The Gabarrón ceramics and pottery workshop was founded in 1989 in Guadix, a town with a potting tradition of over five centuries.

Juan Manuel Gabarrón works clay by hand and crafts traditional objects on a wheel, preserving the ornamental forms of Guadix’s ceramic tradition. He also… takes orders for special pottery, such as atanor conical water pipes or objects of particular shapes or sizes, as well as performing restorations and making replicas of ceramic artefacts.

One of the tasks most in demand in his workshop is the decoration of plates, dishes and bowls with traditional Granadan techniques and motifs. He also specialises in ornamental mural ceramics, decorative plaques for street names or public information, and the modelling of figures and statues.

Gabarrón also keeps up the tradition of the ornate Guadix jug, a unique local artefact whose manufacture was recovered by the master potter Miguel Cabrerizo in the 1970s. These jugs have been used by the Spanish royal family when entertaining distinguished foreign visitors.

As an innovation in the trade, objects are now fired in an electric or diesel-oil kiln, making the firing process easier to control. Machines are also used for recycling and kneading clay, making the task quicker and easier than when it was done wholly by hand.