Pots of Gold
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Isabel Calma (left) accompanies Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda during the latter’s onsite inspection of Terra Cotta Artworks, Inc. (Source: SunStar Pampanga)
She was the dutiful and competent daughter who excelled at her tasks. Working there gave her analytical and organizational skills that would later prove to be beneficial for what was about to happen. But that is getting ahead of her story.
When the company’s roof tiles gained more exposure, international buyers started coming around asking about other products that the factory could produce. The Australian market, in particular, was very interested in terra cotta planters and vessels, which the company was not making at the time.
When the Australians came around inquiring about pots and planters, Isabel realized that her nascent skills could be put to use in other avenues. Energized, she took the leap from the accounts office to potter’s studio to work with her hands making functional objects of art. She was going to make those pots, changing the course of her life.
Made of terracotta clay, painted finish (Photo courtesy of Terra Cotta Artworks, Inc.)
Made of terracotta clay, painted finish (Photo courtesy of Terra Cotta Artworks, Inc.)
Using her own money, she got right into it. Her first year saw many hurdles. It was 1986, she was a young wife and mother of two boys aged 7 and 5. She would drive from Makati to Pampanga every day at the crack of dawn to get things started in her factory. She did everything herself, purchasing the right equipment, aligning a team of artisans, setting up systems and operations, balancing the finances, sourcing a steady and reliable supply of materials, and wooing clients. That was just for starters.
It was exciting, a bit frightening, but there were moments of exhilaration for the young Isabel. She started Terra Cotta Artworks Inc. with 30 employees in her first modest factory that her husband built for her. She took pottery courses to learn the entire process from throwing clay on the wheel to creating a design, and firing the object in a kiln. Product knowledge and preparation were key. But life and the unexpected always happen, and there were curveballs.
The employees of Terra Cotta Artworks Inc.
In 1991, Mt. Pinatubo in Central Luzon, an active volcano straddling the provinces of Zambales, Pampanga, and Tarlac erupted, the 20th century’s second largest volcanic eruption. Isabel’s Pampanga factory and all its auxiliary operations had to be relocated entirely. She wasn’t prepared for this setback, but she persisted in finding a new location for her displaced workers to start working again. Resilient, she found a new workplace.in San Simon, Pampanga. With this reset, Terra Cotta Artworks prospered, with representations in reputable international trade fairs.
But another curveball caught the world totally unprepared, with the grim Covid pandemic forcing lockdowns and isolation from 2019 through 2022. Once again, Isabel and her employees hunkered down for the worst. Yet, a silver lining unexpectedly appeared. Online customers, anxious and sequestered in their homes, took to houseplants and indoor gardening, and noticed Terra Cotta Artworks’ pots and planters. Ironically, those proved to be very good years with the volume of orders rising.
Isabel’s company now employs 400 employees in a large factory. She supplies the beautifully handcrafted and painted pots one sees in Pottery Barn, West Elm, Crate & Barrel, Williams Sonoma and Target. She intends to remain with a workforce of artisans and will not fully mechanize, encouraging her designers to come up with organic effects. She has to balance keeping the nobility of hand-made crafts and meeting some of the strictest global regulatory and industry standards.
These days Isabel doesn’t drive herself to the factory at the crack of dawn anymore to keep it going; she has positioned her company to remain competitive in an ever-evolving global marketplace. She has also found some time to do other enjoyable things like managing her restaurant, Gallery by Chele in Bonifacio Global City, and launching another restaurant, Asador Alfonso in Alfonso, Cavite.
Made of terracotta clay, painted finish (Photo courtesy of Terra Cotta Artworks, Inc.)
Made of terracotta clay, painted finish (Photo courtesy of Terra Cotta Artworks, Inc.)
“Discipline, patience, hard work, perseverance, these are proven values I live by to achieve goals and make things happen. They go hand in hand with my work ethic and give fulfillment to my journey as an entrepreneur. I take pride in seeing our designs in the showrooms and shelves of renowned retail stores in the US. I feel happy and fulfilled that I am able to provide work for families, elevating their talents and skills, giving them room to better themselves and have that global standard mindset.”
Terra Cotta Artworks Inc. continues to blaze its path to the future. With demand for pottery and ceramics rising due to the growing global hospitality and home construction sectors, Isabel’s company is poised to bring environmental and socially compliant artistry to an even wider market.
Glenna Aquino is a Filipino writer and journalist who has written about arts, travel, culture and business for the Philippine Daily Inquirer. She was Asia Pacific Contributing Editor for the Middle East art journal : Art Bahrain. Her writing has been shaped by her various experiences of living in different parts of the world. She now lives in Manila and writes for the online magazine The Diarist.ph.
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