maria Hernandez Park and I love hearing the music I grew up with coming out of passing cars’ windows. 

In Williamsburg I love Lattente for their amazing coffee, chipás and pasta frola. I love McCarren park for swimming laps in the summer, and my absolute happy place is the Rockaways for open-water swimming.

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‍What’s inspiring you right now? ‍

Surprisingly, my old work! I’m currently working on my piece for the Bronx Museum AIM Biennial - to open in 2024- and I’m revisiting my paint skin works from 15 years ago. This is something that I learned from an old teacher, to spend time looking at work I’ve made at different points of my career and see what it becomes if my current self makes it again.

I’m also inspired by practices that live in that space between art and design, and by allowing myself to move in that space more freely, without categorizing my work. This takes me into new exciting directions - for example, I recently made a new series of mirrors commissioned by Emma Scully for the show Contemporary Clay: Seven new voices in American ceramics, which just closed in her space. 

I feel like at this point of my career all my fields of interest are coming together and I’m really excited to see what comes out of this exploration.

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Follow along:

Shop at domingonyc.com‍

@domingoceramics on instagram