Hidden behind the Northern Shippingmuseum you find an old warehouse that used to house the gay sauna ‘t Pakhuisje. For a couple of months now, the building has been home to a group of young artists among which the talented Paola Quiñonez (b.1998). She graduated in 2021 from the Academy Minerva and was selected by Ron Mandos as one of the Best of Graduates 2021. We spoke to her in her new studio.
“I was born in El Salvador and raised in Costa Rica. I make clay portraits that are based on narratives from my life. Usually these are self portraits in the broadest sense of the word. My work plays with the idea of the self portrait; they are not a direct portrayal of me but they incorporate elements and narratives from my own life, such as friends or characters from folktales.I take a moment of my life and put it into a portrait. One of the biggest references in my work is the work of Frida Kahlo. I went to see her house and studio in Mexico and from the moment I saw it all, I knew I wanted to become an artist just like her. Another source of inspiration for me is the work of Cindy Sherman. I love the way she plays with art. The portraits that she posts on instagram, for example, are just really weird. You can tell she is having fun with the format and is just playing with it. I love it and nothing stops me from having fun with art as well.
"Working with clay is very therapeutic to me." Paola Quiñonez
"Originally, I didn’t work with clay but I was making digital drawings in Procreate with my iPad. Art supplies such as paint and pencils are really expensive back in Costa Rica, so I had to find a way to make art despite that. I only started painting for real when I started my Bachelor of Fine Art at Academy Minerva in 2017. My teachers there didn’t think much of the digital drawings and encouraged me to experiment with other media. This was one of the reasons why I started making clay sculptures back in 2018. I was following the sculpting lessons by Hans van der Pennen where we had to sculpt a clay sculpture after a live model and I really loved that. Working with clay is more hands-on than working on an iPad and it has something that is very therapeutic to me. Ever since I have made more than thirty clay portraits. At Academy Minerva I learned how to fire the sculptures in order to preserve them well and later during my exchange to Barcelona I learned how to properly glaze my sculptures.
"During my graduation I was nominated for the Minerva Award 2021 and was also part of the prestigious exhibition of Galerie Ron Mandos’ Best of Graduates 2021. It was a very busy time for me because I also had a solo exhibition in Antwerp at the gallery The Wunderwall. At one point I had to drive from Groningen to Antwerp to pick up some sculptures and bring them to Amsterdam. Only to travel back instantly so I could attend the opening back in Antwerp. Ever since I have been busy working on new projects. I am applying for residencies such as the Jan van Eyck Academy and trying to push it to make it in the art scene. I am actively working to produce better quality works and improve my craft. I still find that working with clay is a very therapeutic thing and I mostly do it for my own pleasure.”