Tommy Lomeli

The custom of manufacturing and refining mass produced sculptures was passed down to me at a very young age. As a teenager I began my first job as a laborer making commercial vessels for our family business. My Great Grandfather started his business in Mexico, producing concrete statuary, pots, and figurines. My grandfather and father both followed in his footsteps, ultimately I became the fourth generation to work in this family business. My family brought their business to Stockton, California, where I was born and raised. One of my earliest memories working at our factory was when I was given a small hammer and rasp by my dad and he instructed me to break and clean the seams from the statues that had been released from their molds. Coincidently, my first job was polishing and refinishing the surface of pots. This unique upbringing fostered an understanding of fundamental building skills, passed down through generations, and a foundational appreciation for the practice of producing artworks. This naturally led me to question what role I served as an individual in a communal art making environment. I was eager to learn and grow as a maker, so I started to use clay as a medium and quickly realized its potential. I began to recontextualize my works, no longer confined by commercialization and commodity, I had the freedom to consider the history and cultural impact of the vessels and sculptures I created.

 

The assimilation of European aesthetic design, particularly in post colonial Mexico, has driven me to question the role of cultural influences that shaped my family's business and formed my understanding of identity and cultural heritage. Growing up as a second generation Mexican American, while simultaneously manufacturing western sculptures, left me questioning my path as an artist. Determined to learn more about my ancestry, I researched the vast and vibrant realm of Mesoamerican sculpture and ceramics. Through the acceptance of ancestral knowledge, I immediately felt connected to the artworks through material. Basalt, lava rock,stone, and ceramic sculptures contained histories reflecting generations of civilization’s teachings. Not only did I learn about the craftsmanship, I began a journey through the Aztec(Mexica), Mayan, and broader mesoamerican pantheons. The vessels and sculptures I create pay homage to those historic forms while simultaneously evolving into a stylized version that reflects modern Chicano expression.

 

The lowrider movement celebrates Xicano heritage, values, and customs through the practice of car customization. These automobiles serve as vessels decorated and embellished with motifs that communicate a narrative of regional ownership and cultural identity. I view the paintjob on a lowrider as a canvas, an opportunity to tell a story through paint. In my work, Itransform and customize the ceramic vessel to elevate the cultural value of the object. Using automotive urethane- based paint I embellish and polish the surface with metallic, pearl, glitter, and high saturation kandy paint. I use this contemporary candy paint as a cold finish in place of glaze on my ceramic sculptures. This method of painting is referred to as Kustom paint work. I use line and pattern to accentuate form and create a dynamic surface design that plays off the volume and structure. Following in the footsteps of lowrider painters, I am dedicated to the craft of customization to express my voice as a Kustom artist.

 

This unique and challenging technique painted on ceramics was developed in the beginning of graduate school at the University of Kansas. I had a vision for my work and I was dedicated to experimentation while embracing the uncertainty of trial and error to bring this idea to life. One half of the family works in the business of statuary manufacturing and the other half paints and restores cars. I'm grateful for my family who have been instrumental in the development of my work. With their help and guidance I began to develop this work at a fast pace. I started with very simple bottle forms that I considered test tiles, this graduated to larger more complex sculptural pieces that would present greater challenges. As my painting developed and improved I gained the confidence to build complex and large scale sculptures.

 

My sculptural work is built using traditional handbuilding techniques like coil and slab building. They are fired once up to a durable temperature, usually mid range for a sculpture or stoneware body. After they are fired, they go through many preparatory stages of sanding before the application of paint. These pieces are first painted with a high build urethane primer, sanded between coats, before applying a metallic, pearl, or opaque base coat. The next coat is adurable 2k clear coat with metallic flake or glitter mixed in. After this coat dries, it is then sanded to be prepped for taping. I use vinyl fine line tape to lay down linework, and pattern. Once I'm in this stage, I never plan my design, I react and respond to the shapes I've sculpted. I let the volume inform where and how I manipulate the linework on the surface. The challenge of this technique excites me, and is possibly my favorite part of my entire process.

 

The sculptures I create are reflections of my ancestry, family lineage, and chicano heritage. I place a great importance on the materials I use, what histories can be learned from them and how they represent specific movements in contemporary art fields. I think it's important to use automotive paint in place of glaze to maintain the connection with the lowrider community. By using the exact material that painters use, I invite them into the world of ceramics where they are able to participate in the dialogue surrounding the work. I have built relationships in the field of custom painting and I frequently reach out to artists for mentorship and their informed perspective on the application of these paints. I believe in the communal potential of thisprocess and am excited for future projects. My vision is to open this work up to collaborations with painters and other Mexican American artists. Through my research, I'm bringing these ancient renditions to our modern civilization in hopes of continuing their influence in my community. I want these pieces to speak to a new generation of Xicanos while honoring our ancestors.

 

Tommy Lomeli