Roberto Lugo Advocates For Social Justice Through Pottery

Roberto Lugo, an activist artist specialized in pottery, visited campus this past Friday to deliver an assembly and host a following pottery demonstration in the evening.Lugo’s assembly focused on how he overcame adversity growing up in one of Philadelphia’s poorest neighborhoods by becoming a nationally acclaimed potter.Lugo received his masters at Pennsylvania State University and has recently accepted a position as a professor of ceramics at Marlboro College. He was nominated as an emerging artist at the NCECA, a national pottery conference, and has spoken at Harvard, Cranbook and Burlington.Collins invited Lugo as a visiting artist.She had met him at the NCECA and was so impressed with his work that she collaborated with OMA, the Assembly committee, WORD and the Art Department to ensure a rewarding and exciting visit.“I was so impressed by his spoken word, pottery and message,” she said. The Assembly committee was similarly inspired by Lugo’s story.Head of the Assembly committee and religion instructor Thomas Simpson said, “He’s got a powerful story to tell about how art has played a redemptive role in his life journey.”

“It was really amazing to see how he worked and how much energy he put into his creations.”

In bringing Lugo to campus, Collins hoped to not only expose students to Lugo’s work but to also press the importance of art as a medium of expression. She said, “I hope that people will see art-making as an outlet and a healthy expression for their anger and convey messages that they would like heard.”The assembly speech opened with a video, which showed Lugo in an abandoned lot, creating a piece of pottery from the objects he had found there. He set the tone for his assembly with a short rap.“You see, I’m not the one who’s gonna tell you how you should feel. You may not know my pain but you know how the sutures feel, like when it rains how a roof would feel,” Lugo recited.He went on to elaborate on how his Puerto-Rican heritage influenced his childhood in Philadelphia. He explained that his family did not have easy access to expensive education, and of his many relatives, he was the only one who had never been incarcerated.“I found myself in a stagnant place in life. [I was] working a menial job, and I just didn’t know what to make out of things,” Lugo said. “I saw myself going down a really bad path, so I moved to Florida and enrolled in a community college.”Lugo explained the influences behind his pieces. His creations tend to be personal and inspired by various events throughout his lifetime.He displayed the image of a teapot he had created adorned with the Confederate flag and explained the significance of the flag in his life. He said that while interacting with his wife’s family from the South, he wondered why their culture could not be reconciled with his own, that of a Puerto Rican from Philadelphia, and decided to throw a piece combining imagery from both traditions. He also showed pictures of a pottery series centered around the gangs the Bloods and the Crips.The assembly was well received by both students and faculty. Many expressed their admiration for his skill and enthusiasm for his speech.“He kept me engaged, and I could really feel the emotions that accompanied his story. I love the way he used pottery as a way of not only expressing his ideas but as a platform to spark discussion,” lower Clara Lee said.Others lauded the continuation of discussions surrounding race facilitated by this assembly.“Roberto’s talk served as a positive example of how to continue our community discussion on issues involving cultural and racial differences,” art instructor Carla Collins said.Many considered his style of delivery and content both unorthodox, thought-provoking and very timely for the Exeter community to consider.“His delivery was very ‘out there’ and provocative, and his message of ‘just talk it out and see other perspectives’ was exactly what we as a school need right now,” said upper Dominique Cantave.Later in the day, Lugo hosted a workshop open to all students. At the event, he threw several pieces of pottery and gave away a few pieces he had previously made. As he threw, he talked about his experiences making ceramic pieces and being an activist. He also emphasized the happiness that pottery gave him and how that joy has encouraged him to continue in his craft. “I qualify things on whether it brings me happiness, and I know that’s really a sort of hippie way to say this, but it’s really important. There’s a point to doing something that brings you bliss,” he said.He passed several examples of his work in various stages around the room so that students could feel how the clay changed as he shaped it. Prep Maddie Potter said she enjoyed the experience.“It was really amazing to see how he worked and how much energy he put into his creations,” she said.Many attendees were impressed and moved by Lugo’s work.Lamont Gallery Director Lauren O’Neal said, “I thought his work was compelling and powerful—it made me rethink representation not just in terms of the ‘face,’ but also in terms of the political assumptions embedded in decorative objects such as pots and platters.”