The beautiful tiled sign outside the workshop of Antonio Campos
In a storeroom at Ceramica Santa Ana in Triana, these scales were once used to weigh and cut tiles.
This early 19th-century carved Spanish table is weighed down with stacks of old azulejos in a back storeroom at Ceramica Santa Ana.
For Sunday Scribblings, a tale of an unexpected meeting with Seville´s most lauded tilemaker:
On Friday I read two separate pieces about the famous master tilemaker Antonio Campos - one in a book, the other in a Madrid-based magazine. On Saturday morning, I was walking around Triana, the area across the Guadalquiver River renowned for its azulejos (tiles) and retablos. I walked in and out of several places, asking if they had any antique tiles for sale.
I wandered down a side street, away from the shops and noticed the beautiful sign (pictured above), on the side of a building. A door was open, so I walked into a dimly-lit workroom. Behind a large table a bearded man with curly hair was standing, naked from the waist up, his hands and arms immersed in clay.
"Senor Campos?" I asked. "Si," he nodded. For a moment I was struck dumb. Here was the man I´d been reading about the night before, standing before me, literally, in the flesh! "Me llamo Tara. Soy periodista de Francia," I stammered. (My name is Tara. I am a journalist, from France). He nodded and looked at me expectantly. As my Spanish was limited, I motioned that I wanted to look around his workshop and he nodded and continued working - no doubt thinking, ´who is this mad woman and why is she bothering me?´
While looking around his dusty and crowded workshop - which seemed to be a converted garage, filled with hundreds of moulds and stacks of tiles - I was trying to remember the Spanish words to ask where his azulejos or tiles were sold. But all I could think of was "se vende?" He rattled off a series of sentences, ending with the word ´mercado,´ which I recognized as "store." Then he looked at me expectantly, waiting to see if I would go away. At that moment, a man walked in, obviously an employee. So I mumbled, "gracias" and hurriedly left.
I felt embarrassed by the incident and a little stung by his behaviour, which seemed a bit rude. Then again, if a stranger walked into my ´office,´ interrupting my work, I might be annoyed too. So I walked back to the largest and most elaborate mercado on Triana. As luck would have it, Ceramica Santa Ana, was Sr. Campos´s store! In continuous operation since 1870, it is revered throughout Spain for its exquisite replicas of 16th-century tiles.
When I asked the friendly manager if he had any antique tiles, he said no, but I could look in a back storeroom at stacks of "old ones." Thankfully I was wearing jeans, as I got to climb around the very dusty showroom (where I surreptitiously took some photos) and blow dust and straw off some beautiful old tiles.
As I was waiting to pay for my purchases, a local woman asked me for help in identifying the origin of a particular tile. "No lo se," (I don´t know) I said, but she kept talking to me in Spanish! I just smiled and nodded - the universal response when you have no idea what someone is saying.
I was just happy that after my chance encounter with the master, I took home some of his work!
Wow, great anecdote! Reading about your Spanish adventures is JUST the antidote I needed this morning. Thanks. :)
Posted by: Marilyn | 12 October 2006 at 14:18
Tara, Your posts, your adventures are always so delightful. Thank you for allowing us to live them vicariously through your excellent writing.
Posted by: sundaycynce | 10 October 2006 at 18:49
What a great story! I love your chutzpah!
Posted by: Deborah | 10 October 2006 at 17:56
What a wonderful synchronicity - reading about the master craftsman in two different places and then walking in to his studio and actually meeting him - Kismet. What an adventure you are on my dear!
xo
Posted by: tinker | 10 October 2006 at 07:37
I bet he did think you were going to interview him, or something. Poor Tara! But cool pics. Too bad you didn't snap a picture of him, LOL! ;)
:)
Posted by: Amber | 09 October 2006 at 19:41
P.S. It occurred to me that since you told Campos you were a periodista, may be thought you expected to interview him....without an appointment. It happens when language is a problem!!
Posted by: Colette | 09 October 2006 at 18:59
I was wondering when you would get to the tiles!! It's a wonderful story.
I'm struck by the number of Arabic names -- which of course is normal since it's full of Moorish traces (i.e., Algeciras = al Jazeera).
I'm having a wonderful time experiencing Sevilla vicariously through you.
xoxo
Posted by: Colette | 09 October 2006 at 18:57
Nice!
Posted by: kristen | 09 October 2006 at 18:43
What a wonderful and informative post. The tilemaker really comes across as a character. But what made this post most memorable to me was YOU and the way, you didn't take his rudeness personally, or allow it to dampen your enthusiasm for his work.
Posted by: patry | 09 October 2006 at 17:07
well, your Spanish is obviously coming along, Tara! You have the good reporter's (of course, since you are one!) curiosity and tenacity to get IN there and rummage and peek and ask and then come home and write about it all. So glad you did.
Posted by: Laura | 09 October 2006 at 05:13
What lovely tiles ... and an amazing little story to go with them. You'll remember it always!
Posted by: becca | 09 October 2006 at 04:59
How cool is that? One never knows what one will stumble across if one is out looking! I love the previous photos too.......good for you to be alert, awake and aware to absorb all that Seville has to offer you.
Posted by: awareness | 09 October 2006 at 03:32
wonderful photos for years I thought about trying my hand at making tiles but, I never have
Posted by: harmonyinline | 09 October 2006 at 01:09
What perfect photos!!
did you get a T for Tara?
Smiles!!
Posted by: Sophie | 09 October 2006 at 00:33
Love it when life gives you these wonderful little surprises! Thanks for sharing!
Posted by: JavaCurls | 09 October 2006 at 00:10
Delightful observations... even if your subject was a bit gruff when interrupted.
I would love to see some of Senor Campos work.
Posted by: Autrice | 09 October 2006 at 00:06
excelente
Posted by: Gemma | 08 October 2006 at 23:48
How fortuitous! So many adventures and characters you're meeting- it's great fun sharing them from afar :)
Posted by: Becca | 08 October 2006 at 22:08
Sounds sexy, at least until the language difficulty kicks in! I'm glad you got to complete your tile journey.
Posted by: Michelle | 08 October 2006 at 22:00
These little encounters are what makes travel so wonderful. And you are so brave to be out there and living life.
Posted by: jzr | 08 October 2006 at 21:54
That tiled sign is beautiful - yellow is one of my favourite colours (along with blue - and green, and scarlet, and purple, and...)
It sounds like a great adventure.
Posted by: Catherine | 08 October 2006 at 21:46
I envy your confidence, Tara. I wish I could carry something like that off with half the aplomb that you did!
Posted by: Pacian | 08 October 2006 at 21:37
Tara,
My goodness Tara, what a fantabulous example of serendipity. (Do they have a lottery in Spain? If yes, surely you purchased a ticket?) You are proof that everyday truly is an adventure. Your pictures together with your words tell a wonderful story.
I think there is more than one master craftsman at work here. ;-)
rel
Posted by: rel | 08 October 2006 at 20:40
very cool tiles. me want!
Posted by: AscenderRisesAbove | 08 October 2006 at 20:39
Don't you just love serendipity?
Wonderful post. Thanks for giving us a glimpse into your adventures.
Posted by: Jerri | 08 October 2006 at 19:05