About
Catalin Filip is a Romanian-born, UK-based artist and architect specialising in ceramic art. Growing up in post-communist Romania, Catalin experienced a time of creative tension: newfound freedoms allowed for artistic expression, but limited resources compelled artists to be inventive.
This environment shaped his approach to art, fostering a spirit of experimentation and a deep appreciation for alternative processes. Catalin makes sculptural ceramic lamps and object installations inspired by the natural responses of raw clay to forces such as gravity. By bending, pulling, and stretching the material, he captures the fluidity and movement of clay, transforming it into stone-like finished forms.
His work echoes the organic distortions found in nature, drawing from carved hills, wind-bent trees, and the dynamic forces that shape the natural world. Through his process, he seeks to incorporate hints of “making”, allowing the final piece to reveal traces of its creation.
As a self-taught ceramicist, Catalin approaches clay as a medium for discovery, embracing trial and error to develop innovative techniques that achieve the forms he imagines. His background in architecture adds a complementary focus on structure and design, enabling him to create works that balance artistic expression with functional purpose. Since moving to the UK in 2014, Catalin’s work has reflected his evolving cultural and creative journey.
Over the past year, his pieces have been exhibited internationally, including shows in London, Eindhoven during Dutch Design Week, Bucharest, Athens and Guadalajara in Mexico. These exhibitions highlight the distinctiveness of his practice, which continues to explore clay’s transformative possibilities as a medium for the design narrative.
