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Perspectives Of Pioneers: In Conversation With Iris Roth

Iris Roth is a ceramic artist and interior designer based in Milan, Italy. She discovered her love for pottery at a young age, when watching her father, who’s a sculptor, work in his atelier. Inspired by him, the Italian ceramicist combines two major style components in her work: mixing bits and pieces of a long tradition of Italian artisan production with contemporary elements. All her ceramics are uniquely and carefully handmade in Italy. This way each and every item is custom made and maintains its beautiful individuality.

Focusing on warm and earthy tones, Iris Roth has created her EARTH COLLECTION – just like we at NEUBAU did, too. While our collection is dedicated to natural colors and bio-based materials, we were curious to see what inspired the Italian ceramicist to work on an earth inspired collection herself. To find out, we met Iris Roth and talked about her daily inspirations, her journey of discovering art as well as her urge to create something meaningful dedicated to Mother Earth.

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Tell us about a situation, where someone changed your perspective.

I think my father, who is a sculptor, changed my perspective on ceramics a long time ago - showing me the endless possibilities, but also the limits of this special material.

What does being a true pioneer mean to you?

I believe that there have been (and still are!) loads of true artistic pioneers out there. I am convinced that a true pioneer has a fresh vision, a sense of honesty and a lot of curiosity. Just like Picasso, Braque, Brancusi, Sottsass, Eileen Gray and Corbusier – just to name a few.

While NEUBAU´s current EARTH COLLECTION is dedicated to natural earth colors and bio-based materials, you also designed a collection dedicated to the earth element. What was your idea and inspiration behind it?

It was about having something natural and earthy for everyday life. I love all the brown tones, because they are warm and calming in this flashy world we live in today. The inspiration comes from all sorts of places and cultures, but it’s mainly connected to my homeland Italy; the warm Siena red and the hills in Tuscany.

"I am convinced that a true pioneer has a fresh vision, a sense of honesty and a lot of curiosity."

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You feel connected to earth the most, when…

...when I'm in nature, when I have space, when I feel the wind, when I breathe the oxygen, when I hear the sound of the wind, when I see the birds fly high. When I am allowed to be observing, listening, breathing and feeling.

Some people say fashion can be a piece of art. Where do you see the difference between art, design and fashion?

They all are forms of art, but I think that certain things take more time, a lot of personal research and experience. All these aspects are often neglected in commercial fields.

Tell us about your journey of discovering art.

I grew up with it as my father is a sculptor. I have always been surrounded by all differend kinds of art and artists. So my approach came naturally.

Where does a change of perspective need to happen right now?

I think we need to realize that the further we move away from nature, the less chance we have to be healthy and to survive in this artificial world. We are an active part on this planet and should all realize the responsibility we have to make this a better place.

Earthy tones or neon colors?

That's an easy one. Definitely earthy tones and anything natural.

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