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HANDCRAFTING:
A UNIVERSAL CONNECTOR​

A Conversation with Bisila Noha​​

To celebrate our handmade Made In England collection we sat down with ceramics artist, Bisila Noha to talk about her work, her journey and our innately human connection to handcraft. ​

Ceramics artist Bisila Noha

HANDCRAFTING:
A UNIVERSAL CONNECTOR​

A Conversation with Bisila Noha​/h2>

To celebrate our handmade Made In England collection we sat down with ceramics artist, Bisila Noha to talk about her work, her journey and our innately human connection to handcraft. ​

Ceramics artist Bisila Noha

Dr. Martens: Can you tell us who you are and what you do?​​​

Bisila Noha: I am Bisila Noha, and I'm a ceramics artist. At the moment, I make sculptural pieces. I work on projects where there is an idea that I want to explore, and then I make something that goes with it.​


Dr. Martens: What was your first interaction with clay?​​

Bisila Noha: ​Around nine years ago, when I moved to London, a friend told me, "I've just started a pottery class, do you want to come?" I had never touched clay before, and then the first time I did, it was so magical. The feeling of the clay growing in my hands and the movement of the wheel and everything. I just loved it. I don't think I'll ever forget that day.​​


Dr. Martens: What were you doing before London and clay?​​​

Bisila Noha: ​I was born and raised in Spain, and I lived in many different places like Germany, Austria and the US, and at some point, I wanted to go somewhere else. And because I had lots of friends in London, I moved here. But my background is nothing to do with clay, I was a translator, actually.​​​


Dr. Martens: Can you tell us who you are and what you do?​​​

Bisila Noha: I am Bisila Noha, and I'm a ceramics artist. At the moment, I make sculptural pieces. I work on projects where there is an idea that I want to explore, and then I make something that goes with it.​


Dr. Martens: What was your first interaction with clay?​​

Bisila Noha: ​Around nine years ago, when I moved to London, a friend told me, "I've just started a pottery class, do you want to come?" I had never touched clay before, and then the first time I did, it was so magical. The feeling of the clay growing in my hands and the movement of the wheel and everything. I just loved it. I don't think I'll ever forget that day.​​


Dr. Martens: What were you doing before London and clay?​​​

Bisila Noha: ​I was born and raised in Spain, and I lived in many different places like Germany, Austria and the US, and at some point, I wanted to go somewhere else. And because I had lots of friends in London, I moved here. But my background is nothing to do with clay, I was a translator, actually.​​​



Dr. Martens: Do you think you are trying to make things you think have a common language? Do you expect everyone to have a similar reaction to your work?​​

Bisila Noha: I don't think that everyone who comes across my work or the stories behind it will have the same reaction. Still, I feel like I touch on very human topics. Right now, I focus on identity and heritage, and in particular, the history of women and the invisibility of women. So yes, many people can relate to their own experience of moving into cultures or exploring their identity. Because clay has been with humans since forever, it brings us all together. To me, clay is very basic, it brings me back to my own basic instincts as a human being. And that's something we can all share.​

"TO ME, CLAY IS VERY BASIC, IT BRINGS ME BACK TO MY OWN BASIC INSTINCTS AS A HUMAN BEING. AND THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN ALL SHARE.​"

Dr. Martens: How do you go about learning new techniques?

Bisila Noha:: I've been doing courses, apprenticeships, and residencies and seeing how other people make. I kind of tailor my educational programme to whatever that moment in my life is exciting me.



Dr. Martens Do you think you are trying to make things you think have a common language? Do you expect everyone to have a similar reaction to your work?​​

Bisila Noha: I don't think that everyone who comes across my work or the stories behind it will have the same reaction. Still, I feel like I touch on very human topics. Right now, I focus on identity and heritage, and in particular, the history of women and the invisibility of women. So yes, many people can relate to their own experience of moving into cultures or exploring their identity. Because clay has been with humans since forever, it brings us all together. To me, clay is very basic, it brings me back to my own basic instincts as a human being. And that's something we can all share.​

"TO ME, CLAY IS VERY BASIC, IT BRINGS ME BACK TO MY OWN BASIC INSTINCTS AS A HUMAN BEING. AND THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN ALL SHARE."​

Dr. Martens: How do you go about learning new techniques?

