Juana Marta Rodas (February 8, 1925 – August 8, 2013) was a Paraguayan ceramist.
Rodas was born on February 8, 1925, in Itá in the Central Department, a city that is nicknamed the Capital of Ceramics.[1] [2] [3] She died on August 8, 2013.[4]
She was educated in ceramic art by her mother Juana de Jesús Oviedo and grandmother María Balbina Cuevas. Herself, she passed her knowledge to her daughter with whom she worked together great part of her career and who became a known ceramist herself too, Julia Isídrez. Together they held exhibitions internationally and received many international awards.
Rodas' work should be classified as modern art, and is characterized by traditional pottery of the countryside with exotic Jesuit and contemporary techniques. Josefina Pla characterized her work as "micro-sculptures" in her book La cerámica popular Paraguaya.
Art critic and academic Ticio Escobar comprises their art as follows: "one of the most strong and original testimonies of contemporary Paraguayan art, and a tribute to its noble history". Her work can be found in private collections, cultural centers and museums in Paraguay and abroad.
The art of Rodas and Isídrez was shown on many expositions in Paraguay and abroad. Here follows a selection:
Rodas received many awards, greatly together with her daughter Julia Isídrez: