Kith of Kiln

In the village of Almacera in the breezy town of Valencia,Spain,three brothers stood around their Moorish kiln in wonderment as from it emerged maidens who perpetually smiled,white butterflies,winged angels,seahorses and even whole gardens. Not many outside Valencia know the brothers by their first names,but the surname,Lladro,is an accepted alias for porcelain sculptures — those images of pastoral perfection that come with extravagant price tags. The eldest brother Juan’s daughter and president of the company,Rosa Lladro,was in town to unveil a limited-edition series at the boutique in Ambience Mall,Gurgaon.

Trussed in a chic white shirt,47-year-old Rosa said softly,“I am very proud of the display. We pay a lot of attention to the presentation.” Although her business has moved beyond the small workshop in the backyard of her grandmother’s house,the technique — handcrafted with exquisite attention to detailing — has stayed. “The way to do faster doesn’t exist for us,” says Rosa. What have changed are the colours and the shapes — the hue has moved beyond the moony white,while designs have gone past typical European motifs to include Indian gods and Chinese dragons. “The finishing techniques have also broadened — now we incorporate enamel for a smooth finish. We pay a lot of attention to sculptural details as well. If you touch a porcelain athlete about to dive,you could feel the muscle standing in his back,” says Rosa,who is on a six-day visit to India.

At the 1,350 sq ft boutique in Gurgaon,there is Goddess Lakshmi (Rs 5 lakh) in a corner. She is popular in Japan’s plush stores as well. A decadent Venus hoisted on a seashell drawn by white horses stands in the centre,while in a corner,a 17th century woman titled Menina,first drawn by Spanish artist Velazquez,bows gently in her medieval costume. There is even Mahatma Gandhi in porcelain.

Rosa will launch a piece from the Venetian collection,called the Queen of the Nile,there are only 100 pieces of it. It shows the Egyptian queen Nefertari in an ornately decorated boat with her children and several servants. “It took five years to prepare and it is made out of 300 separate moulds that were later joined together,” says Rosa. The Queen of Nile has a princely tag — Rs 1 crore.