Iván Carmona
“The forms and colors found in my works are based on
long-held memories and represent both physical
and tactile experiences. Each piece represents a
fragment of those experiences through landscape.”
Carmona was recently named a 2020 Hallie Ford Fellow, one of the most prestigious designations an Oregon artist can receive. We’re proud to present his work in our virtual East Oregonian Gallery (below).
Iván Carmona’s hands helped his father tend to a family home in Puerto Rico. The coarse finish of cement is coded to his personal history, as are the rich pastels and modernist lines that distinguish Puerto Rican architecture. Already a successful ceramicist, Carmona made the move to Portland to study more deeply, receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Oregon College of Art and Craft in 2015, where he also assisted many artists in the studio and as an instructor. Carmona’s work has recently been exhibited locally by Eutectic Gallery and Ash Street Project, and is held in the collections of King County, Washington; Boise Art Museum, Boise, Idaho; Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Puerto Rico, Santurce, Puerto Rico; and Gifu Prefecture Tokyo Kouryu High School, Japan. He is represented by PDX CONTEMPORARY ART.
“I love watching Iván work. He moves in silence with a reassuring calm and measured pace,” says artist Jeffry Mitchell. “Iván’s forms are built with the most basic techniques: pinch coil and slab. They have a solid classicism, harmony and balance. Working side by side with him reminds me of the times I worked next to Akio Takamori — not a lot of grunting or groaning, no Sturm und Drang, straight forward work that resulted, almost miraculously, in the most astonishing forms.”
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