Entrepreneurs in the Service of Beauty: Juan Sanchez

Juan Sanchez is a young potter from San Juan de Oriente, just outside of Masaya, the cultural center of Nicaragua. My first pottery purchase was a small gem by Juan that I found at the Huembes Mercado in Managua. After finding his signature on the bottom of the pot, I realized I wanted to seek him out and learn more about him!

We had a hard time finding Juan’s workshop, and had to ask 3 or 4 people to point the way. In the end a very nice young man hopped on his bike and led us there. The Sanchez workshop wasn't in the main part of San Juan de Oriente, but on a dirt road to the southwest (now paved!). To get to the small complex of buildings where the family lives and works, we drove over a field called the "deportivos", that looked like it was used for games, such as soccer (futbal) or baseball. On our first trip to find him (in 2005), the family lived in a hodge-podge of huts. By 2007, Juan and his siblings were finding great success, and Juan had built a large cinder block building as his warehouse and workshop!

After finding Juan, we were happy to be able to meet his family – father, mother, sister and brothers. Rosa, his sister was working inside the house, polishing a pot; his brothers, Guillermo and Pedro, were carefully painting and incising the exteriors of several pots. Juan is only 21 years old and is a dynamo. He is clearly the main force in the workshop, although his siblings also sign pots in their own name. Juan showed us his kiln and we talked about the possibility of selling some of his work in the United States. He promised to have 2 original designs of gallery quality for us in 3 weeks, so we planned to be back and hoped to find some very high quality vessels. This was the beginning of a 3 year purchasing relationship with Juan and his family, including his brother Carlos, and his sister Daysis.


Juan’s trademark sytle is distinctive and easy to recognize, although he creates many varieties of vessel forms and additional innovative designs. We have purchased many of his pots, and several of his brother’s, Carlos, and sister's Daysis.

Juan’s notable style consists of swirling geometric patterns, groups of burnt umber triangles in linear, pinwheels and bow-tie formation, intersected by sweeping arcs of deep venetian red. The graceful lines of his surface incised designs complement the varying forms of his vessels, from voluptuously bulbous to pear-shaped to slim and stately.

Juan Sanchez and his family are an example of the entrepreneurial energy that abounds in San Juan de Oriente, although the pace of production is slow and careful. We were delighted to finally find Juan and his talented family!