Art is Hard
ArtistsGear
Categories
PaintingPhotographyFilmSculpturePrintmakingMixed MediaIllustrationCeramicsStreet Art
Log inSign up

Art is Hard

Good gear helps.

Browse

ArtistsGearCategories

Account

Log inSign upWishlist
AboutNo Ads PledgePrivacy PolicyTerms of ServiceFeedbackContact

This site contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission when you purchase through links on this site, at no extra cost to you. Learn more in our Terms of Service.

© 2026 Art Is Hard Co.

Artists
Roberto Lugo

Take Magaine, Roberto Lugo

Roberto Lugo

CeramicistStreet Artist
American·b. 1981·Website ↗
Known for:
Hand-thrown ceramic vessels merging classical pottery forms with graffiti, hip-hop culture, and portraits of Black and Latino figures
Education:
Kansas City Art Institute (BFA, 2012); Pennsylvania State University (MFA, 2014)

Roberto Lugo is a Philadelphia-based ceramicist, social activist, and educator born in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia to working-class Puerto Rican parents. He began as a graffiti artist before discovering pottery at a community college in Florida, going on to earn a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute and an MFA from Penn State. His hand-thrown vessels, including teapots, urns, and ginger jars, merge classical European and Asian ceramic traditions with hip-hop imagery and portraits of historically underrepresented Black and Latino figures. He is an Assistant Professor at Tyler School of Art and Architecture at Temple University and has received the Rome Prize, a Pew Fellowship, and the Heinz Award.

Roberto Lugo's Gear List(5)

Porcelain Clay
Porcelain Clay

Generic

Connection Source
ThemarksprojectWebsite
↗

Connection note

Works primarily with porcelain for refined vessels with china paint and luster decoration.

Product description

High-fire clay body composed primarily of kaolin, firing between 1200 and 1400C. Porcelain produces a translucent, vitrified body with a distinctive white color and smooth surface. It is less forgiving than stoneware and requires precise moisture control during throwing and drying.

Know something Roberto Lugo uses that's not listed?

Log in to submit

Related artists

SK

Shio Kusaka

Ceramicist
Theaster Gates

Theaster Gates

Ceramicist

Last updated March 22, 2026

Buy on Blick Art Materials ↗
Stoneware Clay
Stoneware Clay

Generic

Connection Source
SiWebsite
↗

Connection note

Uses stoneware for cups and larger vessels alongside porcelain.

Product description

Mid- to high-fire clay body that matures between Cone 6 and Cone 10 (roughly 1200-1300C). Denser and less porous than earthenware after firing, stoneware is used for functional pottery and sculptural work requiring structural strength.

Buy on Blick Art Materials ↗
Ceramic Underglazes
Ceramic Underglazes

Generic

Connection Source
ThenevicaprojectWebsite
↗

Connection note

Uses underglazes for painting designs before glaze firing on his narrative vessels.

Product description

Colored ceramic coatings applied to bisqueware or greenware before glaze firing. Underglazes contain ceramic pigments suspended in a clay-based medium and retain their color through the glaze firing, allowing detailed painting and decoration under a transparent glaze layer.

Buy on Blick Art Materials ↗
Gold Lustre
Gold Lustre

Generic

Connection Source
InterviewmagazineWebsite
↗

Connection note

Gold and silver luster glazes are a signature element of his "gilded" aesthetic on classical pottery forms.

Product description

Metallic overglaze containing suspended gold particles, fired at low temperatures (Cone 018 to 020, roughly 680-700C) to produce a thin gold surface on glazed ceramics. Applied as a final decoration after all other firings are complete.

Buy on Blick Art Materials ↗
Pottery Wheel
Pottery Wheel

Generic

Connection Source
RobertolugostudioWebsite
↗

Connection note

Lugo is primarily a wheel thrower, hand-throwing teapots, urns, and ginger jars on the pottery wheel.

Product description

Motorized or kick-driven wheel used for throwing clay vessels. Electric wheels with variable speed control are standard in contemporary studios.

Buy on Blick Art Materials ↗
Simone Leigh

Simone Leigh

Sculptor
Grayson Perry

Grayson Perry

Ceramicist
Edmund de Waal

Edmund de Waal

Ceramicist
Sterling Ruby

Sterling Ruby

Painter