Abi Castillo’s head ceramic sculptures are a delightful fusion of painting, illustration, and sculpture, each piece a whimsical narrative that captures the heart. From her studio in Vigo, Galicia, Castillo crafts these charming creations, blending her trio of skills to bring forth girl figures that are both gorgeous and amusing. Her work is a romantic ode to a fantastic natural world, akin to a garden of her own making, where each sculpture is a self-portrait, representing her as a sweet, animated being. These pieces are not just visually appealing; they carry an ambivalence, a mysticism that plays with the drama of monstrosity and beauty, offering a protective shell to the fleshy, juicy softness within.
In her artistic expression, Castillo explores the dichotomy between the natural and the fantastical. Her sculptures are imbued with a sense of protection, wrapping around the characters as if to shield them from the world. This protective layer is a recurring theme in her work, suggesting a deeper narrative about vulnerability and strength. Castillo’s sculptures invite us to look beyond the surface, to the ‘juicy and soft inside’ that represents the essence of human emotion and experience. Through her lovely and fun head ceramic sculptures, Abi Castillo tells a story of mysticism, drama, and beauty, one that resonates with the viewer on a profoundly personal level.
My work encompasses painting, illustration and ceramic sculpture. Discovering ceramics introduced me to a world off aesthetic and creative possibilities that allow me to give shape to my creatures and characters. In both lines, I strive to maintain a romantic ideal with a natural world which is fantastic, as though it were my own garden; but, at the same time, it plays with ambiguity and conceals something. Each of these pieces or illustrations preserve the essence of my own self-portrait in which I am represented as a sweet, animated natural being, surrounded by elements that wrap themselves around me to protect me. This ambivalence between mysticism and drama, between monstrosity and beauty, is all very present in my personal project. As though all of this cover, every element that su- rrounds each being, were part of a shell protecting a fleshy, juicy and soft inside.
Abi Castillo
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