He has a distant memory of carving wood and stone when he was a child in Fusagasugá, his hometown. He remembers it felt as if he were playing a game. Although he thought it was a complicated task at the time, he enjoyed doing it. This did not last, however, because he soon discovered the softness of clay. He immediately fell in love with this novel raw material. This happened when he and his family returned to Ráquira, the land of the Veloza family, to whom his mother is related. The latter makes reference to Don Jorge’s beloved carranga.

Iván became fond of clay and began to make designs and models. He quickly noticed that he was good at the trade he loved. So good, in fact, that people started to place orders for the crafts he made. This led him to dig deeper into the techniques around the pottery wheel and molding. He learned to make plaster designs to hone the craftmanship of his clay work.

He has dedicated 22 years of his life to the craft. He has specialized in what he describes as contemporary ceramics, which consists of applying modern designs to everyday objects. With his work, Iván has transcended the traditional orange-clay wares this town of potters is known for.

He started becoming adept at the Japanese coil: a technique that handles much higher temperatures than those usually used in Ráquira seeking to oxidize the material and provide a smoky texture to the glaze. He learned this from a Japanese craftsperson who arrived in Ráquira about a decade ago. His teachings were only heard by a few potters —including Iván— who had enough discipline, patience, and commitment to the craft to wait for the incredible earthy colors that come from the oxidization —or contamination of the glazing— of clay.

He is an expert at chemistry and speaks knowingly about how he mixes the clays that have “colored veins” with silica, kaolin, calcium carbonate, alkalis, zinc, magnesium, manganese, copper, bronze, iron, cobalt, and many other elements and compounds. He then adds different pigments to these mixtures and crafts containers with them that fly off the shelves with astonishing speed at fairs.

He likes to mention that his wares have that characteristically Japanese aura of elegance and grace. He has also told us that he would not change the pliability of clay for the world. He found his medium and will never abandon it.