Profile

Melina Padrón is a London-based ceramic artist.

Born and raised in Brazil, Padrón moved to London as a young adult. She became a lawyer and worked for the promotion and protection of human rights, particularly of those most vulnerable in society. After years of work, she left her legal career to pursue another way to use her brain. It was then that she began working with clay.

Padrón has always had a keen interest in matters of the mind and depths of human experience. Her work is inspired by the symbiotic relationship between the psyche and the making process, the search for self and identity. The evolution of her work is a reflection of the transformational impact clay has had on her own mind.

For Padrón, making works of clay is a form of communication. While the process helps her access those parts of herself that are unknown and not in the conscious realm, the actualised pieces allow her to communicate to others that which she cannot easily articulate with words alone. She hopes her work speaks to others in a similar way, leading them to introspect and find their own meaning.