Bisila Noha: I've been doing courses, apprenticeships, and residencies and seeing how other people make. I kind of tailor my educational programme to whatever that moment in my life is exciting me.



Dr. Martens: Do you think traditional skills are something important to pass down?​​​

Bisila Noha: It's very important to pass down traditional ways of making or leaving or seeing and understanding the world because we used to be more connected to our environment, to our communities. And now that is being lost. I think that being rooted in our history, our traditions, and all of these things make us feel more connected. I think looking into the past is important to find a better route forwards in any discipline.​​

"IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO PASS DOWN TRADITIONAL WAYS OF MAKING OR LEAVING OR SEEING AND UNDERSTANDING THE WORLD BECAUSE WE USED TO BE MORE CONNECTED TO OUR ENVIRONMENT, TO OUR COMMUNITIES."​​


Dr. Martens: How does heritage or that idea of a shared history come through in your work?​​​​

Bisila Noha: In the last two or three years, I've been looking into our shared heritage and my own. I come from a mixed culture and have been moving and travelling around. I've always felt I'm in-between or in the middle of things, so I'm assessing or challenging or rethinking how we look at heritage and how we, as Western people, often choose to forget things. In this case, we have women from the global south who have been making with their hands, and that hasn't been valued throughout our history. I'm trying to celebrate those types of stories and that history through my making.​​​


Dr. Martens: Do you think a line separates an artist and a craftsperson?​​​​​

Bisila Noha: That's a hard question. And especially as a ceramicist, as a potter, someone who works with clay, that division between arts and crafts has been historically challenging. And one could say that a craftsperson is one that hones this one skill or something in particular, and through repetition, maybe you get to master it. The fact crafts are something that historically and globally been done by women, creating things that we use in domestic environments. And I think that we don't value them as much. To me, there shouldn't be a divide because it is the same thing if one person dedicates their life and passion into making something very beautiful, whether it's functional or not.​



Dr. Martens: Do you think traditional skills are something important to pass down?​​​

Bisila Noha: It's very important to pass down traditional ways of making or leaving or seeing and understanding the world because we used to be more connected to our environment, to our communities. And now that is being lost. I think that being rooted in our history, our traditions, and all of these things make us feel more connected. I think looking into the past is important to find a better route forwards in any discipline.​


Dr. Martens: How does heritage or that idea of a shared history come through in your work?​​​​

Bisila Noha: In the last two or three years, I've been looking into our shared heritage and my own. I come from a mixed culture and have been moving and travelling around. I've always felt I'm in-between or in the middle of things, so I'm assessing or challenging or rethinking how we look at heritage and how we, as Western people, often choose to forget things. In this case, we have women from the global south who have been making with their hands, and that hasn't been valued throughout our history. I'm trying to celebrate those types of stories and that history through my making.​​​


Dr. Martens: Do you think a line separates an artist and a craftsperson?​​​​​

Bisila Noha: That's a hard question. And especially as a ceramicist, as a potter, someone who works with clay, that division between arts and crafts has been historically challenging. And one could say that a craftsperson is one that hones this one skill or something in particular, and through repetition, maybe you get to master it. The fact crafts are something that historically and globally been done by women, creating things that we use in domestic environments. And I think that we don't value them as much. To me, there shouldn't be a divide because it is the same thing if one person dedicates their life and passion into making something very beautiful, whether it's functional or not.​

"IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO PASS DOWN TRADITIONAL WAYS OF MAKING OR LEAVING OR SEEING AND UNDERSTANDING THE WORLD BECAUSE WE USED TO BE MORE CONNECTED TO OUR ENVIRONMENT, TO OUR COMMUNITIES."​​