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Ruby
Jhunjhunwala
Ruby's Childhood and Education
'Generally being a nuisance' with the workers in her
father's glass manufacturing unit in Uttar
Pradesh, India, is how she remembers her childhood.
Observing natural raw material take shape, form and
colour, and change its physical properties through the
impact of fire, fascinated Ruby's mind to no end.
Just after graduating with a degree in science she met
the internationally renowned ceramic artist Daniel
Rhodes. She learnt about the Alfred University,
New York, which is internationally acclaimed
for glass and ceramic technology and applied
and got her admissions to study glass blowing techniques.
Shortly after she started there she caught up again
with Daniel Rhodes and was bewitched by his ceramic
artistry. The budding glass technologists became
a confirmed potter.
Over the years, Ruby has worked and trained with several
renowned potters, including Gurchan Singhji and Mansimran
Singji of "Delhi Blue"
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Setting
Up
The next few years were devoted to acquiring knowledge
and skill. Sitting on the wheel molding the clay,
gave here a focal point and her whole being responded
seemingly centered around it. To take raw earth -
feel, knead, shape and bake it - transform a shapeless
mass into appealing and utilitarian objects also gave
her the joy and freedom her aesthetic spirit aspired
for.
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It wasn't easy - a young mother, a novice, traditional
male prejudices - far removed from the conventional
pottery areas around Delhi and North India, she was
in isolation, attempting to break a new path in the
city of Pune.
She started with a small pottery in her backyard in
'87, with one wheel, a small wood kiln, and two helpers.
Every thing was a struggle. Even the basic essentials
of her craft - clay, glazes, etc. - taken for granted
in the West, were not readily available. She had to
procure everything herself, mixing and matching the
best available raw materials, and using her knowledge
of chemistry to develop her own characteristic look
and feel over the years Photo
Gallery
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Ruby
Today
Invitations to participate in exhibitions
at various art galleries around the country started
coming in. With recognition and growing confidence,
she set up her own showroom in Pune - Suraj - home to
all things earthy, elegant and aesthetic.
Ruby worked with and experimented with several types
of clays, formation techniques, glazes and firing procedures.
- Ceramics
While her initial modest efforts were inclined towards
Studio Pottery Studio Pottery,
Ruby discovered that her heart was elsewhere - Environmental
ceramics / Murals Through her murals she attempts
to express her empathy and oneness with nature. Her
outdoor works always complement some aspect of nature,
while her indoor works attempt to bring some aspect
of nature indoors.
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Ruby's
present endeavor is to bring her work within the reach
of a wider audience in India. This effort has manifested
itself in the form of ADIPA
tiles While
murals are one of a kind and cannot be produced and
retailed 'off the shelf', tiles can.
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It is a common site today to walk into Suraj
and see families huddled together creating their own
Nameboards giving
expression to their own creative and inherent artistic
spirit.
Today Ruby sells her tiles through showrooms
and dealers in various cities in India. The effort
remains the same - to allow people to decorate their
own spaces in which they live and work.
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FREEDOM
WITHOUT DISCIPLINE IS CHAOS
That remains her philosophy and her homage to her art.
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