Hola, I am Jose Mena, a contemporary figurative ceramic sculptor working at the intersection of clay, ethnographic research, and social change. Born in Spain and shaped by years living in countries like Spain, Sweden, India, Cambodia, Uganda, the Philippines, and now based in the United States, my work is the product of a life in motion, shaped by the cultures I have lived inside, the systems I have studied, and the experiences and contradictions I have moved through and never fully left behind.

Before turning to sculpture, I spent over a decade working as a strategy designer in Human-Centered Design and Social Innovation, collaborating with organizations such as the United Nations, WHO, UNICEF, or Save the Children. I am trained as a product design engineer with a master's in architectural lighting design. I spent over 14 years researching how people navigate complexity, vulnerability, and resilience, working with communities across four continents through ethnographic observation, in-depth interviews, and participatory methods to design innovative solutions to their problems. But now clay became a turning point: a way to move from analysis to embodiment, from data to presence.

I began my sculptural practice in Penland, North Carolina, at Cristina Córdova’s studio, where she has been my principal mentor and an important influence in the development of my practice. I am deeply grateful for what I continue to learn through her guidance, as well as through my courses, conversations, and interactions with the many artists connected to the Center for the Study of Figurative Ceramics.

I believe clay is one of the most democratic and emotionally accessible materials in art. It holds memory, vulnerability, and truth in equal measure. Through sculpture, I translate social issues that touch my heart and those lived realities into form, allowing stories to be felt rather than explained, and making visible what is too often overlooked or silenced.

I bring the quiet power of listening to clay, creating to hold space for complexity. Through material presence, I invite reflection, moving the observer toward empathy and, ultimately, change.